PORTLAND & ELLSWORTH — The Maine Community Foundation’s Downeast Innovation Fund has awarded $95,000 in grants to 11 nonprofits in Hancock and Washington counties.
Launched in 2018, the Downeast Innovation Fund Grant program supports nonprofit organizations that provide programs to improve or increase entrepreneurship and innovation in business and the local economies in Hancock and Washington counties.
The 2020 grantees include:
• City of Ellsworth, to enhance targeted programming and technical infrastructure aimed at graduating existing startup companies, while attracting new, quality companies to the Union River Center for Innovation
• Four Directions Development Corporation, Orono, to establish a new Native small business Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) serving Washington County and the Wabanaki tribes of Maine
• Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center Inc., Walpole, to assess the feasibility of farming sea scallops in lobster pounds in Washington and Hancock counties
• New Ventures Maine, Bangor, to strengthen collaborative partnerships within the Downeast Entrepreneurial Ecosystem and expand access to microenterprise training, advising, and resources.
The deadline for the next round of grant applications is Oct. 15, 2021. Guidelines, application, and a list or recent grants are available at http://www.mainecf.org. For more information about this fund, contact MaineCF Senior Program Officer Maggie Drummond-Bahl at 877-700-6800 or by e-mail at mbahl@mainecf.org.
Headquartered in Ellsworth, with additional personnel in Portland, Dover-Foxcroft, Rockport and Mars Hill, the Maine Community Foundation works with donors and other partners to provide strong investments, personalized service, local expertise, and strategic giving to improve the quality of life for all Maine people. To learn more about the foundation, visit http://www.mainecf.org.
2020 Downeast Innovation Grants
Citizens Organization for Rural Education, Danforth, to develop an entrepreneurial education pathway for students at East Grand School and young adults, 18-25, who live in the region or wish to return: $10,000
City of Ellsworth, to enhance targeted programming and technical infrastructure aimed at graduating existing startup companies, while attracting new, quality companies to the Union River Center for Innovation: $10,000
Downeast Salmon Federation, Columbia Falls, to formalize relationships with secondary educational institutions to ensure student scientists access to the startup of the DSF aquatic research laboratory: $10,000
Four Directions Development Corporation, Orono, to establish a new Native small business Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) serving Washington County and the Wabanaki tribes of Maine: $5,000
Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Isle, to support scaling up Haystack Fab Lab work, producing PPE for the community in response to COVID-19, to include more paid internship opportunities for area students: $5,000
Heart of Ellsworth, to complete a crucial step in the development of a coworking/maker space in Downeast Maine: a feasibility study to determine viability and proof of concept: $10,000
Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center Inc., Walpole, to assess the feasibility of farming sea scallops in lobster pounds in Washington and Hancock counties: $10,000
Native Gardens of Blue Hill, to strengthen NGBH’s organizational capacity as it expands its mission by implementing a workforce training program in Sustainable Landscape Stewardship and Garden Maintenance: $8,890
New Ventures Maine, Bangor, to strengthen collaborative partnerships within the Downeast entrepreneurial ecosystem and expand access to microenterprise training, advising, and resources: $10,000
Sunrise County Economic Council, Machias, to create, curate, and moderate a cross-platform virtual community for entrepreneurship-minded students, emerging entrepreneurs, and small business owners in Washington County: $10,000
University of Maine System, Orono, to leverage capacity and regional impact of the Alliance for Maine’s Marine Economy, a responsive network that supports innovation and entrepreneurship in Maine’s marine economy: $6,110