Investment Propositions
Community Green Grants - Natural capital is a central part of our net zero agenda, as well as part of our wider environment programme. The project received £725,000 in grant funding as part of the Five Year Plan approval in March 2021. WMCA is currently designing the grant programme with regional partners and the new Community Green Grants Officer will lead the delivery. It is anticipated the grant will launch in Autumn 2021 for two years. Grants will be targeted at parts of the West Midlands where there is currently deficit of access to green space, forming an important part of the regional ‘levelling up’ agenda.
Natural Capital ‘Exchange’ - Our work to develop the sustainability legacy from the Commonwealth Games has identified a pipeline of projects focused on regional biodiversity and conservation. At the same time, work with Business in the Community has identified a commitment from West Midlands business to support natural capital projects through investment, provision of land and ‘loan’ of professional skills. The Natural Capital Exchange is an idea being explored to create a platform to bring different supply and demand requirements together to improve regional biodiversity.