Community Led Climate Solutions
The Community Led Climate Solutions Grant Program supports not-for-profit organisations across remote, rural and regional Australia to drive local climate solutions that reduce emissions through education, engagement and action on:
- clean energy;
- circular economies;
- decarbonisation;
- sustainable agriculture and food systems;
- biodiverse ecosystems; or
- just transitions*.
The Program is collaboratively funded by donors committed to enabling communities to address the impacts of climate change locally for positive and sustainable environmental, social and economic outcomes.
Round 1 of the program offers grants of up to $20,000 for a range of initiatives that can help by achieving one of the following objectives:
1. Drive engagement, education, and leadership in remote, rural, and regional climate solutions;
2. Activate locally-led opportunities to advance: the clean energy transition, climate adaptation, decarbonisation, or circular economies;
3. Support just transitions* to clean energy economies to help communities thrive.
*Just transitions: For the purposes of this grant program, this term refers to ensuring that no one is left behind in the transition to low-carbon and environmentally sustainable economies and societies.
Proudly supported by
Future rounds
Round 2 will open in April or May 2024.
Round 1 is now closed
Funding announced by March 2024
How to apply for Community Led Climate Solutions
Please read the information on each of the three tabs below to make sure this is the right grant for your project.
If you want to explore other grant options, please go to Find Funding Now.
I have a question, who can I talk to?
If you need help with your application or have questions about the program, don’t hesitate to contact the FRRR office.
Ph: 1800 170 020 or Email: info@frrr.org.au
Confirm you are eligible to apply for this grant
To make sure this is the right grant for your community, please read the grant information detailed in the Program Guidelines below carefully. Click on each headline to reveal the detail.
What are the program objectives?
Projects funded via the Community Led Climate Solutions program must achieve one of the following objectives:
1. Drive engagement, education, and leadership in remote, rural, and regional climate solutions;
2. Activate locally-led opportunities to advance: the clean energy transition, climate adaptation, decarbonisation, or circular economies;
3. Support just transitions* to clean energy economies to help communities thrive.
*Just transitions: For the purposes of this grant program this term refers to the processes for changing to clean energy usage to be fair and socially inclusive in development and implementation to deliver broad community benefit.
Project activity supported may include:
Is this grant available in my area?
Yes, Community Led Climate Solutions is a national program with funding available in remote, rural and regional regions in all States and Territories.
How much funding is available? Are there priority areas?
The Program is commencing with committed funding of $360,000 available for remote, rural and regional communities to receive grants of up to $20,000.
$160,000 of these funds will be directed to projects for Queensland communities and $200,000 is available for projects from all other Australian States & Territories.
While all requests aligned to the Program Purpose will be considered, priorities for funding are outlined below:
What can be funded?
A broad range of charitable projects aligned to climate solutions outcomes of reducing emissions and adapting to the changing climate are considered under this program, including;
*Note, applications requesting the installation of solar panels or batteries, or community gardens must demonstrate a ‘broader community climate solutions’ impact beyond enhancing operational outcomes for the organisation.
What can’t be funded?
There are several areas that we can’t fund through this program. If in doubt, please contact us.
Is my organisation eligible?
To apply, you must meet the following criteria:
Please note, you will be considered ineligible if:
Gather information to support your grant application
Please read the information below to support the planning and preparation of your project. It also sets out what you MUST include for your project to be considered. There are plenty of helpful resources to support you along the way.
Please contact FRRR if you have any questions about the following information.
Your grant application MUST include:
Eligible legal entities
Every application needs to include an organisation that holds either an ABN or Incorporation Certificate. If your organisation doesn’t have that, FRRR may still fund the project but you need another organisation’s support, which we refer to as the ‘legal organisation’ (with your organisation being the delivery organisation). This situation often occurs when the organisation delivering the activity or project is a branch of an overarching organisation – such as a local CWA or YMCA branch. In this case, the CWA or YMCA would be the legal organisation.
Even though your organisation may complete the application (and will be doing the work), it’s the ‘legal organisation’s’ legal and financial information that needs to be provided. They also need to provide a letter of support, confirming they are willing to play this role.
Applications from ACNC and/or unincorporated associations are required to submit their organisation’s Constitution.
Why is this important?
This program is only able to distribute funds to not-for-profit organisations with an ABN or Incorporation Certificate, and FRRR needs to know that the organisation with that ABN / Incorporation number understands and agrees to carry out their responsibilities in relation to your project, if successful.
Financial information
Applications received without the requested financial information are ineligible. Providing incorrect financial information is currently the most common reason why applications are not able to be considered. You must include the organisation’s:
- Annual income;
- Annual expenditure;
- Current assets (from your audited financials or bank balance).
Please note:
- If financial information is more than 18 months old, please provide an explanation as to why the organisation does not have more recent documents;
- Please explain any deficits and steps to sustain the organisation financially;
- Provide a brief explanation of any large financial surplus or current assets and reasons why FRRR funds are still required;
- FRRR conducts a broad range of due diligence queries when reviewing applications, such as: reviewing current and past incorporation, DGR and ACNC status. If your organisation has happened to have their incorporation status, DGR status or ACNC status changed or ACNC registration revoked or voluntarily withdrawn, please let us know the reasons for this.
Please contact us if you cannot provide required financials or you are unsure about what to provide.
Why is this important?
FRRR uses this information to understand your organisation’s financial viability and ability to manage grant funds.
Project budget
You must include a project budget that clearly shows the items that FRRR grant funds would be used for and that also shows all income and expenses related to your project.
Budgets should be realistic and must add up – i.e. total expenditure must match total income.
Applicant contributions in cash or in-kind are highly regarded. Quotes or detailed rationale for items over $1,000 are required, where possible. Note: FRRR suggests costing unskilled volunteer labour at $46.62 per hour.
For more info on costing volunteer labour, visit: https://explore.fundingcentre.com.au/help-sheets/valuing-volunteer-labour.
Why is this important?
A clear budget helps FRRR to understand the size of your project, exactly how FRRR funds will be spent and helps demonstrate community support for your project through in-kind contributions either from your organisation or partners / community members.
Helpful resources:
Supporting materials
FRRR strongly recommends that you provide supporting materials such as letters of support, community plans, survey results, photographs, media clips and research reports that can show broad community support and partnerships involved in the project.
Large documents should be referenced and explained in the application.
Please note: A requirement of this program is that a high resolution photo (between 1MB to 10MB) must be submitted as part of the application process. The photo can be a group shot of staff or volunteers in your Community Organisation OR an action shot relevant to the project you are applying for including people. If you are successful, FRRR may utilise this photo in grant announcements and/or associated communications.
Why is this important?
FRRR seeks to fund projects that are well-supported by the broader local community, are locally-led and delivered, show good partnerships and benefit multiple parts of the community. As FRRR is not always familiar with your community, our staff consider support material as evidence toward understanding the level of community need, benefit and support.
Helpful resources:
Clear project information
Each application is assessed on its ability to address local priorities and benefit the broader community. A clear description of exactly what the grant funds will be used for, when and where the project will happen, who will benefit and who will be involved in delivering the project, why the project and grant funds are needed, how funds will be spent and how the activities and success of the project will be recorded, evaluated and shared.
Where possible, we encourage you to make it really clear that your organisation is ready and able to deliver the project and, if required, provide ongoing support for the initiative.
Why is this important?
FRRR needs to clearly understand your project to assess its merits. Applicants should focus on addressing the what, when, where, who, why and how of the project, as this is the best way to clearly communicate the details of the project.
A ready community is best placed to achieve the aims of your project, so during assessment, our staff look for information that tells us that good leadership, skills and awareness exist in your community to support the project now and in the future.
Helpful resources:
Focus area
We have grouped the kinds of projects communities commonly ask us to help fund into seven areas, which we call the Activity Tree:
1. Building community resilience
2. Developing organisational resilience and capacity
3. Enhancing environmental sustainability
4. Fostering cultural vibrancy
5. Lifelong learning and education
6. Economic strength
7. Improving community health and social wellbeing
We ask you to nominate one of those seven areas when you apply. So, before you lodge your application, download the Activity Tree to help you identify your focus area.
Why is this important?
FRRR makes grants to communities, but we also need to be able to demonstrate to our funding partners where communities need support.
Need some more help?
We have a large selection of resources on our Grantseeker Resources page to help you along the way.
Submit your grant application via the Grants Gateway
Applications have now closed.
Please note: A requirement of this program is that a high resolution photo (between 1MB to 10MB) must be submitted as part of the application process. The photo can be a group shot of staff or volunteers in your Community Organisation OR an action shot relevant to the project you are applying for including people. If you are successful, FRRR may utilise this photo in grant announcements and/or associated communications.
Please contact FRRR if you have questions about any aspect of the Grants Gateway online application form.
Apply now for the Community Led Climate Solutions program
Helpful resources:
It is time to submit your application. If it is helpful, you can download a sample copy of the application form.
Please read the instructions on how to use the Grants Gateway How-to Guide and have your questions answered with our Grants Gateway FAQs.
Before you submit your application via the online Grants Gateway, please ensure you have:
If you have significant issues accessing a stable internet connection, please contact our team to discuss an alternative way of applying:
Ph: 1800 170 020 or Email: info@frrr.org.au
“FRRR’s grant application was clearly set out, staff were friendly and helpful when I had a few questions, and the whole process was easily achievable. We are grateful for the opportunity to receive funding to improve Adavale Lane Community Centre so it can be accessed and used for the benefit of our whole community.”
Danielle Diener, Secretary – Adavale Lane Community Centre Incorporated, SRC R9
Inspiration – Past projects
Explore some of the projects we’ve previously funded to see how other organisations have helped their community thrive.
Seymour Community Wetland Restoration & Reclassification Project, TAS
A $10,000 grant was awarded from FRRR (proudly supported by IKEA) to fund weed control and restoration of the Seymour Wetland Reserve (including workshops on Seed Collection, Propagation and Restoration). The work of the volunteers, together with professional support from this funding, resulted in the Reclassification of the project area in June 2022, to double the size of the Seymour Conservation Area, contributing to restoration of native species (over 650 trees have been planted by the group) and decarbonisation. The media exposure from the Reclassification attracted new members and enrolled others in the community to become more active in the Conservation area
Bendigo Sustainability Group, Regional Community Energy Workshops, VIC
The Bendigo Sustainability Group (BSG) has been operating for 10 years. Over that period, BSG has been involved in the successful delivery of a wide range of projects and programs, creating awareness around sustainable living, renewable energy options, climate change and the need for decarbonisation.
This $10,000 grant funded by FRRR, with the support of the Community Foundation for Central Victoria, has enabled BSG to deliver free, engaging and informative workshops on energy efficiency and renewable energy in small towns throughout the Loddon Mallee region. As a result, they have also been able to identify and support the development of community renewable energy projects to enhance the resilience of these communities.
Augusta Margaret River Clean Community Energy Incorporated, WA
The Dairy Waste Energy Study project was part of Shire of Augusta-Margaret River’s ambitious plan to operate at net zero carbon emissions by 2030. AMRCCE wanted to investigate creating biogas from dairy manure waste, while also diverting effluent from nearby water sources. The project utilised an FRRR grant to partially fund the study, which assessed the Butane Methane Potential contained in dairy waste from a large dairy farm in the Scott River area in the Augusta Margaret River local government area. It was an important precursor to the planning and development of what could be an aggregated biogas and renewable power grid connected facility, and was involved in a PhD study and associated scientific paper.
