Announcing our Fall 2024 Grants

On the heels of a US election that has thrown federal climate programs into stark uncertainty, the Hive Fund remains steadfast in our commitment to resourcing local and regional organizations across the US South with the long-term, flexible support they need to protect democratic power and sustain climate action. This fall, we made nearly $10 million in grants focused on bolstering grantee partners’ work at the local level to ensure that the transition from dirty to clean energy not only continues but delivers tangible benefits for low-income communities and communities of color. 

This docket includes partners who are poised to defend and implement Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) grant-funded projects, harnessing the momentum of public support and strong partnerships with state and local governments. We’re also supporting a constellation of frontline groups to continue engaging in local permitting processes that can help protect and improve their air and water quality, environment, and health while slowing the expansion of oil and gas exports. And we're directing resources for legal, security, crisis communications, healing, and collaborative support — areas that will be critical over the coming years — so grantee partners can withstand attacks and remain nimble as they sharpen their strategies to meet this moment. 

* Denotes first-time grantees 

Georgia

Black Sustainability, Inc. is committed to the transformative power of nature and the collective process of healing generational trauma within the Black farming community. By fostering a global network of Afrikan sustainability experts, they facilitate the exchange of knowledge, development of best practices, and application of sustainable solutions to environmental challenges, particularly within the energy sector. 

Capital Good Fund* is 501(c)(3) certified Community Development Financial Institution that works to alleviate poverty by providing inclusive financial services — personal loans, financial coaching, and solar leases/power purchasing agreements — to low- and moderate-income families while addressing climate change and social inequities. 

Klean Energy Kulture is an environmental justice organization that accelerates the clean energy transition in Black communities through national campaigns and collaborations with cultural institutions. 

ProGeorgia’s State Table is a coalition that seeks to support strong civic engagement infrastructure across the state of Georgia and ensure that every vote is counted.  

Sustainable Georgia Futures creates green economy pathways for Black communities and people of color, advancing environmental justice and economic inclusion through community education, workforce development, and organizing. 

North Carolina

A Better Chance, A Better Community equips young people to be game changers in their communities while addressing important community issues and developing them into civic leaders. The organization is developing climate champions as it builds a resiliency hub that will serve a climate vulnerable community in Eastern North Carolina.  

Democracy Green connects environmental justice communities with workforce development and state and federal funding opportunities and supports them to develop community clean energy advocacy plans. It has also utilized powerful partnerships and mutual aid to be responsive in the wake of Hurricane Helene. 

MDC* is rooted in creating equitable change throughout the South. Their work as conveners of the North Carolina Inclusive Disaster Recovery Network creates space for connecting leaders across sectors and centers collaboration and equity in disaster recovery.  

Roanoke Center fosters healthy and sustainable communities in persistently poor counties by integrating programs like energy efficiency, weatherization, community solar, and sustainable land practices. 

Southern Vision Alliance* provides incubation, infrastructure, capacity building, coaching, and technical assistance to frontline organizing projects, leadership programs, and collaborations led by directly impacted communities in the US South.  

Louisiana

Deep South Center for Environmental Justice improves the lives of children and families harmed by pollution and climate change in the Gulf Coast Region through research, education, community and student engagement for policy change, as well as health and safety worker training for environmental careers. 

The Descendants Project preserves and protects the health, land, and lives of the Black descendant community in Louisiana’s River Parishes. They are coordinating a collaboration of four community groups in the River Parishes to bring federal infrastructure funds to the region for community-driven projects. 

Electoral Collective is building a climate constituency in Louisiana by organizing and leveraging the collective power of existing climate justice and civic engagement groups across the state. The Collective provides a collaborative structure and critical resources including messaging guidance, coordination, and technical support for organizations to run aligned and successful campaigns to educate and mobilize voters.

Elevate* wants everyone to have access to clean and affordable heat, cooling, power, and water in their homes and communities and centers equity in the climate conversation. They have partnered with Green Coast Enterprises in Louisiana to accelerate community solar programs in New Orleans public schools with the potential to reduce energy bills and provide grid reliability to low-income residents.  

Extensive Empowerment Inc.* is dedicated to improving the quality of life of fenceline communities of the River Parishes of Southeast Louisiana. They empower families and individuals to build stronger and more resilient communities by repairing homes hit by disasters, nurturing access to fresh and local foods, and leading workforce development in construction and agricultural trades. 

Healthy Gulf collaborates with and serves communities who love the Gulf of Mexico by providing research, communications and coalition-building tools. They support communities facing the greatest threats of environmental injustice as they advocate for clean air and water, coastal restoration, sustainable fisheries, and a just transition. 

Inclusive Louisiana* fights petrochemical expansion and promotes climate resilience and economic development in Black districts of St. James Parish through research, education, and legal action, honoring African American heritage, health, and well-being. They also advocate for improved disaster recovery and provide resources to hurricane-impacted residents. 

Refined Community Empowerment, Inc.* advocates for environmental justice and resists further environmental degradation in Cancer Alley’s Elkinsville-Freetown/St. Rose, a predominantly African American Southern fenceline community where a proposed “blue” ammonia plant threatens to expose the community to more toxic chemicals. It was founded by Kimbrelle Eugene Kyereh, a resident of Elkinsville-Freetown and a descendant of its founding father. 

Rural Roots Louisiana* serves disadvantaged communities in Ascencion Parish by advocating for clean air and water, educating communities on environmental justice issues, and fostering stewardship of the environment while preserving and protecting communities from industrial intrusion. 

Step Up Louisiana* is building power to win education and economic justice across the state and training a generation of Louisianans to organize. Their climate justice program organizes thousands of Louisianans to fight for climate justice, good jobs, and good schools. 

Texas

BLOOM Rio Grande Valley* harnesses the power of Latino youth in the Rio Grande Valley through civic education, voter registration and turnout, and leadership development.  

Photo by Dina Nunez

Border Workers United trains the Spanish-speaking immigrant community near Brownsville to conduct community outreach and education on the health and environmental impacts of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) buildout in the region. 

Building Resourced Infrastructure for Diverse Grassroots Engagement (BRIDGE) Infrastructure Fund is building the next generation of progressive leadership and organizations in Texas by empowering BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and youth leaders. Their Gulf Coast climate incubator cohort will help five climate justice organizations sharpen their programing, develop their leadership, and boost their impact. 

Bullard Center for Environmental and Climate Justice at Texas Southern University addresses environmental, climate, economic, energy, transportation, food and water, and health justice while working to eliminate structural inequality and systemic racism. 

The Carrizo/Comecrudo Tribe preserves, maintains, protects, and offers services that better tribal communities’ ability to overcome the erasure of the Original People of Texas. The tribe partners with regional organizations working to stop proposed new oil and gas facilities in South Texas. 

Chispa Texas works to invigorate the environmental movement with new Latinx leaders, increase voter participation, and hold elected officials accountable, all in order to improve the quality of life of communities. 

Hillcrest Residents Association* fights for the people of the historically Black Hillcrest neighborhood against the encroachment of the fossil fuel industry, aided and abetted by local government. They are fighting the construction of a desalination plant within the neighborhood that would supply water for oil and gas industry expansion. 

Solar United Neighbors is dedicated to building a clean, equitable energy system with rooftop solar as the cornerstone.  In addition to expanding their success with Solar for All funds, SUN is advancing regulatory policy shifts that lower the cost of solar to make it accessible for all. 

Texas Energy, Justice, Equity, and Democracy Coalition (TEJED) brings together frontline environmental justice organizations with statewide environmental democracy and advocacy organizations to build relationships and collaboratively develop policy and statewide campaigns. In the coming years, TEJED will advance policy priorities and share out a newly completed organizing curriculum. 

Ties to la Tierra* is an emerging ecological justice organization nurtured by multigenerational Indigenous communities of the Gulf Coast and Southern Plains of Texas (Corpus Christi). They preserve and celebrate Indigenous culture, create and implement Traditional Ecological Knowledge curricula, develop the leadership of youth for green and sustainable jobs, protect water and ecoregions, and organize to stop industrial expansion. 

Regional and National

Clean Energy Works aims to accelerate inclusive investments that incorporate strong consumer protections and make the clean energy economy accessible to everyone, with a focus on the Southeast. They also enhance the capacity of frontline advocates to champion inclusive utility investments. 

National Coalition on Black Civic Participation (NCBCP)* works to increase civic engagement and voter participation and elevate racial, gender, economic, environmental, and reproductive justice into the national conversation. Their work through the Black Women’s Roundtable calls for the creation of a justice agenda for Black women, their families, and communities, with a focus on the South. 

The U.S. Green Bank 50 (GB 50)* is a network of nearly 50 mission-driven green financing institutions aimed at building inclusive climate solutions in communities across the country, particularly lower-income areas that have been disproportionately impacted by pollution and environmental injustice.