Tribal Lands and Environment Forum: Grant Writing Workshop & Procurement Unveiled

CCLR’s very own Senior Planning Consultant Joelle S. Greenland, AICP will be attending the Tribal Lands and Environment Forum (TLEF) and speaking at two sessions: Tell your Story – Grant Writing Workshop and Procurement Unveiled: Empowering Grantees to Get What They Need. TLEF is hosting its thirteenth annual event for environmental professionals from Tribes, USEPA, State/Local/Federal agencies, community organizations, and other interested parties to meet, share knowledge, and learn from one another how to improve management, protection, and restoration of Tribal lands. Read about CCLR’s sessions below!

Monday, August 14 | 1 PM – 5 PM ET: Tell your Story – Grant Writing Workshop

Are you ready to embark on a land reuse or community revitalization project but overwhelmed by the prospect of securing funding? Join CCLR and Kansas State University at the interactive Land Reuse Grant Writing Workshop to dive into the grant application process and receive concrete, practical guidance for preparing competitive proposals. This grant writing workshop will cover developing your land reuse narrative, leveraging data to support your story, building a responsive budget, and creating tangible goals and tasks for your team. As part of this training, you’ll have the opportunity to engage in exercises designed to give you a headstart on grant writing – from integrating community input to understand their needs and facilitating stakeholder engagement and collaboration. You do not need to have acquired a grant or completed an application in order to attend this workshop; our expert speakers are here to provide the full rundown of writing a successful application from start to finish!

Wednesday, August 16 | 10:30 AM – 12 PM: Procurement Unveiled: Empowering Grantees to Get What They Need

Successful implementation of an EPA brownfields grant often entails procuring for and hiring a contractor for environmental services. It also involves internal grant management practices to ensure compliance with ALL applicable federal regulations.

For most EPA brownfields grantees, procurement is often looked upon with dread, trepidation, and confusion, and often frequently becomes one of the most time-consuming administrative tasks of their grant. While some recipients have procurement offices to help navigate the rules and regulations others are figuring it out themselves. For all, it is essential for all grantees to also know, understand and apply them to be successful grant administrators. This session will discuss an array of topics including the tenets of procurement for EPA Brownfields Grant recipients, internal controls, differences and uses of RFPs and RFQs, developing SOWs to meet your needs, vendor selection and the art of engaging and managing a contractor.

Attendees will gain not only a better understanding of their Cooperative Agreement responsibilities related to procurement, but they will know how to tailor their solicitations in a manner that will provide information to make informed decisions about next steps.