Request for Applications for Urban Trees Mini Grant (Maryland)

The Urban Trees Mini Grant Program provides funding for small tree planting projects in urban, underserved areas across Maryland.

Donor Name: Chesapeake Bay Trust

State: Maryland

County: All Counties

Type of Grant: Grant

Deadline: All Time

Size of the Grant: $1000 to $10,000

Grant Duration: 1 Year

Details:

The Chesapeake Bay Trust (Trust) is a nonprofit, grant-making organization dedicated to improving the bays, streams, rivers, forests, parks, and other natural resources of local systems, from the Chesapeake to the Coastal Bays to the Youghiogheny River. Since 1985, the Trust has awarded over $190 million in grants to municipalities, nonprofit organizations, schools, and public agencies throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

The goal of the Urban Trees Mini Grant Program is to green communities; enhance quality of life, human health, and community livability by improving air quality and reducing urban heat island effect; and mitigate some of the effects of climate change in urban, underserved areas. The Urban Trees Mini Grant Program empowers communities with resources to plant trees, and thereby transform their neighborhoods into healthier, greener environments for current and future generations.

Funding Information

Grants of up to $10,000.

Grant Period

Trees funded by Urban Trees Mini Grants must be planted within 12 months upon receipt of the award and receive two years of maintenance post-planting.

Eligible Project Expenses

Proposals to the Urban Tree Mini Grant Program may request costs from two categories of funding detailed below.

Costs Associated Directly with Tree Planting Activities
- Funds in this category may be used for supplies, site preparation, personnel costs, and other expenses and materials related to planning, implementing, and maintaining tree planting projects in underserved areas (as per statute). Specific eligible expenses in this category include those in the categories of project readiness (outreach and engagement activities to identify sites and engage residents/landowners); site readiness (tree pit creation, stump removal, etc.); tree planting (costs of trees, labor to plant the trees, tree shelters, mulch, and other materials); and tree maintenance. Funds in this category cannot be used for food or other plant material. If you plan to sub-contract work (e.g., hire an entity to plant or water the trees), the Trust recommends that you solicit estimates from at least three consultants or contractors. Funds in this category are provided by the State of Maryland and governed by statute.
Costs Associated with Community Needs that Indirectly Support Greening Activities
- Applicants pursuing tree planting projects through this grant program may request a limited amount of funds for expenses not directly related to tree planting activities as listed above but for activities related to community needs associated with the spaces that cannot be supported by State funds. A wide range of activities may fall into this category. Examples include:
  - Costs needed to convene people and groups that cannot be covered by State funds such as food;
  - Community revitalization elements that incorporate other plant material;
  - Costs associated with community meetings around public safety; and
  - Youth education needs associated with the physical space identified for tree planting.