Baldwin Hills & Urban Watersheds Conservancy (BH UWC) Consolidated Grant Program

The BH UWC Consolidated Grant Program streamlines administration of State funds, aligning with the Cutting Green Tape initiative. Centered on Embedding Equity, it funds high-impact projects that advance conservation, climate resilience, and Access for All through Planning, Implementation, Acquisition, and Stewardship & Community Access Grants that deliver equitable, measurable benefits statewide. The Consolidated Grant Program guidelines prioritizes project which directly and meaningfully benefit Disadvantaged Communities and Vulnerable Populations. BH UWC Community and Climate Resilience Framework is integral to effective and equitable grant making is the strategic funding of projects & programs that deliver tangible and/or measurable benefits to a population, in direct response to a demonstrated need or vulnerability. As a conservancy within of the California Natural Resources Agency tasked with addressing key regional climate hazards and disparities in community access to parks, green spaces, and other recreational facilities, the BH UWC has developed a grant making framework that enables strategic investment in high‐impact projects that deliver direct multiple benefits to vulnerable populations and communities, hereinafter referred to as the BH UWC Community and Climate Resilience Framework. Developed to fortify the Conservancy’s grant funding decision‐making process, the BH UWC Community and Climate Resilience Framework establishes a method for: Identifying multi‐benefit / high‐impact projects that address key regional climate‐related vulnerabilities, disproportionate exposure to climate hazards, and disparities in community access to recreational spaces; and Prioritizing funding for projects that serve or directly benefit vulnerable populations, frontline communities, or communities of color that have faced historical disinvestment. Comprised of four (4) key elements, this systematic funding framework ensures effective and equitable grant making through: Establishment of Strategic Agency Goals to Enhance Community and Climate Resilience Identifying Priority Projects for Agency Funding Utilization of Novel Tools to Evaluate a Proposed Project’s Benefits / Impact; and Allocation of Funding for Proposed Projects Based on Strategic Alignment, Potential Project Impacts & Benefits, and Implementation Urgency