Current funding from CRTI

Two grants from the Chicago Region Trees Initiative are still open.  These grants are the first of many that will be made available in the coming months.

Urban and Community Forestry
Grant awards are available for a minimum of $25,000 and a maximum of $150,000 to enhance urban and community forestry in nature-deprived populations and disadvantaged communities. This grant provides funding assistance to government entities including municipalities, park districts, counties, tribal governments, townships, forest preserves, and other units of local government in Illinois to improve the urban forest. Only entities considered disadvantaged are eligible for funding through this program.

Grant application is due March 1, 2024. Use the Illinois IRA Screening Tool to determine eligibility

Municipalities over 75,000
Grant awards up to a maximum of $3,000,000 provide funding assistance to large disadvantaged municipalities and associated park districts with over 75,000 residents. The funding enables a community to conduct an inventory of public trees within the applicant’s boundaries and create an Urban and Community Forest Management Plan based on the inventory that includes strategies for maintaining or improving tree canopy in disadvantaged areas of the community. All projects must also contain an accompanying implementation action based on the new inventory and plan. Only municipalities that are considered to be disadvantaged as defined by the Climate and Economic Justice Screening tool, HUD Opportunity Zones, and EPA EJ Screen and have over 75,000 residents are eligible for program funding.

Grant application is due March 1, 2024. Use the Illinois IRA Screening Tool to determine eligibility.