A growing supply gap in heat pump and HVAC technicians is increasing the risk of a bottleneck in statewide building retrofit and decarbonization efforts that are critical to meeting the Commonwealth’s climate goals.
With the construction of the Vineyard Wind 1 project well underway and Massachusetts planning to procure thousands of additional megawatts of offshore wind energy, there is an increasingly urgent need to ensure that we have a qualified, well-trained, safe and equitable workforce to plan, build, operate, and maintain these projects.
The Energy Social Science Research Projects (E-SSRP) will support social science research that investigates the social and cultural contexts of energy systems and energy transition. Projects funded by this solicitation will contribute to the interdisciplinary field of energy social science, build meaningful engagement with disadvantaged communities, and produce policy-relevant knowledge that can support NYSERDA’s efforts to advance an inclusive clean energy transition.
Through the three phases of the prize, teams have the chance to win part of the $8.42 million prize pool to fund their ongoing activities that address local challenges in clean energy, energy efficiency, manufacturing, materials, and transportation. Successful competitors will demonstrate a strong track record of building trust and strengthening relationships and partnerships within their communities. The Community Energy Innovation Prize is made up of three tracks, each with distinct focus areas, over three phases:
The Energy Innovator Fellowship (EIF) program funds recent graduates and energy professionals to support critical energy organizations in advancing solutions that will help modernize the power system, improve energy infrastructure for transportation and industry, and make the U.S. power system more reliable, affordable, and resilient. The program recruits candidates from varied educational and professional backgrounds to spend up to two years at eligible Host Institutions. Applications for prospective host institutions are currently open.
The Carbon Utilization Procurement Grants program will help offset 50% of the costs to states, local governments, and public utilities or agencies to procure and use products developed through the conversion of captured carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide emissions. The commercial or industrial products to be procured and used under these grants must demonstrate a significant net reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to incumbent products via a life cycle analysis (LCA). The LCAs are checked for conformance and approved by DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL).
The CSCI is pleased to be able to provide grants to climate adaptation professionals to create or advance a climate resilience plan or project in collaboration with a community that is on the front lines of the climate crisis. The community should be represented in the application and effort by a community-based organization and a local, regional or Tribal government entity, as defined below. The proposed work can cover any step in the Steps to Resilience framework, and can be a new or ongoing collaboration. The funds can be used for a range of activities depending on the needs of the community, including climate vulnerability and risk analyses, planning processes, community engagement, project prioritization, and/or the implementation of projects.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) Clean Energy Education Prize Round 2 Inspire Track aims to advance clean energy programming opportunities for younger students and clean energy connections for historically Black Colleges and Universities. The goal is to inspire HBCU-hosted summer or academic break educational programs that engage K–12 and community college students in clean energy topics. The Inspire Track supports the development or expansion of HBCU-hosted clean energy summer or academic break programs for K-12 and community college students. These programs will help explain basic concepts of clean energy technologies and illuminate possible clean energy educational and career pathways for students.
The Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant program makes federal funds available to states, U.S. territories, federally recognized tribal governments , and local governments for hazard mitigation activities. It does so recognizing the growing hazards associated with climate change , and the need for natural hazard risk mitigation activities that promote climate adaptation and resilience with respect to those hazards. These include both acute extreme weather events and chronic stressors which have been observed and are expected to increase in intensity and frequency in the future. The BRIC program’s guiding principles include supporting communities through capability and capacity-building; encouraging and enabling innovation, including multi-hazard resilience or nature-based solutions including the use of native plants; promoting partnerships; enabling large, systems-based projects; maintaining flexibility; and providing consistency. Through these efforts communities are able to better understand disaster risk and vulnerabilities, conduct community-driven resilience, hazard mitigation planning, and design transformational projects and programs.
This resource bank is intended to connect frontline community groups, nonprofits, policymakers, and businesses to materials relevant to accessing federal infrastructure funding. It comprises toolkits, networks, technical assistance, and links to relevant funding resources that center community. There is currently a vast amount of information available to meet this once-in-a-generation moment. Partners in the Communities First Infrastructure Alliance compiled this evolving list of go-to resources to help communities sift through some of that information.
Pre-development grants of up to $300,000 will be awarded over the course of multiple application rounds. The first round of Climate United NEXT grants will support clean energy projects in Native communities and will be open to non-profit organizations, state and local government entities, Indian tribes, and Institutions of Higher Education (IHE). In 2025, Climate United will have additional rounds focused on other underserved market segments.
The 2025 competition offers $75,000 to $150,000 in prize awards during two stages to organizations to accelerate the growth and maturity of innovation ecosystems. Stage One offers $75,000 in cash prizes to organizations that identify challenges within their innovation ecosystems and propose unique solutions. The SBA encourages submissions from a broad range of organizations with a collaborative vision to nurture a national ecosystem for equitable access to entrepreneurship. Applicants are asked to align their application with one of the following GAFC Theme Areas: Lab-to-Market and Capital Formation.
