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EPA Awards CARE Grants to Two Indianapolis Organizations
EPA awards $97,840 CARE grant to Improving Kids Environment
Pictured left to right: Janelle Williams, Janet McCabe, Rev. Raymond Wilkins, Elizabeth Gore, and Elissa Speizman
October 2008
Two children's health advocacy groups in Indianapolis will share a $97, 840 grant from U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to help identify environmental health hazards. The Martindale-Brightwood Environmental Justice Collaborative and Improving Kids' Environment 
received the grant from EPA's Community Action for a Renewed Environment initiative, better known as CARE.
The MBEJC has been working since 2004 to address environmental racism and identify parties responsible for causing health hazards in the neighborhood and ensuring remediation occurs. The CARE grant is the largest the group has received. Improving Kids' Environment is an Indianapolis-based child advocacy group.
EPA awarded a total of $2.7 million in CARE grants this year to only 18 recipients nationally. The CARE program builds on EPA's experience in community-based work. Over the last few years, EPA has had increasing success in communities such as Cleveland, Detroit, Gary and Grand Rapids.
"From that experience, we've learned that those of us in Washington or Chicago don't have all the answers," said EPA Region 5's Elissa Speizman, who presented the check on behalf of the Region 5 administrator at a ceremony Oct. 15. "We believe the best way to help you is by working collaboratively with you to design local solutions to local problems. We've also learned that a community that works together to investigate environmental risks is a community that can build consensus around a set of commonly agreed upon facts."
She said the CARE program works with local communities to help build a partnership that includes local businesses and local government. CARE promotes good science, bringing information and tools, and building on the knowledge in the community.
"We are committed to improving our health and quality of life in Martindale-Brightwood," said Elizabeth Gore, MBEJC chairperson and board member of the Martindale-Brightwood Community Development Corporation. "We want people in our community to be aware of environmental hazards they may face, especially our children. We also want them to learn how to take action once a problem is identified."
The MBEJC has worked with the Marion County Health Department, the city of Indianapolis' brownfields program and other organizations to bring attention to environmental hazards in the community, including lead contamination from years of industrial activity.
"Knowledge is power." said Janet McCabe, executive director of Improving Kids' Environment. "This grant will empower the residents of Martindale-Birhgwood to identify the most critical local environmental health problems and give them the tools to really make a difference."