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Accelerating Appalachia Awarded $20 Million to Incentivize Conservation Practices

Berea, Kentucky – On September 14, Accelerating Appalachia (ACAP) received notification of a  $20 million* grant award from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Accelerating Appalachia’s proposal was selected as one out of 70 awardees, from 450 applicants from across the country.

The accepted proposal will begin in early 2023. The project’s overarching goal aims to train and provide funding up to 600 farmers to sequester 700,000+ tons of carbon over a three to five year period. In equal measure, the project supports improving soil health, improving food nutrition, increasing water retention, restoring biodiversity and helping new and existing small to medium-size growers gain access to or stay on land for rebuilding rural communities. The project spans thousands of acres of Appalachian and rural southeastern land including Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, South Carolina, West Virginia, Virginia, Ohio, and Georgia. 

“We’re honored to partner with the National Center for Appropriate Technology (who will provide training to farmers on this project), alongside our top-notch Kentucky and Appalachian-based partners in support of one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet – South-Central Appalachia. This funding enables us to increase our capacity to support conservation agriculture in our rural and underserved regions. This project is going to play an important role in supporting rural communities and producers as we collectively design and implement systems that support resiliency,” said Accelerating Appalachia CEO/Founder SaraDay Evans. 

While Accelerating Appalachia is the lead applicant for the proposal, other key partners include the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT), Waters Agricultural Laboratories, Latent Talent Accelerator, Working Trees, Carbon Harvest, and Cox Consulting. 

In Central Appalachia, the average per capita income is just 65% of the US per capita income and the average poverty rate is 126% of the US rate. Seventy-one (71) of the 81 counties the Appalachian Regional Commission has designated as “distressed” are within this region. The Appalachian Regional Commission was the first funder for Accelerating Appalachia, supporting its launch in 2013. Implementing conservation agriculture practices and the production and marketing of regenerative commodities will remove barriers and unlock potential for underserved communities across Appalachia and the rural southeast while producing tangible benefits on regional soil, water, air, and health outcomes.

*denotes tentative funding ceiling