Congress approved billions for federal grants and programs through the EPA during the Biden administration. Those dollars were meant to help disadvantaged communities and fund community resilience projects, public health programs, and initiatives to reduce energy insecurity on tribal lands. But just as these projects were getting underway, the Trump administration froze many of the grants, put others under indefinite review, or canceled them outright.
Now, some of the groups that were awarded federal funds have banded together and are suing the federal government for the money they’re owed. Others are seeking alternative funding streams. In this episode, we speak with people whose projects are on hold, but who continue to serve their communities.
Episode Guests:
Ben Grillot, Senior Attorney, Southern Environmental Law Center
Wahleah Johns, Former Director, U.S. DOE Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs
Ilyssa Manspeizer, CEO, Landforce
Bryan Cordell, Executive Director, Sustainability Institute
For show notes, related links, and episode transcript, visit climateone.org/podcasts.
Skill Up for Earth: https://skillup.earth
Highlights:
00:00 Intro
03:01 Ilyssa Manspeizer on what her organization, Landforce
06:29 Ilyssa Manspeizer on the impact of federal grant funds
08:58 Ilyssa Manspeizer on losing the grant funding
11:38 Ilyssa Manspeizer on Landforce joining the lawsuit against the EPA
14:08 Ben Grillot on the original EPA grantees
19:08 Ben Grillot on the politicization of the grants
24:54 Ben Grillot on the loss of trust with the federal government
26:42 Bryan Cordell on the work of the Sustainability Institute
30:38 Bryan Cordell on the status of their work after federal grants were pulled
33:51 Wahleah Johns on growing up on a Navajo reservation
45:59 Wahleah Johns on the community response to IRA rollbacks
48:20 Wahleah Johns on working toward the future
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