We’re excited to announce that the Just Transition Fund has recently committed grants and technical assistance to help 11 projects across seven states prepare applications for Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) funding, including to the POWER (Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization) and ARISE (Appalachian Regional Initiative for Stronger Economies) initiatives. Collectively, these projects have the potential to secure over $17 million in federal investment to spur local economic opportunity and multi-state partnerships in sectors including agriculture, broadband, clean energy, manufacturing, and tourism.
We are proud to be supporting applications from the following organizations:
- Appalachian Beginning Forest Farmer Coalition, to apply for $500,000 from ARC ARISE to expand the non-timber forest products sector across Virginia, Ohio, North Carolina, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Maryland.
- Community at the Core, to apply for $6 million from ARC POWER and ARISE to expand an agricultural education and training program in Kentucky, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania.
- Future Generations, to apply for $800,000 from ARC POWER to expand the agroforestry, agritourism, and outdoor recreation sectors in West Virginia.
- Generation West Virginia, to apply for $841,000 from ARC POWER to expand its proven broadband technical assistance program to increase high-speed internet access in West Virginia.
- Mingo County Redevelopment Authority, to apply for $1.5 million from ARC POWER to grow the tourism impact of the Hatfield-McCoy Trail System in southern West Virginia.
- Mountain Association, to apply for $1.5 million from ARC POWER to support existing and emerging small businesses and nonprofits and create economic opportunity in eastern Kentucky.
- Mountain Sports Hall of Fame Foundation, to apply for $1 million in ARC state funds to develop the sports tourism sector in eastern Kentucky.
- Regional Optical Communications, to apply for $1 million from ARC ARISE to expand broadband workforce training in southern West Virginia.
- Robert C. Byrd Institute at Marshall University, to apply for $1 million from ARC POWER to establish an Advanced Manufacturing Technology training program in West Virginia.
- Southern Appalachian Labor School, to apply for $1.2 million from ARC POWER to expand a housing construction training program in southern West Virginia.
- Washington County Development Authority, to apply for $2.5 million from ARC POWER to deploy over 100 miles of fiber to disconnected households in coal-impacted Pennsylvania.
We wish all of our partners success in the application review process! And we are happy to have played a part in ensuring that these great projects receive consideration for critical federal investment from the Appalachian Regional Commission.
Through our Federal Access Center, we want to ensure that coal communities are able to overcome barriers to accessing federal funds – high matching requirements, time-intensive application processes – and are able to leverage historic amounts of available funding to strengthen local economies.
If you are working in a transitioning coal community and need assistance applying for federal funds, please fill out this brief inquiry form to schedule an introductory call!
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