Groundwork USA receives boost from US Government agencies

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14/10/2010

 Creating Union & Mechanic Community Garden in Lawrence, MA.

More US communities are set to benefit from better, safer and healthier neighbourhoods following news that the country’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and National Park Service (NPS) have signed an agreement to continue their support for development of Groundwork USA.

As part of the agreement, the EPA will provide an additional $600,000 in funding and   NPS will match the funds with technical assistance to help selected communities develop their Groundwork Trust.

Commenting on how the Groundwork approach is taking off in the United States, Douglas Evans, Manager of the Groundwork USA Initiative at the National Parks Service, said:  

“Groundwork provides an organizational framework that capitalizes on the can-do attitude of distressed communities to improve their local environment themselves.  It builds their capacity to take advantage of the resources and programs available from NPS, EPA and other federal agencies.  By responding to local needs and conditions and drawing on the expertise and resources of a national network, the Groundwork approach resonates in communities across the diversity of the United States.”

Groundwork UK chief executive, Tony Hawkhead, added:  

“Groundwork is an environmental charity for the community and has worked with the most disadvantaged at a local level to improve the areas where they live for the past thirty years.  

“Our experience tells us that a focus on improving or maintaining the local environment has shown consistently to be a powerful vehicle for motivating people to act together in the interests of their wider community.

“This approach works and is valued by the most vulnerable on both sides of the Atlantic – as this ringing endorsement of Groundwork USA shows.”

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Notes to editors

  • Click here to read a ‘Groundwork in the USA' blog special by Alistair Cormie, Managing Director of Groundwork South West
  • Groundwork USA is based on the successful Groundwork movement in the UK, which has helped thousands of people and organisations in the UK make changes in order to create better neighbourhoods, build skills and job prospects and live and work in a greener way since the early 1980s.
  • Groundwork USA is a network of 20 independent, not-for-profit environmental Trusts based on the Groundwork model in the UK – click here  for a full list.   
  •  Each Trust represents a strong partnership between government, business, foundations, community groups and residents.  The first two Groundwork Trusts in the United States were established in 1997.  Five more Groundwork Trusts will be developed over the next 2 years.
  • The Groundwork USA national office, a national non-profit corporation, coordinates and promotes the network of Groundwork Trusts in the USA. It provides the Trusts with needed services to ensure each Trust is an effective, credible and valued partner within their community.
  • Groundwork USA’s primary national partners are the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Parks Service.