ASAP Receives National AmeriCorps Planning Grant
ASAP has received a year-long grant of $150,000 from AmeriCorps, the federal agency for national service and volunteerism, to plan a national service program to catalyze adaptation work in rural communities. Rural communities have some of the lowest capacities in the United States to adapt to worsening climate impacts. ASAP’s AmeriCorps program concept seeks to catalyze adaptation and resilience planning in rural communities while creating long-term sustainability for adaptation and resilience work in those communities.
The program will leverage ASAP’s strong, diverse network of members and partners and our robust suite of adaptation and resilience training, education, peer learning, and mentorship opportunities. “The need for increased climate adaptation in rural communities is massive and there are not enough people in place to execute the work,” stated Acting Director Rachel Jacobson.
“This is an opportunity to simultaneously build the capacity of leaders in rural communities to address the climate impacts they’re experiencing, create the conditions for more resources to make their way into rural communities, and create positive, lasting climate resilience and economic impact. I’m grateful to all of the ASAP Members and partners who have built the resources that will form the foundation for this program, and to AmeriCorps for providing the time and money we need to research and plan a fantastic program,” continued Rachel Jacobson.
Engaging ASAP Members to Design the Program
ASAP is thrilled to partner with Farallon Strategies and Nomad Planners on this exciting project. Farallon Strategies, including ASAP Members Kif Scheuer and Michael McCormick, brings a wealth of experience designing and implementing climate-focused national service programs and will advise and build several of the program design pieces. Nomad Planners, led by ASAP Member Maria Hart, has deep expertise in workforce development analysis and workforce program design. Maria will conduct a state-by-state assessment of the climate resilience workforce and economic opportunities in our target states. We will also leverage ASAP’s Ready-to-Fund Resilience program resources to conduct an assessment of the public and private funding and finance resources available which can support climate resilience activities integrated with the work that national service members will conduct through the program.
We’ll also connect with each of our peer learning groups this Spring and throughout the planning process to inform the program design. Stay tuned for additional program details!
Interested in Adaptation Work in Rural Communities?
Don’t forget to register for the next Rural Regional Collaboratives (“RRC”) Group Meeting! RRC is a new member group that highlights unique challenges and opportunities for rural regional climate alliances.
Join us on Tuesday, September 19, from 12-3:30 PM ET to explore strategies for building climate resilience and economic opportunity in rural communities. Register HERE for this free virtual event or learn more.
This material is based upon work supported by AmeriCorps, the operating name of the Corporation for National and Community Service, under Grant No. 23NDCMI002. Opinions or points of view expressed in this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official position of, or a position that is endorsed by, AmeriCorps.
