Program Overview: In partnership with The Duke Endowment, The Conservation Fund’s Resourceful Communities program helps rural United Methodist churches strengthen their food ministries and engage in the local food economy. Support includes training, connections to resources, networking and, on occasion, direct funding through small grants.

Since 2001, Resourceful Communities has awarded more than 400 small grants, funded by public and private organizations, to support innovative community projects across North Carolina. Please visit https://goo.gl/ZXONgH and scroll to Investing in Communities for general information about the Creating New Economies Fund (CNEF) small grant program.

Please note that CNEF grants cannot support deficit financing, for-profit businesses, individuals or projects that do not meaningfully engage project stakeholders.

Eligibility: United Methodist Churches that serve rural communities can apply. Please visit https://goo.gl/Il0gDn to see a list of eligible churches.

Funding Priorities include:

·  Projects that deepen church engagement with people who benefit from the church’s food ministry.

·  Projects that engage new community partners and/ or laity.

·  Projects that support local farmers, with emphasis on small/ family farms.

·  Projects that increase access to local, healthy food, particularly for low-income participants.

·  Projects that address “root causes” of hunger and/ or challenges to local food access. Root causes often include, but are not limited to:

o  Poverty/ need for local jobs

o  Limited market access for low-income consumers and small farmers

o  Lack of transportation to reach healthy foods

o  Exclusion and inequities, especially among low-income communities and communities of color

o  Limited information about nutrition or local resources

·  Projects that integrate the “triple bottom line,” resulting in environmental stewardship, community economic development and social justice benefits.

·  One of Resourceful Communities’ goals is to create a network of engaged and informed local partners who connect with and learn from each other. We encourage applicants to get to know and participate in our network to learn about new resources and community strategies.

·  All funded projects must meaningfully engage those who benefit from the project, particularly those who are traditionally under-served and/ or excluded.

Grant Amount: Grants cannot exceed $15,000. There is no minimum amount that must be requested for a Creating New Economies Fund application to be considered, however, grants average $5,000-$10,000.

Timeline/ Questions: Applications are due December 15, 2018. Please contact Justine Post at 919-951-7554 or or Kathleen Marks at 919-951-0111 or to discuss details.

Applications: Please limit your application to six pages not including the cover sheet and budget. Use at least 11-point font. Use the form provided. ** Examples offered in this document and this page can be deleted from your final application. ** Submit via email to per instructions from staff.


Creating New Economies Fund

2018 Grant Application for

Rural United Methodist Churches

Via email to

Contact Information

Name of Church:

Address:

Contact Person and Title:

Phone: Email:

Website and/ or Facebook page:

Project Administrator/ Email:

Who prepared application: Email:

Is your church recognized by the United Methodist Conference (NC or Western NC)? [ ] YES [ ] NO

Please visit https://goo.gl/Il0gDn to see a list of eligible churches. Is your church an eligible rural church?

[ ] YES [ ] NO

In what county and district is your church located?

Federal ID Number of applicant organization (or sponsor organization): ______

Year church was founded: Total church budget for current fiscal year:

Total staff: Total volunteers:

Project Information

Amount of Funding Requested:

Project Name/ Brief Description:

______

______

Project location, including county:

Project start date ______Completion date ______

One of Resourceful Communities’ goals is to create a network of engaged and informed local partners who connect with and learn from each other. We encourage applicants to get to know and participate in our network to learn about new resources and community strategies. Network participation might include attending workshops to build pastors’ or laity’s community engagement skills, for example; convenings on healthy eating and active living; or learning visits. If your project is funded, do you agree that your church will participate in at least one network gathering? [ ] YES [ ] NO

Resourceful Communities provides free-of-charge training and technical assistance. Please check the top three topics that will help you ensure your project is a success and broaden your partnerships.

[ ] Community engagement [ ] Strategies to access locally grown foods [ ] Partnership building

[ ] Work planning [ ] Project evaluation [ ] Volunteer recruitment [ ] Congregational engagement

Are there other topics or trainings that would help you advance your project goals?

Overview and brief project description:

1.  Is your proposed project new? [ ] YES [ ] NO

2.  If your project builds on an existing food ministry, please provide a *brief* description of who currently benefits from your work and the geographic area you serve. How would this funding help you deepen your ministry’s impacts?

3.  Please provide a brief overview of your proposed project. What do you hope to do?

4.  Access to healthy food is a challenge in many communities. Root causes often include, but are not limited to:

o  Poverty/ need for local jobs

o  Limited market access for low-income consumers and small farmers

o  Lack of transportation to reach healthy foods

o  Exclusion and inequities, especially among low-income communities and communities of color

o  Limited information about nutrition, local resources or how to prepare healthy foods

Please tell us how your food ministry will address or already addresses these root causes.

Preparing for a Successful Project

5.  How have the people who benefit from your project been involved in decision-making and implementation of this project? How will they continue to engage?

6.  Describe any current and/or potential collaboration or partnerships related to the proposed project.

Current partners and what they’ve agreed to do for the project:

Potential partners and their possible roles:

Getting the Project Underway

7.  Please explain your project activities, including steps to prepare for and implement your work. What will you do to carry out your project? Include major activities and a timeline.

Activities you have already completed: (Completed steps might include secured space, held two community conversations, identified potential staff.)

Activities you will carry out to prepare for project: (Please consider additional staff/ volunteers, qualified individuals who can deliver programming; supplies or equipment to be purchased; materials to be developed; access to additional space/ land, contract/ agreements needed.)

Activities you will perform once the project is underway: (Once everything is prepared and programming begins, what will your project look like on a day-to-day basis, including who you will serve, how many and how often.)

Results, Assessment and Evaluation

8.  Explain what changes you hope to see when your project is successfully completed. How do you hope your project will improve your community? Who/ what will your project benefit and how? How many will benefit? By when? Please describe how and when you will collect this information. Please note that evaluation is ongoing. It does not begin after the project is completed.

Example:

Expected Results: 20 low-income community members will learn about affordable strategies to access and prepare healthy food by September 2018.

Key Measures: ABC UMC will deliver 8 free-of-charge nutrition classes and will support double-up bucks to encourage low-income access at the local farmers’ market. Participants will take a pre- and post-class survey about their knowledge of healthy eating and where they get healthy foods.

Expected Results:

Key Measures:


Budget

In the space below, provide an itemized project budget and explain how CNEF funds will be spent. Please refer to sample budget available at https://goo.gl/VKgJgq. Be sure to include:

·  Total project budget and sources, including in-kind contributions (refer to overview).

·  CNEF Funds: How much money is being requested from the Creating New Economies Fund and how it will be spent?

·  Staff: If grant funds will pay for staff, please state their duties and rate of pay/ duration of time on project. For example, trainer will develop and deliver curriculum at $15/hour for 15 hours/ week for 6 weeks for a total of $1,350.

·  In-Kind Contributions: Volunteer hours, services, meeting space, food, equipment, etc.

·  Funding from Other Sources: What additional funds will be used and sources of those funds?

·  Revise the template below as needed. A budget form is available in Excel format at https://goo.gl/VKgJgq.

Budget Line Item / CNEF Funds / In-Kind / Funding from Other Sources / Total Project Cost
1. Personnel
2. Contractual Services
3. Travel
4. Supplies
5. Equipment
6. Meeting Expenses
7. Printing/ Copying
8.
9.
10.
Total / $ / $ / $ / $

Budget Narrative

Please provide an explanation of how the CNEF grant will be used and what additional support, both in-kind contributions (donation of supplies, labor, space, printing, food, etc.) and funding (grants, monetary donations), will be used.

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2018 Creating New Economies Fund: Faith and Food Application