The MSI Contract Readiness Prize is a one-phase capacity building prize that aims to boost equity across the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) contracting for small, medium, and large Historically Black Colleges (HBCUs), Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs), and other Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), including Asian American, Native American, Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs), and Predominantly Black Institutions (PBIs). This prize builds on the successes of the Biden Administration’s Justice40 Initiative that is working toward environmental justice for all Americans by involving MSIs as key strategic partners.

Training programs funded by the Brownfields Job Training Grant provide program graduates with the opportunity to seek and obtain environmental jobs that contractors may otherwise fill from outside the affected community. EPA intends to use this grant opportunity to support the creation of good-paying jobs with the free and fair choice to join a union and the incorporation of strong labor standards and workforce programs. Brownfields Job Training Grants help residents take advantage of jobs across a spectrum of brownfield related activities, including the assessment, cleanup, remediation, and planning/site preparation for the revitalization of brownfields. This can involve the assessment and cleanup of solid and hazardous waste; chemical risk management; stormwater management relating to site cleanup; planning and site preparation for low impact development activities; planning and site preparation for green infrastructure installation and maintenance; and vulnerability assessment and contamination mitigation planning. Applicants will be evaluated on the extent to which they partner with and secure hiring commitments from local contractors and other stakeholders in communities where EPA-funded projects are located.

The Federal and State Technology (FAST) Partnership Program provides funding to organizations to execute state/regional programs that increase the number of SBIR/STTR proposals leading to an increase in the number of SBIR/STTR awards from women, socially/economically disadvantaged individuals, and small businesses in underrepresented areas – typically rural states.

FAST awards build the SBIR/STTR ecosystem through:

Outreach: increase the pipeline of SBIR/STTR applicants through training and outreach; and build the capacity of partner organizations and individuals to support SBIR/STTR applicants and existing awardees.

Technical and business assistance: support entrepreneurs and startups through programs or services that improve proposal development and team creation; provide assistance that leads to the commercialization of technology developed through SBIR/STTR program funding; and form or encourage relevant mentoring networks to provide business advice and counseling.

Financial support: make grants or loans to applicants to pay a portion or all the cost of developing SBIR/STTR proposals (Phase 0), attending relevant conferences, and bridging gaps between phases.

The U.S. National Science Foundation seeks to build research capacity and infrastructure to address complex and compounding national and global crises whose solutions require a human-centered approach. To help generate effective and long-lasting solutions that benefit the entire U.S. public, NSF is providing this funding opportunity to inform possible future Centers for Research and Innovation in Science, the Environment and Society (CRISES). The envisioned centers will catalyze new research and research-based innovations to address seemingly intractable problems that confront our society. They will develop evidence-based solutions that address fundamental quality-of-life issues, such as those involving the environment, extreme weather and sustainability; workforce and the economy; equity and access to opportunities; and well-being. CRISES supports planning proposals to catalyze ideas that will potentially inform or serve as the basis for a larger, center-scale program. This opportunity supports researchers in the social, behavioral and economic sciences who use empirical methods to grapple with crises that impact individuals, families, organizations, regions, nations or our entire planet. The Centers for Research in Science, the Environment and Society initiative invites proposals to take the first steps toward developing large-scale interdisciplinary research activities that will address today’s crises and ultimately enhance people’s quality of life. NSF’s Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences Directorate supports research to understand the social and behavioral aspects of our rapidly changing world and how these issues are affected by our social, economic and natural environments. Fundamental and use-inspired research supported by the directorate advances our understanding of people, organizations and society, while revealing emerging opportunities to address challenges affecting our ability to live healthy and productive lives.

This program was designed to assist 1994 Land-Grant Institutions (Tribal Colleges) in building institutional research capacity through applied projects that address student educational needs and meet community, reservation or regional challenges. Awards are to be made on the basis of a competitive review process. Collaboration with 1862 or 1890 Land-Grant Institutions, the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS), a Non-Land-Grant College of Agriculture (NLGCA), or at least one forestry school funded under the McIntire-Stennis Cooperative Forestry Research Program is a requirement. Eligible institutions may propose projects in any discipline of the food, agricultural or natural resource sciences.

Subject to the legislative authority described in Part I, A and the availability of funds, the Secretary of Agriculture may award competitive grants to 1994s to conduct agricultural research that addresses high priority concerns of tribal, national, or multi-state significance. The TCRGP is aligned with the following:
USDA Strategic Plan FY 2022-2026 Goals:

1. Strategic Goal 1: Combat Climate Change to Support America’s Working Lands, Natural Resources and Communities
2. Strategic Goal 3: Foster an Equitable and Competitive Marketplace for All Agricultural Producers
3. Strategic Goal 4: Provide All Americans Safe, Nutritious Food
4. Strategic Goal 5: Expand Opportunities for Economic Development and Improve Quality of Life in Rural and Tribal Communities

USDA Science and Research Strategy, 2023–2026 priorities:
Priority 1: Accelerating Innovative Technologies & Practices;
Priority 2: Driving Climate-Smart Solutions;
Priority 3: Bolstering Nutrition Security & Health;
Priority 4: Cultivating Resilient Ecosystems;
Priority 5: Translating Research into Action

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Regional Energy Democracy Initiative (REDI) is a technical assistance and capacity building program intended to help communities meaningfully engage in the design and implementation of community benefits associated with DOE funded projects in Texas and Louisiana in the U.S. Gulf South region. The regional consortium will be comprised of a institution of higher education (preferably a Minority Serving Institution (MSI)), non-profit organizations, labor organizations, legal services, and philanthropic groups working together to support the implementation of CBPs, in Texas and Louisiana.

The SMART program was established to provide grants to eligible public sector agencies to conduct demonstration projects focused on advanced smart community technologies and systems in order to improve transportation efficiency and safety. SMART is a two-stage program. Stage 1(up to $2,000,000 dollars and 18 months) grants are open for any eligible entity to apply. Recipients of Stage 1 grants will be eligible to expand their projects through Stage 2 grants (up to $15,000,000 and 36 months). Applicants must have received a Stage 1 grant to apply to Stage 2.

DOE’s Office of Energy Justice and Equity administers the Low-Income Communities Bonus Credit Program in partnership with the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the IRS. The program prioritizes:

• Increased adoption of and access to renewable energy facilities in underserved and environmental justice communities.
• Encouraging new market participants.
• Providing substantial benefits to underserved communities and individuals who have been historically marginalized from economic opportunities and overburdened by environmental impacts.

The bonus credit provides a 10 or 20 percentage point increase to the investment tax credit for qualified solar and wind energy facilities with a maximum net output of less than five megawatts (AC). DOE will review applications and make recommendations to the IRS, which will allocate to up to 1.8 gigawatts (GW) of eligible solar and wind capacity per year.

mPOWER programs are designed to rebalance opportunity and access for startups building physical products that are founded by women and people of color. Harnessing the existing resources of the nation’s leading independent innovation center for physical product companies, each participant receives hands-on support to turn ideas into hardtech businesses. To be eligible for the next mPOWER cohort, you must have a clear problem that you are solving with a physical product, be building a product or business that impacts the Black community, and can dedicate 7-10 hours a week during the 6-month program beginning in August 2024.

Evergreen Climate Innovations works with Nicor Gas to support entrepreneurs who are making a positive environmental impact throughout Illinois. Recipients of the Nicor Gas Multicultural Innovator Award receive a non-recourse grant of $25,000, 12-months of business mentorship from Nicor Gas and Evergreen Climate Innovations, and heightened exposure to both investors and potential customers.

The U.S. Bank Foundation Cleantech Inclusion Award is a grant awarded to entrepreneurs who identify as socially and/or economically disadvantaged and who are building innovative companies that benefit the environment, create jobs, and drive economic development.  Recipients of the Cleantech Inclusion Award receive a non-recourse grant of $25,000, 12-months of business mentorship from U.S. Bank Foundation and Evergreen Climate Innovations, and heightened exposure to both investors and potential customers.

DOE announced a Request for Proposals (RFP) for up to $200 million for transmission projects to connect remote and isolated microgrids to existing infrastructure corridors in Alaska, Hawaii, and the territories of the United States. One of three unique funding mechanisms within the TFP, the public-private partnerships developed through this RFP will be designed to address the unique electric grid configurations and challenges faced by residents in these remote and often isolated communities. Strategic interconnection of existing microgrids to each other and to a larger operating transmission system will enhance grid reliability and resilience and expand access to clean, diverse, and more affordable energy in these areas.