After a challenging year where many communal spaces and services have suffered, Veolia is looking to back projects that make a positive, sustainable difference to local areas and deliver long-term social and environmental benefits. With over £60,000 worth of funding as well as in-kind resources and volunteers available, Veolia aims to empower people to take positive action in their local area.
Veolia has a long standing commitment to community funding and is looking for projects like those previously supported below:
- Running on sunshine; Solar panels have been purchased and installed to make the running of community centres more environmentally-friendly.
- Caulibox; The UK’s first reusable lunchbox scheme, Caulibox tackled plastic waste and the throwaway culture of takeaway foods, by working with local vendors to swap disposable packaging to reusable boxes.
- EnergyGarden; This organisation transforms disused land around transport networks into communal gardens. This enhances biodiversity, brings together local communities and teaches residents about growing their own food and plants and eating seasonally.
- Paddleboard recyclers; Bringing together exercise and litter picking, Veolia supported paddleboarders to protect the cleanliness of rivers and waterways.
- EcoTots; Educational talks, lessons and activity clubs for young people to learn about sustainability and how to best preserve resources and protect the environment.
Applications open 5 June. Keep an eye out on @VeoliaUK to discover projects you could replicate, get involved with or inspire you to create your own.
Veolia’s Sustainability Fund is open to not-for-profit organisations across the country, however they are particularly interested in areas where the company partners with the local authority to deliver waste and cleansing services for the community. Here in Southend, the fund has ring-fenced £5,000 exclusively for local projects which will benefit Southend residents and their communities.
Find out more about the fund and how you can apply at: Veolia.co.uk/Sustainability-Fund
All applications will be considered, but projects should aim to fulfill at least one of the following criteria; enhancing biodiversity, promoting sustainable behaviours (reduce, reuse and/or recycle), protecting or preserving resources and the environment and using recycled, reused or reclaimed materials.
Stuart Atkinson, Senior Contract Manager, Veolia UK, said:
“At Veolia we are always looking at ways to give back to the communities we serve. The Sustainability Fund will help to transform local communities and environments into places that support a sustainable future for everyone. I look forward to seeing all the fantastic projects that pitch to the Fund and supporting successful applicants.”
Councillor Carole Mulroney, cabinet member for environment, business, culture and planning, said:
“I am delighted that we are able to assist in the promotion of Veolia’s new Sustainability Fund initiative, which looks at supporting projects with grants of up to £1,000 to deliver sustainable improvements in our town.
“There are lots of different ways local people could look to spend the money, if successful, and I urge all local people with any ideas on promoting sustainable environmental improvements in the Borough to apply now.”