EPA-R-HQ-UCECA-25-01 Project Narrative Template.docx

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Public Engagement and Environmental Education Project Narrative Template All portions of the Project Narrative Attachment form must substantially comply with the specific instructions, format, and content defined in the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO). Page counts refer to one-side of a single-spaced typed page, using a standard font (e.g. Times New Roman, Calibri, and Arial) and a 12-point font size with 1-inch margins. Pages in excess of the identified limits will not be considered.

Instructions: The Project Narrative Attachment Form includes the application Executive Summary and Project Work Plan. Application Work Plans must not exceed 25 pages in length on letter size pages (8 ½ x 11 inches). Applicants may, but are not required to, use this Project Narrative Template. Applicants that do not use the template will not be penalized. These instructions, italicized, bracketed, and highlighted text should be deleted before you submit your application.

Executive Summary [The Executive Summary information should appear at the beginning of the Work Plan and must not exceed three pages] Executive Summary: The Executive Summary should contain the elements below

1. Application Title: [Provide a name for the application.]

2. Lead Applicant: [Name of the Lead Applicant]

3. Statutory Partner to the Lead Applicant: [Name of the Statutory Partner.]

4. Contact Information: [Include a name, title, email address, and phone number for key personnel for the Lead Applicant and, Statutory Partner.]

5. Eligibility: [Describe how the Lead Applicant and Statutory Partner meet the eligibility requirements described in Section 2 of the NOFO.]

6. Grant Award Period and Completion: [Provide estimated beginning and ending dates for the period of performance for your proposed grant. Given the requirement under CAA § 138(b)(1) that all grants must be completed within three years, all applications must state how the projects in the application, including any construction projects, can be completed within three years of award. The anticipated Award notification is August 2025. All projects should plan to start no earlier than August 1, 2025.]

7. Amount of EPA Funding Requested: [See award sizes specified in Section 1.]

8. Disadvantaged Community to benefit from the projects: [Identify and list the IHEs and CBOs that support or are in disadvantaged communities, as defined in Appendix A, intended to benefit from the projects in the application. The list should include the name of the entity, physical address (city, state, zip code), and main point of contact’s name and email address.]

9. Brief Project Descriptions

a. UPLIFT Community of Practice: [Describe in 300 words or less the need for the project/rationale for the work proposed for the community of practice, the major environmental and educational project activities the community of practice may work on, the expected outcomes and anticipated deliverables, the target audience and anticipated number reached (identify audiences by specific types – students, teachers, general public) and any other unique, interesting, or relevant information.]

[Applicant’s text goes here.]

b. Climate and Environmental Community Action (CECA) Subaward Program: [Describe in 300 words or less the design and rationale for the grant process the applicant seeks to take, the types of climate action and pollution reduction project that may be funded, the expected outcomes and anticipated deliverables, the target audience and anticipated number reached (identify audiences by specific types – students, teachers, general public) and any other unique, interesting, or relevant information.]

PROJECT WORKPLAN

[Consistent with the purpose and program priorities of this NOFO, applicants should describe in their workplan their plans to carry out the development of projects focused on the two Program Priorities outlined below: 1) Establishing a UPLIFT Community of Practice Program and 2) Establishing a Climate and Environmental Community Action Subaward Program. It is highly recommended that you explain each aspect of your application clearly and address each topic by following the format below, include the headings and subheadings as given, and do not reorder the paragraphs to aid the reviewers in effectively reviewing your application. Applicants can cite studies and/or sources, where appropriate. If applicable, use the “Other Attachments Form” to submit your References/Works Cited document. Any References/Works Cited document does not count toward the Work Plan’s 25 page limit. Text that is italicized and bracketed should be deleted before submitting your application.]

Priority #1: Establishing a UPLIFTCECA Community of Practice Program 1.A. Activities to build the capacity of members of UPLIFT Community of Practice to engage in public processes for the benefit of disadvantaged communities.

a. Past Engagement: [Describe how past engagement working with IHEs, and CBOs who support or are located in disadvantaged communities, and other stakeholders impacted the type of project activities that you propose for the UPLIFT Community of Practice.] [Applicant’s text goes here.]

b. Approach to Engagement: [Describe the methods, tools, and trainings, the applicant will use to facilitate the engagement of disadvantaged communities in state and Federal advisory groups, workshops, rulemakings, and / or other public processes, including local, Tribal, and other governmental processes, related to environmental and climate justice.] [Applicant’s text goes here.]

c. Enhancing Governmental Access and Collaboration: [Describe how the project address and improve lack of access to, or weak relationships with, governmental entities that members of the community of practice have and how the activities proposed change those relationships to increase points of access for disadvantaged communities with government so that they might work cooperatively to promote environmental and climate justice.] [Applicant’s text goes here.]

d. Building Governmental Awareness: [Provide details as to how the proposed activities will result in governmental entities better understanding the root causes of environmental and climate justice issues that impact disadvantaged communities, so the communities are better prepared to proactively address them before the issues materialize.] [Applicant’s text goes here.]

e. Facilitation and Accountability Measures: [Provide details related to facilitation and accountability measures that will be put into place as part of the UPLIFT Community of Practice to establish and maintain trust between the disadvantaged community and government officials to ensure the community can collaborate in a meaningful manner on environmental and climate justice issues with governmental bodies.] [Applicant’s text goes here.]

1.B. Communications Plan and Outreach Activities [Applicants should demonstrate how they will provide substantive communication and conduct outreach to recruit members from IHEs, such as HBCUs and MSIs in urban, rural, and remote communities serving disadvantaged communities, as well as representatives from CBOs, governments, philanthropic organizations, and the private sector to participate in the UPLIFT Community of Practice.]

1.C. Participatory Governance and Transparent Management

a. Collaborative Management and Engagement Strategy: [Describe the collaborative approach that you plan to take to manage and engage the members of the community of practice in order to foster trust, collaboration, and accountability and what specific approach will be used to sustain their engagement and mitigate barriers to support overall project implementation.]

[Applicant’s text goes here.]

b. Participatory Governance Approach: [Describe the participatory governance approach you plan to take to manage the community of practice including the roles and responsibilities of the Lead Applicant, Statutory Partners, Collaborating Entities, and / or community-selected representatives for implementing, managing, and overseeing the UPLIFT Community of Practice’s activities, including how regularly you will meet to discuss project implementation.] [Applicant’s text goes here.]

1.D. Results, Success Stories, and Feedback

a. Measuring Success: [Describe an approach for documenting and measuring the success of their role in managing the community of practice and the success of the community of practice members in engaging with government processes to advance environmental and climate justice.] [Examples of measuring results can include, but are not limited to: Lead Applicants including information on success stories attesting to the accessibility of support and technical assistance to community of practice members, new partnerships, or collaboration between members because of their participation in the community of practice, the qualitative and quantitative value that the engagement of the community of practice had on government processes, aggregated environmental and public health improvements, and more. A success story is generally one that demonstrates an activity done by a member of the community of practice that successfully addresses longstanding environmental justice issues in a community.] [Applicant’s text goes here.]

b. Feedback and Improvement Strategy: [Describe an approach for seeking feedback on the activities of the community of practice from its members and prospective members, that includes their satisfaction with the Lead Applicant and the community of practice program activities, ideas on ways to make the community of practice more effective and what steps the applicant will take to address the feedback to improve their role as a manager of the community of practice. Applicants should make a concerted effort to obtain relevant feedback on their role as a manager of the community of practice from disadvantaged communities and communities in urban, rural, and remote areas.]

[Applicant’s text goes here.]

Priority #2: Climate and Environmental Community Action (CECA) Subaward Program 2.A. Development of Application Submission, Evaluation, and Subaward Processes [Applicants should describe their plan and approach to make funds available to eligible subrecipients, particularly from disadvantaged communities, communities in urban, remote, and rural areas, and those with the highest degree of burden and capacity constraints, as well as increasing awareness of the existence of the pass-through entity and the availability of CECA Subawards. Information disseminated through outreach efforts should include at a minimum:]

a. Subaward Competition Design: [Design a competitive application submission and evaluation process for community projects addressing climate action and pollution reduction in disadvantaged communities. The process should include an open call for applications on a “rolling basis” where applicants can submit applications when the applicants are ready. The process should be accessible to communities and CBOs without reliable access to internet services and significantly reduce the burden on applying entities (as compared to the federal grants process). The process should include procedures that will be put in place to ensure the projects selected will benefit disadvantaged communities.]

[Applicant’s text goes here.]

b. Efficient Subaward Process Design and Timely Distribution of Funds: [Describe the development an efficient subaward process. Overall, the application, evaluation, and subaward processes should minimize the “time to award” for entities selected to receive subaward funding. Climate and Environmental Action subaward applicants should design their subaward process so that the average time it takes for applications to be submitted, evaluated, and awarded is under 6 months (at a minimum). This timeframe will greatly benefit under-resourced CBOs and in some cases may be the difference between a CBO remaining in operation or dissolving. Additionally, the Pass- through entity must develop a plan to ensure that all funds awarded to them are expended within 36 months of receipt of the initial award as required by CAA 138(b)(1) which limits project periods to 3 years. Thus, each applicant to the program should make clear how they propose to make their subaward process efficient and effective in getting the maximal amount of funding to communities within the required timeframe.] [Applicant’s text goes here.]

2.B. Communications Planning and Outreach Activities [Describe how you will provide substantive communication and conduct outreach to eligible subrecipients from disadvantaged communities, communities in remote and rural areas, and community stakeholders with the highest degree of burden and capacity constraints to facilitate their full participation in the new CECA Subaward Program. Communications and outreach activities may include:

· Hosting pre-application conference calls, webinars, and/or in-person meetings accessible to all disadvantaged communities to the maximum extent practicable, especially urban, rural, and remote communities, making them aware of the availability of the CECA Subaward funding, deadlines for submitting applications, guidance to aid in understanding the pass-through entity’s application and subawards process, and to give potential Eligible Subrecipients opportunities to ask questions.

· Developing mass mailers, online listservs, websites, printed materials, as well as conducting site visits and/or in-person workshops to communicate the goals and availability of the CECA Subaward funding.

· Ensuring communications and communication materials are available in multiple languages reflective of the needs in the target service area. Describe how you will provide translation and other interpretive services to make the information and funding available to those not fluent in English or that have limited English proficiency.

· Any other outreach and communications activities the pass-through entity believes will be effective in facilitating the participation of disadvantaged communities, urban, rural and remote communities, and capacity constrained CBOs in funding programs for environmental justice and in the environmental decision-making process.] [Applicant’s text goes here.]

2.C. Development of a Project Management Tracking and Reporting System

a. Subaward Project Management and Oversight: [Describe their plan, approach, and process for project management including oversight for funding subrecipients and a system to track all projects and subrecipients of subaward funding and manage the subawards in compliance with the requirements specified in 2 CFR 200.332 and EPA’s Establishing and Managing Subawards Term and Condition. Appendix D of EPA’s Subaward Policy provides an optional template for a subaward agreement that meets regulatory requirements.] Comment by Band, Michael: We need to link to the subaward policy [Applicant’s text goes here.]

b. Subaward Monitoring Plan: [Applicants should include a plan to develop a system to monitor progress for each funding subrecipient and relay this information to EPA as required by the reporting terms and conditions of their EPA award. Additionally, applicants should describe their plan for subrecipient reporting, including how frequently reports will be required, the level of detail and format of those reports, and how those reports will be submitted by subrecipients.]

c. Technical Support: [Describe a process for engaging EPA assistance should any subrecipient require additional technical support to meet project deadlines or achieve progress. You should prioritize the goals of reducing burden on subrecipients while still providing reasonable and quality oversight as you are developing your plans for subrecipient reporting.]

2.D Pass-through Entity’s Results, Success Stories, and Feedback

a. Measuring Success: [Describe an approach for documenting and measuring the success of your role as a pass-through entity and the success of the subrecipients receiving CECA Subawards.] [Applicant’s text goes here.]

b. Feedback and Improvement Strategy: [Describe your approach for seeking feedback on their pass-through entity from Eligible Subrecipients and prospective subrecipients, that includes their satisfaction with the pass-through entity and the Subaward program, ideas on ways to make the pass-through entity and subaward process more effective and what steps the applicant will take to address the feedback to improve their role as a pass-through entity. Applicants should make a concerted effort to obtain relevant feedback on their role as a pass-through entity from disadvantaged communities and communities in urban, rural, and remote areas.] [Applicant’s text goes here.]

#3: Program Management, Capability, and Capacity 3.A Performance Management Plan and Outputs / Outcomes:

a. Performance Management: [Describe an effective plan, with associated timeframes, for tracking and measuring progress in achieving the expected project outcomes and outputs. This should include how they will lead to improvements to the environmental conditions and public health of the disadvantaged communities in the short and long term.] [Applicant’s text goes here.]

b. Benefits to Disadvantaged Communities: [Describe the proposed outputs and outcomes and how they will lead to improvements to the environmental conditions and public health of the disadvantaged communities in the short and long term.] [Applicant’s text goes here.]

c. Program Evaluation: [Describe how you will incorporate program evaluation activities (e.g., utilizing proper evaluation tools and personnel / organizations with experience in evaluating program and project progress / success) from project initiation through project completion to meaningfully document and measure your progress towards achieving project goals and describe how you will use the results of the evaluations to meet the project goals within the required timeframes.]

3.B. Feasibility and Sustainability:

a. Feasibility: [Describe your plan for ensuring all the projects in the application can be successfully and effectively performed within the three-year grant period of performance, and the degree of risk that they cannot be.]

b. Sustainability: [Describe how the benefits and outcomes from the projects in the application can be sustained after the three-year grant period of performance based on factors including but not limited to whether (i) you will leverage funding and / or resources from other sources to ensure the sustainability of the projects beyond the three-year grant term.]

#4 Programmatic Capability and Environmental Results Past Performance Past Performance: Describe your approach for successfully completing and managing the proposed project including any past performance in successfully complete and managing similar proposed projects.

History of Meeting Reporting Requirements: Describe any history the applicant has in successfully meeting necessary reporting requirements of other funding opportunities this may include submission of acceptable final technical reports under those agreements and adequate and timely reporting of progress towards achieving the expected outputs and outcomes under those agreements. If such progress was not being made, describe whether or not you reported why.

Organizational Experience: Describe organizational experience and plan for timely and successfully achieving the objectives of the proposed projects, including expertise/qualifications of staff that will be working on the projects, staff knowledge of the project, and any resources or the ability to obtain them that will support you to successfully achieve the goals of the proposed project.

Letters of Commitment [Applicants will be evaluated on the quality and quantity of the letters of commitment submitted with the application by Collaborating Entities (ie. CBOs, IHEs, private sector, and philanthropic partners) of the Statutory Entity who are committed to supporting or if eligible participate in the community of practice. The letters will be evaluated with respect to whether they explain:

· The Collaborating Entities’ role with the Statutory Entity and how it contributes towards the effectiveness of the community of practice program.

· What resources (funding, in-kind, technical assistance, support, expertise, etc.) the Collaborating Entities are bringing to the effort, how their participation will be financed;

· Their interest in community of practice program, and their expertise/experience in helping disadvantaged communities and communities in urban, rural, and remote areas.]