Madison Awarded National Grant for Community Sustainability

Partners for Places - a project of the Funders’ Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities has selected Madison as one of eight cities to receive $25,000 as part of their nationally competitive grant program.

Partners for Places, The City of Madison, Sustain Dane and local funders have come together to support smART [sustainability + madison +art], a project that engages residents in four South Madison neighborhoods in defining and pursuing sustainability goals for their neighborhoods. smART creatively weaves together community building through conversation, art-making, place-making and a summer leadership workshop series, in collaboration with Centro Hispano, Center for Resilient Cities, and MGE, to capture residents’ collective vision for sustainability and take tangible steps to get us there. Through Sustain Dane’s partnership with DAMA (Dane Arts Mural Arts), neighbors transform their visions of sustainability into large community murals. This project not only aligns sustainability work across neighborhoods but also City of Madison Sustainability Goals.

Local foundations supporting this project include: CUNA Mutual Foundation, National Guardian Life Insurance, American Family Insurance, Zendesk Neighborhood Foundation, Summit Credit Union, David S. Bourne Foundation, and Madison Community Foundation Donors including the Frances Hurst Neighborhood Fund.

City of Madison Sustainability Goals this project advances:

• "Support neighborhood community building by sponsoring community and school gardens and other outdoor activities"
• "Integrate environmental sustainability into Madison’s arts program and art and design into the City’s sustainability efforts"
• "Ensure that all Madison residents have access to meeting daily needs (e.g., food, health care, employment, open space/parks or recreational opportunities, and education) within 1/2 mile of residence or within 1/2 mile of public transit access."
• "Collaborate with non-profits, neighborhood groups and environmental organizations on efforts to improve sustainability awareness and action."

About Sustain Dane:
Vision: To establish the Greater Madison Region as a national model for sustainability & sustainability innovation.

Mission: To foster a rich and diverse community of sustainability champions.

Sustain Dane is a Madison based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Since 1997, we have been a key influencer in making our region more vibrant and healthier for all. Sustain Dane’s current programs include: smART; MPower Champions Program (coaching businesses to attain sustainable operations);

Sustainable Business Network (peer-to-peer sharing of best practices); Step up (workshop series promoting equity in the workplace); Badger Bioneers (forum of business, academic, and civic leaders envisioning a sustainable future); Growing Outdoor Classrooms Program (promoting sustainability in schools through gardens and curriculum). www.sustaindane.org

The eight cities selected for Partners for Places grants are:

• Blacksburg, Va., $83,750 to launch an energy retrofit program in homes of lower-income older adults in Blacksburg and the New River Valley in order to extend their independence and expand adoption of energy efficiency practices. (Partner: The Community Foundation of the New River Valley)
• Chula Vista, Calif., $67,500 to help move the community to the next level of water management and resiliency through water reuse opportunities in the face of persistent and long-term drought facing the region and state. (Partner: The San Diego Foundation)
• Cincinnati, Ohio, $105,000 to enhance and strengthen Cincinnati’s regional food system through civic engagement, new policies, and creation of a Cincy Food Fund and food fellowships. (Partners: The Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile, Jr./U.S. Bank Foundation; Interact for Health)
• Madison, Wis., $25,000 to utilize the arts and community organizing to empower residents of diverse neighborhoods to identify and pursue neighborhood sustainability goals. (Partners: CUNA Mutual Foundation, National Guardian Life Insurance, American Family Insurance, Zendesk Neighborhood Foundation, Summit Credit Union, David S. Bourne Foundation, Madison Community Foundation Donors including the Frances Hurst Neighborhood Fund.)
• New Bedford, Mass., $39,000 to increase food security in New Bedford and advance the Sustaining New Bedford Plan goals by promoting use of the SNAP benefits program at city farmers’ markets and enhancing engagement with community gardens. (Partners: Island Foundation; Rainy Day Fund/Community Foundation of Southeastern Massachusetts; The Upstream Foundation)
• Seattle, Wash., $75,000 to create opportunities for all residents, especially people of color, immigrants, refugees, low-income, and those with limited-English proficiency, to fully participate in and benefit from Seattle’s environmental progress. (Partners: Bullitt Foundation; The Seattle Foundation; The Russell Family Foundation; Loom Foundation; Social Venture Partners Seattle)
• Stamford, Conn., $75,000 to activate the Stamford 2030 District, a resilient, high-performance building district in downtown Stamford with goals to dramatically reduce demand for energy and water resources and increase resiliency by 2030. (Partner: Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation)
• Vancouver, B.C., $50,000 to support Vancouver’s Upcycle Design Project, which seeks to catalyze the shift to integrated materials recovery and reuse, and green economy jobs in Vancouver’s design, construction, and demolition sectors. (Partner: Vancouver Foundation)

Partners for Places is a collaborative effort of the Funders’ Network and the Urban Sustainability Directors Network. For more information on Partners for Places, please visit the Funders’ Network website at http://www.fundersnetwork.org/participate/green-building/partners-for-places/. Funders interested in becoming a part of Partners for Places should contact Ann Wallace at the Funders’ Network.