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Fix-it-fair

Jar of pennies with a young plant growing out of it

Need a Little Seed Money?

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Jar of pennies with a young plant growing out of itOur 2024 Green Grant applications are now available on our Green Grant Program webpage!  Each year we award thirty grants for environmental projects and programs to groups and organizations in Virginia.  The Green Grants program empowers groups all across Virginia to make an environmental impact in their own communities.  This is one of the ways we can engage the people who live in Virginia to improve our natural and scenic environment.

Applications can be submitted between now and April 30, 2024.  Thirty awards will be announced, one each day, in June.  Grant awards are available for $500, $750, or $1,000 proposals. You can read the general Grant Application Guidelines for more information, and can apply in any of the four categories:  Litter Prevention, Recycling/Waste Reduction, Cigarette Litter Prevention, or Community Beautification.

There is so much we can do within our own communities, and we hope a little seed money can help you start or enhance a program or try a new method of living in a more sustainable way.

Here are some ideas for projects and programs that you may need to solve a need for

  • Install cigarette butt receptacles in a no-smoking area or parking lot in your;Green Grants Logo
  • Host a Fix-it Fair to keep items out of the landfill that will have life left in them after small repairs;
  • Purchase grabbers, safety vests, and gloves for volunteers to clean up roads and the landscape;
  • Start a composting program with produce that would be thrown away at a restaurant or at a farmers market, to reduce food waste;
  • Supply your classroom with re-usable lunch boxes, water bottles, storage bags, cloth napkins, and utensils to see how much less trash you create each day.

Thank you for caring about the natural and scenic environment in your community, I hope that you’ll apply for a Green Grant this year.  Please reach out to Beckey Watson at [email protected] if you have any questions about the program.

Man at workbench

$1,000 Green Grant Awarded to Upper Tennessee River Roundtable

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Man at workbenchIn an effort to encourage reusing and fixing items that are owned, instead of throwing the item away, the Upper Tennessee River Roundtable will host a Fit-it-fair with funds awarded as part of our 12th Annual Green Grants Program.

The Upper Tennessee River Roundtable provides environmentally beneficial programs to a wide range of communities ranging from cities to rural counties.  They will organize the Fix-it-fair in partnership with Keep Southwest Virginia and the Clinch Valley Soil and Water Conservation District at the local farmers’ market in Russell County.

The event would have “fixers” for mending, furniture repair, small appliance repair, electronic repair, bike repair, handyman, and jewelry repair.  Community members will sign up for time slots online and bring their items in during that time on the day of the event.  Repairs will be made at no cost to the residents.

Green Grant funds will be used to offer a small stipend to those who are repairing items, as well as costs of signage and repair supplies.

Upper TN River LogoRepairing items gives people a chance to hold on to items that have sentimental value, or ones that have a second life in them, and it avoids those items being added  unnecessarily to the landfill.  The area in Southwest Virginia has a strong community with a love for things with historical significance and fixing things in creative ways so, it is expected that the community would celebrate this event wholeheartedly.

We look forward to seeing how many items can be saved by skilled “fixers” and hope to share pictures of this great community event!  Congratulations and good luck!