West Central Initiative (WCI) awarded more than $285,000 in Resilient Communities Grants to 26 organizations working to create a more sustainable and equitable region. 

Seven community members known for their work in sustainable development and promoting racial equity participated in awarding the dollars. “Working alongside community members with lived and professional experience ensures a more informed and impactful grant round,” said Celeste Koppe, West Central Initiative’s Rural Initiatives Strategist. “I was impressed by the volunteers’ diligence, attention to detail, and thoughtful decision-making approaches throughout the process.”  

Promoting Sustainability

West Central Initiative awarded more than $145,000 in grants to the organizations below working to create a more sustainable region. Among the grants in the general area: • First Congregational UCC Moorhead for the Youth Stewards Food & Ecology Initiative. 

  • Doubting Thomas Farms for Meet Me at the Farm. 
  • Friends of the Prairie Wetlands Learning Center for Climate-Wise Prairie Learning. 
  • Otter Tail County Solid Waste to expand access to the Organics Recycling Program. 
  • Springboard for the Arts for the mobile version of Sustainability Studios. 
  • Clay County Public Health’s PartnerSHIP 4 Health for the Regional Food Council. 
  • Henning Public School for the Climate Action Library. 
  • Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton Elementary for the School Pollinator Garden. 
  • Tyler Shipman Memorial Car Show for the Community Service Shed donation. 

Promoting Racial Equity 

West Central Initiative awarded more than $140,000 in grants to the organizations below that serve or are led by people who identify as Black, Indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC). Area grants include:

  • Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota for the Northwest Immigration Project. 
  • Someplace Safe for agency-wide diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. 
  • Pelican Rapids Multicultural Committee for the Pelican Rapids International Friendship Festival. 

“Investing in programs and organizations that strengthen community resilience benefits our health, the economy, and the environment,” said West Central Initiative President Anna Wasescha. 

West Central Initiative (WCI) is a regional community foundation and an economic development organization serving the nine west central Minnesota counties of Becker, Clay, Douglas, Grant, Otter Tail, Pope, Stevens, Traverse, and Wilkin and a portion of White Earth Nation.