The Trees for Schools program will provide $2.5 million in grants to New Jersey public school districts, county colleges, and state colleges and universities to fund the planting of trees on campuses across the state.
Donor Name: Sustainable Jersey
State: New Jersey
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 07/13/2023
Size of the Grant: $10,000 to $500,000
Grant Duration: 3 years
Details:
By planting trees where young minds grow and knowledge is generated, the program is at once profoundly symbolic of sustainability and renewal and, at the same time, highly beneficial in myriad practical ways.
Trees combat climate change by storing carbon they pull out of the atmosphere, while mitigating the effects of rising temperatures and rainfall. Trees provide shade, habitat, beauty, and educational opportunities; they filter pollutants from air and water, reduce stormwater runoff, and lower carbon emissions and costs by saving energy in buildings. Tree-planting and stewardship at educational institutions not only enhances the environment in the towns and cities where they are located, it also stimulates the local economy, boosts property values, and improves human health and the quality of life for students, faculty and staff, and the surrounding community alike.
Funded by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) with proceeds from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), this program will be administered by the Sustainability Institute at The College of New Jersey manages the Sustainable Jersey certification programs.
The main features of the Trees for Schools program include:
- All New Jersey Public School Districts, Community Colleges, and State Colleges and Universities are eligible to apply
- A supplemental proposal and budget may be submitted for up to an additional $250,000. The supplemental proposals will be considered for funding contingent upon the availability of funds. (Maximum potential funding is $500,000 total).
- Eligible expenses include trees, site preparation, supplies, equipment, sub-contracts, and limited personnel and overheads
- No applicant match is required
- Grant payments will be made in installments upon the attainment of specified benchmarks , with an initial payment of 10% of the proposed budget upon execution of the grant agreement.
Funding Information
Funding Information Competitive grants of $10,000 to $500,000 will fund costs associated with planning, site preparation, trees, planting, watering, monitoring, and related expenses over a three-year period.
Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible to participate in this program an applicant must be a:
- New Jersey public school district, including one or more schools with any combination of pre-K through 12th grade levels
- New Jersey community college
- New Jersey state college
- New Jersey state university
Project sites on private land are NOT eligible.
Note: An applicant’s eligibility to apply for this program is NOT limited by the status of Sustainable Jersey grant awards. Similarly, eligibility to apply for funding in current or future Sustainable Jersey grant cycles will NOT be impacted by participation in this program.
For more information, visit Sustainable Jersey.