Veolia is continuing to deliver ecological transformation through its Sustainability Fund which supported 96 grassroots projects with more than £80,000 in funding last year and will be open to new applications in April.
The Sustainability Fund was launched in 2021 after a challenging couple of years, during which, many communal spaces and local services suffered. The Fund set out to help grassroots projects that make a positive, sustainable difference and to support long-term social and environmental benefits within local communities.
In just its second year, the Fund has grown, welcoming partnerships with four new local authorities and the number of projects supported has doubled, from 47 projects in 2021 to 96 in 2022. This is a testament to the Education, Communication and Outreach teams working across the country who truly believe in the power of local action to make a positive difference.
There are many inspiring projects across the country including:
- Incident Control Unit Green Power: funding was awarded to the Buckinghamshire Lowland Search and Rescue team of volunteers who are not only saving lives but saving the planet, mounting solar panels on their refurbished Incident Control Vehicle.
- CauliBOX is trialing the use of reusable food and drink packaging to eliminate waste from the catering industry, working towards a closed loop system.
- Warm Cafe is an initiative from Southend-on-Sea that saves food waste from local supermarkets and offers it to the local community, providing them with warm food and shelter during the cold winter months.
- Recycled Robots work with the children of Kingston to transform waste into moving robots, encouraging creativity in the environmentalists of the future.
- Brundall Community River Watch, led by the Brundall Men’s Shed in Broadland, will see that the River Yare is kept clean through regular litter picks, to save the river from pollution and contribute to their local community.
Pascal Hauret, Managing Director, Municipal at Veolia, says: “We are incredibly proud to see how Veolia’s Sustainability Fund has grown in just its second year. Through this campaign we can increase our impact towards ecological transformation by working with residents and groups on the ground to find local solutions to everyday challenges. Supporting the communities we serve is at the heart of our partnerships with Local Authorities and we’re looking forward to another year of supporting their projects in 2023.”
Lena Choudary-Salter, CEO of Mosaic Community Trust in Westminster, adds: “On behalf of the Trustees and staff team of the Mosaic Community Trust, I would like to thank you for your generous contribution towards our extremely worthwhile project to promote sustainability through our Church Street Bags for environmental change.
“Your guidance and engagement in the delivery of our project will be most appreciated.”
The Sustainability Fund supports a range of not-for-profit organisations, community groups and individuals that help transform their local community through enhancing biodiversity, promoting sustainable waste behaviours, protecting or preserving resources and the environment, or using recycled, reused or reclaimed materials.
The fund will be accepting applications for 2023 from Friday, 21st April 2023 (in advance of World Earth Day).
Visit Veolia.co.uk/Sustainability-Fund.
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