Urban Agriculture and Innovation Production
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Urban Agriculture and Innovation Production
About
The Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production (UAIP) Competitive Grants Program is to support the development of urban agriculture and innovative built design that improves neighborhoods within the time frame of 1-3 years. Two grant types are supported: Planning Projects and Implementation Projects. Planning Projects support the development of projects that will either initiate, build upon, or expand the efforts of farmers, gardeners, citizens, government officials, schools, members of tribal communities, and other stakeholders in areas where access to fresh foods are limited or unavailable. Implementation Projects are for accelerating existing and emerging models of urban and/or innovative agricultural practices that serve multiple farmers or gardeners. Innovation may include new and emerging, as well as traditional or indigenous, agricultural practices.
Eligible Uses
Production-related expenses such as materials, supplies and other costs related to community gardens and farms; rooftop farms, outdoor vertical production, and green walls; indoor farms, greenhouses, and high-tech vertical technology farms; hydroponic, aeroponic, and aquaponic farm facilities; and other innovations in agricultural production.
Purchase, lease or rental of special purchase equipment, vehicles, land, and building space.
Activities that encourage and promote urban, indoor, and other emerging agricultural practices.
Construction such as building a permanent or a non-permanent, temporary or moveable.
Contractual costs including labor such as a consultant, architect or other professional service.
Personnel costs.
Grant Award
Planning
Minimum: $50,000
Maximum: $250,000
Implementation:
Minimum: $75,000
Maximum: $350,000
Eligible
Recipients
Native American tribal governments, nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status, and independent school districts
Restrictions
Unknown
Due Date
March 27, 2023. This grant has been repeated previously.
Agency
Department of Agriculture
Link
Materials Needed
Unknown
Application Difficulty
Unknown
Promoting environmental justice is central to improving safety in communities, as well as addressing long-standing racial inequities. Across the United States, many more people die each year from air pollution than from all homicides combined. Our poorest communities are those most exposed to climate-related disasters. Access to green spaces and restoring vacant land have all been shown to reduce many types of violent crime. Green jobs create financial security now while building environmental safety now and in the future. These environmental investments have been shown to improve public safety. Improving air quality has been shown to decrease crime rates. And access to green spaces and restoring vacant land have all been shown to reduce many types of violent crime.
The bottom-line is simple: investing in environmental goals can help advance racial and economic justice while also creating a more sustainable planet.
Over the years, research has shown that basic investments in built design—in streetlights, parks, road design, public transportation, and addressing vacant lots—has significant implications for community safety. Decades of criminology research has found a link between built design and residents’ safety. This growing body of literature should influence how urban planners and local policymakers leverage our most basic resource: the design of our physical space.
Overall, the design of urban spaces has been shown to have crime-reducing effects. Recent studies in multiple jurisdictions, including Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Youngstown, have found that maintaining green space reduces certain types of crime. A rigorous study found that restoring vacant land in cities significantly improves both local residents’ perception of their safety, as well as their actual physical safety. Restoration projects produced large reductions in crime, including a 30 percent reduction in gun violence. Increasing public transportation options for residents has a direct effect on economic opportunities, while reducing certain types of crime, and reducing traffic congestion may lower rates of domestic violence in areas with high congestion. In New York City, research demonstrated that streetlights can reduce “index crimes”—including murder, robbery, aggravated assault, and some property crimes—by more than a third. And improving streets and sidewalks so that they enhance pedestrian safety has been shown to reduce crime.
In short, the evidence makes clear that by carefully considering our physical space and letting community members drive improvements that they feel to keep them safe, we can make significant progress toward reducing violence and other harms.
Grants.Gov Resources
Applicant Training Videos (step-by-step guide on how to find grants, set up an account on grants.gov, and submit an application)
Applicant FAQ page
Other Resources
Community Toolbox’s Applying For Grants Toolkit (Outline of process + example applications)
Q: What is community safety?
A: We use the term “community safety” as well as “non-carceral safety” to indicate an approach to reducing violence and harm that invests in people over punishment. This can include unarmed civilian first responders and community violence prevention, but must also center preventative and root-caused focused solutions such as investments in schools, healthcare, and the environment. These solutions not only create holistic safety by improving well-being, they have been directly tied to reductions in violence.
Q: How do the grants in the American Rescue Plan and other recent bills fit into this database?
A: This database contains grants contained both in specific legislation (like the American Rescue Plan Act, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs act, and the Inflation Reduction act) but it focuses primarily on grants funded annually through the federal budget process. Please see our resources specifically on ARPA and IIJA for more information on funding opportunities in those bills.
Q: Where should I go if I have additional questions?
A: Feel free to reach out to samwashington@civilrightscorps.org with questions or comments. If you’d like to suggest a grant, please fill out this form.