The City of Trenton was awarded a $20,000 Sustainable Jersey grant funded by the PSEG Foundation. Four $20,000 grants, seven $10,000 grants and twenty-five $2,000 grants were distributed to municipalities in fifteen New Jersey counties.
The grant awards will fund a range of projects including green infrastructure, park restoration, single-use plastic reduction campaigns, raingardens, environmental resource inventories, creative placemaking, green team capacity building and more.
“We will be using the funds to develop the Trenton Artwalk,” said Trenton Mayor Reed Gusciora. “This project will make the gateway corridor from the Trenton Transit Center to surrounding neighborhoods friendlier and safer for pedestrians and other non-vehicular traffic. In collaboration with Artworks Trenton, we will install public art, creative lighting, wayfinding, and other measures.”
“From climate change, to water, waste and equity issues, so many of the big sustainability concerns are reaching a crisis point. This investment in sustainability projects will have lasting benefits to New Jersey,” said Randall Solomon, executive director for Sustainable Jersey. He extended his congratulations to all of the towns that received grants. “We’re seeing exciting results from previous grant projects, and we are looking forward to similarly productive, innovative progress from the current group of awardees,” Solomon added.
The PSEG Foundation has contributed 1.9 million dollars in funding to the Sustainable Jersey grants program for municipalities and schools. “Supporting local municipalities in their efforts to build sustainability programs puts resources where they’re needed and aren’t always available, and PSEG is proud to do so” said Barb Short, president of the PSEG Foundation. “Sustainable Jersey helps bring real change and has a lasting impact to neighborhoods throughout New Jersey.”
“As a Greater Trenton board member organization and financial supporter, PSEG is committed to powering Trenton’s bright future,” said Greater Trenton Chief Executive Officer George Sowa. “Using these funds to support the Trenton Artwalk project is a great step toward reducing carbon emissions as well as beautifying and activating the area between the Transit Center and the surrounding community.”
Proposals were evaluated by an independent Blue-Ribbon Selection Committee. The Sustainable Jersey grants are intended to help municipalities make progress toward a sustainable future in general, and specifically toward Sustainable Jersey certification. Nearly 90 percent of the New Jersey population lives in a registered or certified Sustainable Jersey community. Currently 450 municipalities, or 80 percent of New Jersey municipalities, are registered with Sustainable Jersey.
Sustainable Jersey is a non-profit that provides tools, training and financial incentives to support communities as they pursue sustainability programs. Currently, 80 percent or 450 of New Jersey’s 565 municipalities are participating in the municipal certification program and 323 school districts and 843 schools are participating in the Sustainable Jersey for Schools certification program. In 2019, Sustainable Jersey is celebrating its 10th Anniversary with a year-long program that will include special events to educate and engage the Sustainable Jersey community and create a vision for the future.
