ECCAN is delighted to announce the recipients of the GreenLight seed fund grant program 2024. GreenLight supports innovative, community-driven projects tackling climate change challenges in Edinburgh.
Initially set at £90,000, the program received an overwhelming response. With 51 applications totalling £396,357 requested, ECCAN surpassed the initial budget, awarding a final total of £114,105 to 31 outstanding projects.
A diverse panel of six, including ECCAN staff and volunteers, meticulously assessed each application based on the pre-defined GreenLight criteria set out in the application guidelines. Through multiple meetings and roundtable discussions, the panel rigorously evaluated proposals before determining the successful recipients.
The winning projects span a wide range of initiatives, from community gardens and renewable energy to education and social justice. They showcase the remarkable creativity and commitment of Edinburgh’s communities to building a more sustainable future.
Here’s a snapshot of the winning projects:
Edible Estates: Developing climate action plans to empower disadvantaged communities in addressing climate change.
Earth in Common: Establishing a new plant nursery and delivering carbon literacy workshops.
The Edinburgh Tool Library: Expanding services with a new location in SW Edinburgh and a paint-sharing program.
Porty Community Energy: Promoting low-carbon travel through a competition and exhibition.
Tummies Not Trash: Redistributing supermarket food surplus via a network of community partners.
BANZAI (Bruntsfield Area Net Zero Action Initiative): Campaigning for active travel and building a cargo bike library.
Bikes for Refugees (Scotland) SCIO: Repairing and distributing bikes to refugees and asylum seekers.
The Meaning Map Project: Creating visual maps to support communities in setting climate goals.
Rhyze Mushrooms Cooperative CIC: Producing sustainable mushrooms and repurposing local business waste.
Drylaw and Telford Community Association: Restoring fruit orchards and hosting community events.
EALA Impacts CIC: Collecting and recirculating unused materials from construction sites.
Youth Vision: Implementing an edible woodland and biodiversity project for young people.
Broomhouse Community Growers Association: Installing solar power and battery-powered tools in their community garden.
Bridgend Farmhouse: Hosting apple pressing sessions and tree planting days.
Salisbury Centre: Developing a new seed library.
Parents 4 Future Scotland: Climate awareness/engagement programme for school aged children.
Edinburgh Building Retrofit & Improvement Collective (EdinBRIC): Expanding the use of their “Retrofit Rover” to raise awareness of building retrofits.
The Green Team: Contributing to a cargo bike for their Green Schools and Communities project.
Edinburgh Old Town Development Trust: Creating and enhancing community gardens in Edinburgh’s Old Town.
Settlement Community Project / Grow2Eat: Developing community shop, zero waste hub, and food growing skills.
Transition Edinburgh South: Community garden at Gracemount walled garden; weekly Queer Gardening group..
Open Arms/Conscious Weaving – ELREC: Running workshops on rag doll making using recycled materials. Awareness raising; sustainable materials; art impact; climate conversations.
LGBT Health and Wellbeing: Learn to grow workshop.
Cycle Kitchen (Edinburgh Tool Library): Bronze level Velotech training for bike mechanics.
University of Edinburgh School of Architecture: Workshop on net-zero architectural design for local architects and architecture students.
Cozy future QPC: Overhauling a high-density housing development for energy efficiency and sustainability.
Greening Our Streets: Purchasing tools and tree stakes for the community garden.
These impactful projects represent a significant step forward in Edinburgh’s fight against the climate emergency. By empowering communities to take action, GreenLight is fostering a more sustainable and resilient city for all.