The Environmental Justice Data Fund (EJDF or “the Fund”) is an $9 million fund, created and seeded by Google.org, that aims to help frontline communities that have been historically underserved and disproportionately impacted by climate change and environmental injustice.
Donor Name: Environmental Justice Data Fund (EJDF)
State: All States
County: All Counties
Territory: American Samoa, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and U.S. Virgin Islands
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 10/31/2022
Size of the Grant:
- Large Grants Pot: $100,000, $250,000, and $500,000
- Small Grants Pot: $25,000 and $50,000
Grant Duration: 2 years
Details:
The Fund will enable frontline communities in the United States to use data to unlock resources, increase their access to Justice40 benefits and federal infrastructure funding, and advocate for new policies that empower communities to address past environmental harm and pave the way to a more sustainable, climate-resilient future.
The Fund will consider a broad range of approaches to using data to advocate for environmental justice at the local and regional level. It will provide organizations with flexible project funding to increase their organizational capacity to incorporate quality data work into their environmental and climate justice programming.
Environmental Justice: The US Environmental Protection Agency defines environmental justice as the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. This goal will be achieved when everyone enjoys the same degree of protection from environmental and health hazards, and equal access to the decision-making process to have a healthy environment in which to live, learn, and work.
Data: The Fund defines data work as efforts ranging from building organizational capacity for data work to implementing research and data-related projects. This includes research planning, scenario planning, data collection, data analysis, and data visualization, among other efforts. Funded projects can be at any stage from nascent to advanced work.
Grant Amounts and Duration
Given the Fund’s desire to distribute grants to nonprofits quickly and the high volume of grants it anticipates making, it will offer applicants the opportunity to choose a grant amount from five tiers.
- Large Grants Pot: $100,000, $250,000, and $500,000 grants; and
- Small Grants Pot: $25,000 and $50,000 grants.
The Fund will allow one-time grants to last up to two years, and each applicant will be able to define the desired duration of the grant within that range. Regardless of the duration of the grant, grantees will receive funds in one installment in 2022.
What the fund will support
The Fund aims to provide one-time flexible project support for:
Data
Proposals for targeted data projects that meet the following broad parameters:
- Stage: Projects ranging from nascent to advanced
- Purpose: Projects ranging from building organizational capacity for data work to implementing research
- Activities: Projects including research planning, scenario planning, data collection, data analysis, and/or data visualization, among other activities
Environmental Justice
Proposals for data projects that:
- Will use data work to mitigate past environmental harm and improve future resilience to climate change
- Serve communities that have been historically underserved and disproportionately impacted by climate change and environmental injustice, including Black, Latino/a/x/e, Indigenous, Tribal, Southern, rural, and low-income communities
Collaboration
Proposals that strengthen collaboration among:
- Local experts
- Researchers
- Technologists
- Scientists
- And/or between organizations
Criteria
Environmental justice organizations the Fund will support must:
- Be located in the United States (this includes all states, the federal district, territories, and outlying islands)
- Meet at least one of the following requirements:
- Have 501(c)(3) legal status
- Be fiscally sponsored by an organization with 501(c)(3) legal status
- Be a fiscal sponsor with 501(c)(3) legal status applying on behalf of a project
- Be a federally recognized Indian tribe, or organized under Section 17 of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934
- Aim to create a local social and/or environmental impact
- Center the perspectives of frontline communities, especially those with Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) leadership
- Have established credibility in the communities they serve
Additionally, the organizations can:
- Serve communities that have been historically underserved and disproportionately impacted by climate change and environmental injustice (preferred)
- Be anywhere on their data journey, from starting to develop a data strategy to already entering the late-stage implementation phase of data work
- Implement their program at a local, regional, or national level, so long as those efforts lead to localized impact
- Operate as standalone organizations, as part of network hubs, or as coalitions of multiple organizations partnering on a single project.
For more information, visit Environmental Justice Data Fund (EJDF) Grant.
