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N e w s l e t t e r
June 2018
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EFC RECOMMENDS COORDINATED
DATA COLLECTION TO IMPROVE
REGIONAL INVESTMENT
Management."
Over the past three decades, billions of federal, state, and local dollars have been deployed to support water infrastructure projects and other programs that reduce point and nonpoint sources of pollution to the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. The EFC
examined the trends that emerged in terms of project characteristics that drive successful outcomes and identified gaps in how funders collect evaluation data. After analyzing 699 projects across two major Bay-wide funders, the EFC provided recommendations for improving the impact of grant-funded programs and projects.
Specifically
, the
EFC recommended that funders establish a process to better coordinate data collection efforts in order to assess and improve future program evaluation and regional investment. The complete findings and recommendations are detailed in the report.
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STOP! COLLABORATE AND LISTEN!
EFC STAFF PRESENT AND PARTICIPATE AROUND THE REGION
The past two months were filled with important opportunities for EFC staff to connect and collaborate with colleagues at conferences and workshops around the region...and beyond!
In May, Resilience and Sustainability Program Manager Brandy Espinola presented at the 2018 Local Solutions: Eastern Climate Preparedness Conference in Manchester, NH. Hosted by Antioch University New England and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Brandy spoke at the Lunch Plenary session, "Show Me the Money: Funding and Financing Panel" on financing strategies for adaptation. She stressed that for small capacity-strapped community, finance is more about adopting a mix of strategies and embedding resilience into processes and plans that are already currently in place.
The MOST Center team exhibited at the Choose Clean Water Conference in Lancaster, PA. Program Manager Medessa Burian, Jenny Beard and Natalia Sanchez learned more about issues critical to Chesapeake Bay restoration to develop new stormwater-related content for MOST products.
In June,
Interim Director Jen Cotting represented the EFC alongside dozens of public agencies and academic and technical assistance organizations at a workshop hosted by the Urban Resilience to Extreme Events Sustainability Research Network. Teams of participants spent the day at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County working to evaluate possible extreme climate impact scenarios for central Maryland and then codeveloped potential solutions.
Arriving in Ocean City just after a deluge flooded Coastal Highway with two feet of water, the unsinkable Mike Hunninghake, Program Manager for Sustainable Maryland (SM), attended the annual Maryland Municipal League Conference to give a presentation at a Waste Reduction workshop. In the workshop titled "Keeping Maryland Beautiful: Smart Solutions for Waste Reduction," Mike highlighted successful municipal composting programs in Bowie, Somerset, Cheverly, and University Park and discussed the possibility of setting up Styrofoam recycling drop-off points throughout Prince George's County. At the Sustainable Maryland exhibit table, Mike caught up with Green Team members, municipal staff and elected officials, as well as met new mayors and council members to learn how their agendas intersect with potential sustainability projects. We look forward to the Fall MML conference and our annual Sustainable Maryland Certified awards ceremony. Hope to see you there!
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DR. MARCCUS HENDRICKS EXPLORES ISSUES OF ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE, FLOODING, AND COMMUNITY RESILIENCE
 EFC's Faculty Affiliate, Dr. Marccus Hendricks of the University of Maryland School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation has recently been awarded a Tier 1 research grant from the University's Division of Research. The project,
"Infrastructure, Urban Flooding and its Influence on Social Vulnerability and Mobility: A Place-based Study in Southeast Washington, D.C.,"
is one of seven selected for funding out of 33 applications. Additionally, Dr. Hendricks has also received the p
restigious Early-Career Research Fellowship from the Gulf Research Program of the National Academy of Sciences. This unrestricted research award will support his work throughout tenure. Currently, his
work on the impacts of climate change and developing community resilience strategies is at the forefront of the field.
Beyond academia, Dr. Hendricks' expertise has been sought out by the media. Catch him on CBS affiliate
W-USA
and
Grist Magazine
.
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MSEC FUNDING AVAILABLE FOR FY19
 Funding for the Maryland Smart Energy Communities (MSEC) program for Fiscal Year 2019 is now available. The intended $500,000 budget will be divided between new communities and existing MSEC communities, but funding is ONLY available for energy-efficiency projects. EFC staff assists the Maryland Energy Administration with these grants. First time applicants have an advantage in receiving funding, so if your municipality or county has never applied for these grants, please contact us immediately at
mikeh75@umd.edu
or 301-405-7956 to discuss possible projects. Application deadline is October 10.
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EFC'S WORK WITH THE
WILLIAM PENN FOUNDATION
 With the support of the William Penn Foundation, the EFC is currently working in the Wissahickon Creek and the White Clay Creek watersheds, providing policy analysis and financing strategies to support two multi-municipal collaborations focused on stormwater management. In addition, the Center is partnering with River Network to review implementation of Clean Water Act programming across the four basin states and identify opportunities for policy improvements to protect water quality. Continued engagement in the Delaware River basin, coupled with the EFC's current and past work in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, will enrich the Center's capacity to partner with communities throughout the mid-Atlantic region on water quality challenges.
In April 2018,
the William
Penn
Foundation announced more than $40 million in new funding for the Delaware River Watershed Initiative
(DRWI). The DRWI is a collaborative effort involving 65 non-governmental organizations working together to protect and restore clean water in the Delaware River watershed, the source of drinking water for 15 million people in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey and Delaware. As the lead funder to date, the William Penn Foundation's investment in the DRWI now totals more than $100 million over the last four years.
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The Environmental Finance Center's
supporters include:
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The EFC recently conducted an analysis of Chesapeake Bay water quality projects in order to improve water quality grant-making for the EPA's Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP), which just released the corresponding report
