Vermont Business Magazine The Association of Vermont Conservation Commissions (AVCC) is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2025 Tiny Grant awards to support local conservation in Vermont. This year, we are proud to award over $4,000 to eight volunteer conservation commissions (CCs) across four counties in Vermont.
Through its Tiny Grants program, the AVCC annually awards up to $700 in seed money and/or matching funds for specific projects in the broad categories of land conservation, education and outreach, stewardship and management, and planning. We also received a record-breaking number of applications this year – 31 applications totaling nearly $20,000 in requested funding. Our 2025 Tiny Grants were made possible with generous support from The Nature Conservancy in Vermont, Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission and Vermont Natural Resources Council.
The 2025 Tiny Grant award recipients and their projects are as follows:
-
Bolton - Joiner Brook Plantings
-
Funding to install a number of plantings at the bottom of the Bolton Valley Access Road to restore a vegetated buffer in a former parking lot, promoting flood resilience and buffer establishment along dynamic tributaries to the Winooski River.
-
-
Cambridge - Expanding Community Engagement Around Conservation
-
Funding to expand CCC’s community outreach beyond their existing communication channels, bridging the gap between digital and in-person engagement and ensuring all residents have opportunities to shape conservation efforts.
-
-
Fayston - Boyce Hill Town Forest Documentary
-
Funding to produce a documentary about the history of Boyce Hill, a 93-acre property that was donated and preserved via conservation easement. The documentary will help communicate to residents about management goals for the property and engage volunteers for future land management.
-
-
Johnson - Johnson Pollinator Garden
-
Funding to enhance a nascent pollinator and native wildflower garden on an unused, unkept parcel of town-owned land adjacent to a skate park, community garden, and mobile home park. The garden will serve as a learning-lab to help educate the community about the value of flood resiliency projects.
-
-
Monkton - Birdwatching Kit Lending Library
-
Funding to purchase three birdwatching kits for residents to borrow from Monkton’s Russell Memorial Library, enabling Monkton residents to develop an appreciation for nature via direct experience.
-
-
New Haven - Trail Camera Lending Library Program
-
Funding to purchase two trail cams and accessories for residents to borrow from the New Haven Community Library, engaging New Haven residents in learning about, documenting, and stewarding wildlife while collecting essential wildlife data to help the Planning Commission make informed decisions about land use.
-
-
Starksboro - Cota Conserved Lands Invasives Project
-
Funding to purchase and circulate two specialized Extractigator tools for invasive species removal in riparian conservation areas along Lewis Creek, allowing the commission to pursue its educational and community engagement goals and giving community volunteers hands-on conservation experience.
-
-
Westford - Westford Trail Enhancement Project
-
Funding to purchase lumber and hardware for the construction of two essential 8’ x 3’ bridges each in the Misty Meadows and Maple Shade trail networks to increase trail accessibility and mitigate environmental degradation in the face of worsening weather.
-
Excitingly, three of these CCs, New Haven, Starksboro, and Westford, are receiving their first Tiny Grant since at least 2016, and each is also a new AVCC member. We are excited to contribute to the important community-based conservation work these commissions have been doing for years.
Bill Dell'Isola, Chair of the AVCC Board of Directors, shared, "The Board is thrilled to support these innovative and impactful projects through our Tiny Grants program.Each of these initiatives reflects the dedication and creativity of Vermont’s conservation commissions, and we are deeply grateful to the many committed individuals working to make a difference in their communities.”
AVCC extends its congratulations to all of the 2025 Tiny Grant award recipients and looks forward to seeing the positive impact these projects will have on their communities.
For more information about AVCC, including resources to support local conservation, success stories from past Tiny Grant awards, and more, please visit our website at vtconservation.com.
About the Association of Vermont Conservation Commissions
Founded in 1990, AVCC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to advancing conservation at the municipal level. Our mission is to support, convene, and inform Vermont’s 100+ existing conservation commissions and to encourage the establishment of new ones. Governed by an all-volunteer Board of Directors, AVCC is a membership organization that includes individuals and town conservation commissions. Learn more at vtconservation.com.
Source: 5.14.2025. Montpelier, VT – The Association of Vermont Conservation Commissions
To support vital journalism, access our archives and get unique features like our award-winning profiles, Book of Lists & Business-to-Business Directory, subscribe HERE!
