Capacity Building Grant Award
RENEW, through our fiscal sponsor Worcester Roots, Awarded Environmental Justice Grant
In May, we received a Capacity Building Grant from the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs’ (EEA) Office of Environmental Justice and Equity (OEJE). The OEJE program is part of the Healey-Driscoll administration’s ongoing commitment to addressing environmental inequities and ensuring that all Massachusetts residents, particularly those in low-income and marginalized communities, have the tools and resources they need to tackle climate change and other environmental challenges.
“These grants are not just about growing food or building organizational capacity—they’re about advancing racial and economic justice from the ground up. Worcester Roots-RENEW is building a cooperative model rooted in equity and shared leadership, intentionally creating pathways for historically marginalized voices to shape the future. This is what community power looks like.”
Sen. Robyn Kennedy, May 21, 2025 (Press Release)
Why We Applied
We need organizational capacity to recruit and onboard new members who can support the organization and oversee project development in collaboration with Co-op Power consultants. We also need to empower our members to take ownership of the vision, mission, and activities of RENEW as we move forward. This grant allowed us to work with the US Federation of Worker-owned Cooperatives, which helps allied organizations build democratic workplaces and leadership grounded in anti-oppression values. The detailed plan we developed collaboratively with our consultants will be our guiding document as we host events, support the activities of our partner organizations, recruit and onboard new members, and track progress on our goals.
The capacity building grant we received from the Solstice Community Benefit Fund will help us recruit new members including those needed to fill new roles and support their training in those roles, but we also need to empower them to to take ownership of the vision, mission, and activities of RENEW as we move forward.
