UMD’s ‘Green’ Grants Fund Gardens, Clean Energy and More Across Maryland Communities

Eight Maryland cities and towns will build community gardens, create pollinator and bird habitats and install energy-efficient lighting in a local park through new grants from the University of Maryland’s “greening” program.

Sustainable Maryland recently awarded a total of $100,000 in state funding to projects that help protect wildlife, combat climate change and make the state more environmentally resilient. 

Administered by UMD's Environmental Finance Center, Sustainable Maryland connects municipalities with funding opportunities, training, expertise and a tight-knit network of peer communities. Now in its 15th year, the program has helped 60% of Maryland municipalities organize, fund and launch sustainability projects that help create profound economic, environmental and social impact— from migrating Hyattsville’s police fleet to electric vehicles, to starting a food waste collection program in Landover Hills. The grants program was launched in 2024. 

While the grants are relatively small, the projects they fund can have a cumulative effect, said Sustainable Maryland Program Director Mike Hunninghake. 

“Collectively, it all adds up to more sustainable counties, a more sustainable state, and a more sustainable planet,” he said. 

The money, he said, can be particularly helpful at a time when states, and in turn local governments, have recently lost much of the federal funding they’ve long counted on for help with environmental programs.

The latest grant winners are:

• University Park (Prince George’s County): $20,000 to create a community learning garden for residents and elementary school students
• Salisbury (Wicomico County): $20,000 to plant pollinator gardens, create educational materials and organize planting days.
• Mount Airy (Carroll and Frederick counties): $14,000 to install bat boxes and other wildlife habitat and expand environmental educational programs
• Emmitsburg (Frederick County): $13,000 to expand and improve a community garden and hold public education workshops
• Chestertown (Kent County): $10,500 to build pollinator and bird habitats
• Galena (Kent County): $10,000 to install energy-efficient LED pathway lighting in Galena Community Park
• Forest Heights (Prince George’s County): $7,500 to expand and enhance a community garden
• Eagle Harbor (Prince George’s County): $5,000 to establish an organic community garden