2019 Investment and Innovation grant awards
Metro awarded 17 Investment and Innovation grants in 2019 totaling over $6 million.
Capital grants
Program grants
Applications for 2019 grants are closed. The next grant cycle will be announced in spring 2020. To be notified by email about the next grant cycle, email [email protected].
Oregon has a long history of leadership when it comes to preventing, recycling and reducing waste. Metro is in a unique position to invest in and support innovation in the local reuse and recycling economy and help businesses and communities succeed.
In December 2017, the Metro Council created the Investment and Innovation grant program to support for-profit businesses and nonprofit organizations involved in reducing waste through repairing, reusing, recycling, composting or making energy from the stuff that is discarded in the greater Portland area. The main goal of the program is to strengthen local efforts to reduce waste, make better use of the waste that is produced, and help foster economic opportunities for people who have historically been left out of the garbage and recycling system, particularly communities of color.
The program:
- Offers grants to for-profit businesses and nonprofit organizations involved in reducing, reusing, recycling, composting or recovering energy from materials that may otherwise be discarded as waste
- Focuses on strengthening the greater Portland area's reuse, repair and recycling systems, as well as on reducing environmental and health impacts in the local manufacture and use of products
- Helps achieve the goals of the 2030 Regional Waste Plan, the blueprint for improving the greater Portland area's garbage and recycling system
- Advances Metro’s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts by investing in projects that benefit communities and workers in the garbage and recycling systems, and increases access for historically underserved residents.
- Supports two types of grants:
- Program grants between $25,000 and $75,000 each that can support personnel costs, operations and equipment associated with new or expanded programming
- Capital grants between $50,000 and $750,000 each for larger investments such as machinery or other facility infrastructure
- Awards grants through a competitive solicitation process and recommendations by a review committee
- Requires that grant awards be matched with cash or in-kind contributions from the recipient
- Produces annual reports on the program’s activities with a full program review at the end of the first three years
In 2018, Metro awarded nearly $2.5 million to 14 local businesses and nonprofit organizations to reduce waste in the greater Portland region and help generate more benefits from the area’s garbage and recycling system. Metro’s funding was matched by nearly $2.4 million in other cash or in-kind support.
2018-19 Investment and Innovation grants
In 2019, Metro awarded 17 Investment and Innovation grants totaling over $6 million to local businesses and nonprofit organizations in the greater Portland region. Capital grant recipients will use Metro funds to improve recycling infrastructure, expand and modernize composting facilities, and increase recovery of reusable materials from construction and demolition debris. Program grant recipients will reduce waste in the region through repair education, food rescue, recycling information technology, and building material reuse and recycling. Metro’s funding will be matched by nearly $7 million in other cash or in-kind support provided by the grant recipients.
2019-20 Investment and Innovation capital grants
2019-20 Investment and Innovation program grants
Metro is no longer accepting applications for 2019 grants. The next Investment and Innovation grants cycle will be announced in spring 2020. All solicitation materials, application instructions and resources will be posted on this page. To be notified about the next grant cycle and any program updates, email [email protected] to sign up for the email list.