Our friends at Keep Virginia Beautiful, who just rapped up a hugely successful Shiver in the River winter festival, just announced that they’re accepting applications for their 30 Grants in Thirty Days initiative.

The program is designed to empower groups all across Virginia to make an environmental impact in their communities. Keep Virginia Beautiful awards grants of $500-$1,000 for projects in each of these four categories:  Community Beautification and Greening, Litter Prevention, Recycling, and Cigarette Litter Prevention.  Since 2011, KVB has provided $178,000 for 230 different projects at schools, colleges, parks, counties and towns, environmental groups, associations, nonprofits, and service organizations.

To expand the reach of their 30 Grants in Thirty Days initiative, and in celebration of their 65th Anniversary, KVB will also give away cleanup kits to groups and individuals Names will be selected in a random drawing. You do not need to complete a grant application to enter the Cleanup Kit Contest!

Litter prevention is one of the areas KVB is offering grants for. Credit: 3blmedia

For the 30 Grants in Thirty Days initiative, online applications will be accepted through April 30^th. A panel of expert judges will review the applications in May, and we will announce our “30 Grants in Thirty Days” recipients each day in the month of June on social media and this website.

DESCRIPTION OF CATEGORIES:

• Litter Prevention – Grants will be awarded to parks, communities, government or nonprofit entities, or other groups that implement programs in Virginia to reduce litter. Funding will support educational outreach materials, and cleanup events. The purpose of these grants is to support sustainable prevention and a measurable reduction of litter within Virginia’s communities.
• Recycling – Grants are awarded to schools, parks, communities, government or nonprofit entities, or other groups that implement or expand programs to reduce waste and increase recycling in Virginia.  Funding will support educational outreach materials, receptacles, and recycling events. The purpose of these grants is to promote waste reduction and a measurable increase in reuse and recycling within Virginia’s communities.
• Beautification – Grants will be awarded to schools, parks, communities, government or nonprofit entities, or other groups in Virginia who support programs that beautify and clean. Funding will support community gardens, restoring vacant lots, highway and shoreline enhancement, plantings, graffiti abatement, revitalization projects, and sustainable neighborhood gardens.  The purpose of these grants is to support beautification efforts within Virginia’s communities.
• Cigarette Litter Prevention – Cigarette butts account for over 30% of all U.S. roadway litter and storm drain litter.  Grants will be awarded for projects that include public education and awareness of the issue of cigarette litter, placing ash receptacles at transition points such as entrances to public buildings, and/or distributing pocket or portable ashtrays to adult smokers.