Grassroots Communities Mining Mini-Grant Program

The Indigenous Environmental Network and Western Mining Action Network Grassroots Communities Mining Mini-Grant Program provides $4,000 USD grants to communities threatened or adversely affected by mining in the United States and Canada. The program is cohosted by the Indigenous Environmental Network and Western Mining Action Network and is designed to support community-based responses to mining impacts. The funders recognize that mining can harm community well-being, cultural resources, ecosystems, environmental quality, and public health, and they encourage projects that work to protect these interests from mining-related impacts. The program distributes over $200,000 per year through $4,000 USD mini-grants. The stated goal is to direct at least 50 percent of mini-grants to Indigenous communities. Priority is given to Tribal, First Nations, Indigenous communities, and nonprofit community-based grassroots groups that are directly affected by mining. Regional or national organizations in the United States and Canada working on mining-specific issues may also be considered secondarily. Priority is also given to applicants with an organizational or mining-specific program budget under $75,000 USD. Eligible work must directly address hard rock, mineral, or metals mining issues, including gold, silver, iron, copper, zinc, nickel, tin, lead, uranium, placer, coal, and legacy, closed, or abandoned mine issues. Requests must be project-specific and connected to a specific mining campaign to be completed within twelve months. Allowable project needs include scientific, technical, or legal assistance; organizing; education and outreach; materials development; media development; reports; travel; mailings; interns; consultants; and similar project-specific activities. The program does not fund proposals related to oil, gas, pipelines, fracking, tar sands, aggregates, quarries, gravel, sand, or cement. It does not fund work or organizations outside the United States and Canada, general operating expenses such as rent or utilities, or staff salaries above 10 percent of the total grant amount. A limited portion of funds, up to 10 percent, may be used as work compensation or staff salaries for the applicant organization, while the limitation does not apply to external contractors hired for project-specific tasks. Applicants may receive only one mini-grant in a twelve-month period. Registered and unregistered organizations may apply, but individuals are not funded. Applicants without a tax ID number or organizational bank account must secure fiscal sponsorship from another organization that has a tax ID number or bank account under its organization name. Grant checks are issued by check and must be payable to an organization, not an individual. Previous grantees must submit a report on their previous grant before applying for or receiving a new grant. Applications are submitted online through a Google Survey, with a paper application available as a preparation guide. There are three cycles per year. Applications open January 1, May 1, and September 1, and deadlines are February 1, June 1, and October 1. Applicants are notified of funding decisions within four to five weeks after the application deadline. Emergency assistance may be available outside the regular cycles for extremely time-sensitive projects that could not have been anticipated and cannot wait until the next cycle; those requests are considered case by case. Grant reports are due within twelve months of receiving the award. Reports must explain outcomes, how the funds benefited the issue or program, and how the grant was spent. Reports may be submitted by email, mail, short video, short audio recording, or by arranging a phone report with a coordinator. Questions may be directed to Laura Pitkanen at laura@wman-info.org, Sayokla Williams at sayokla@wman-info.org, or Talia Boyd at talia@ienearth.org.

Prioritize a project-specific mining campaign that directly addresses hard rock, mineral, metals, uranium, placer, coal, legacy, closed, or abandoned mine impacts; clearly show direct community impact; Indigenous-led and grassroots applicants receive priority; keep applicant staff salary or work compensation at or below 10% of the grant; avoid ineligible oil, gas, pipeline, fracking, tar sands, quarry, gravel, sand, cement, general operating, individual, and non-U.S./Canada work.