The Association of Vermont Conservation Commissions (AVCC) is pleased to announce the recipients of our 2026 Tiny Grants. Each May, this program provides seed money or matching funds to conservation commissions for specific land conservation, education and outreach, stewardship and management, and/or planning activities. Through this program, we promote projects that are high-impact, address a current issue or need, and serve as a catalyst for future conservation work. Since 2020, the AVCC has awarded over $25,000 in funding for projects developed, managed and implemented by municipal conservation commissions.

This spring, 22 commissions requested over $16,000 in combined funding, a reflection of both the vitality of Vermont’s many conservation commissions as well as the need for better resourcing and support. This year, we are excited to award around $6,000 to eight commissions across seven counties (Addison, Chittenden, Franklin, Orleans, Rutland, Windham and Windsor). These grants are made possible with generous support from the Vermont Center for Ecostudies (VCE), Vermont Coverts: Woodlands for Wildlife, the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board (VHCB) and the Vermont Land Trust (VLT).

We received applications from commissions across the state for a wide variety of conservation-related projects, including innovative approaches to recruiting volunteers, educating community members, and work to improve signage and repair trails on municipal lands, document wildlife activity with trail cameras, eradicate invasive plants and insects, and complete natural resource mapping, inventories and assessments. Our Board of Directors was enthused to read about all the innovative and impactful projects that are being planned and implemented by our hardworking member commissions. After much deliberation, the AVCC Board elected to fund projects from Bethel, Charlotte, Greensboro, Lincoln, Milton, Richford, Shrewsbury, and Westminster. Of note, the commissions in Charlotte, Lincoln, Milton, and Westminster are receiving their first Tiny Grants in over a decade.

Here are some more details about their projects:

Bethel – Kate’s Pond Wetland Restoration
With cooperation from the White River Partnership, guidance from the Department of Environmental Conservation, and labor from the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps, the BCC will use funds to remove a pile of road gravel that has washed into a stream feeding into Kate’s Pond, a Class II wetland in town.  After the removal, the commission will monitor the area to ensure that the wetland functions as intended and will highlight the low-cost restoration techniques and collaborative nature of this project through community outreach efforts.

Charlotte – Wildlife Education and Outreach Video
To aid the development of a Natural Resource Overlay District (NROD) and guide future land use in a way that protects critical habitats and ecological linkages, the CCC is using funds to convert a popular slideshow of game cam images into a professionally-edited and accessible outreach video.  The commission identified habitat fragmentation and loss of wildlife connectivity as a priority issue for the community, and hopes this project will translate technical conservation data into an engaging, visual format that resonates with the general public.

Greensboro – Neighborwood Watch Wildlife Camera Project
To enhance public engagement with local wildlife and collect data on species presence to support conservation efforts, the GCC intends a three phase initiative to 1) build a Wildlife Camera Library (with nearly twenty total camera kits) and deploy them on private land in Greensboro; 2) track wildlife road crossings; and 3) monitor municipal culverts for flood resiliency and wildlife movement. The on-the-ground insights collected from this project will directly contribute to the town’s upcoming Natural Resource Inventory.

Lincoln – Riverbend Riparian Pocket Park Project
The LCC will use funding to make improvements to Riverbend Pocket Park, a highly-visible town-owned riparian parcel just down the road from the Lincoln Community School and Cooperative Preschool. The site was created when a section of road highly vulnerable to erosion was rerouted to higher ground. The commission plans to create a more effective buffer by fortifying existing vegetation, including the 46 native trees that were planted when the paved road was removed. The commission also plans to prepare the site for the installation of a pollinator garden that will serve as both an educational area for residents and a rich and diverse habitat for wildlife.

Milton – Town Forest Kiosk Project
The MCC seeks funding to replace an aging and outdated kiosk at the Milton Town Forest with one that highlights a recently completed ADA accessible trail and viewing platform.  The new map and panels were designed by a member of the Milton Conservation Commission and will be installed by MCC members and local volunteers.  Funds will also cover the replacement of three panels at a second kiosk at the Carriage Barn entrance to the forest.

Richford – Birds, Blossoms, and Bugs!
The RCC plans to use funding to establish a 12′ x 15′ showcase pollinator garden in Davis Park, a frequently-visited greenspace in Richford located along the Northern Forest Canoe Trail.  This project is intended to complement the commission’s efforts to enhance chimney swift habitat that are being funded by a UMATR grant. The commission also plans to erect a weatherproof box to house brochures about native plants and pollinators, as well as a journal for residents to record observations of pollinators and chimney swifts.

Shrewsbury – Native Plant Educational Garden
To combat the well-documented decline in bird and insect populations, the SCC plans to establish an educational garden (on land owned by the Preservation Trust of Vermont near the historic Pierce’s Store) to inform residents and visitors of the ecological impact and value of home gardens and yards populated with native plants.  A joint project with UVM Extension Master Gardeners, the SCC will use Tiny Grant funding to purchase plants, materials for signage, and cover the costs of an interactive visit by the The Caterpillar Lab.

Westminster – Town Forest Outreach & Improvement Project
The WCC seeks funding to revive its town forest through a) design and permitting for a parking area for visitor access; b) construction of a kiosk at the future trailhead that will enable display of educational materials, record visitor numbers, and gather stories of visitor experiences; c) production of educational materials illustrating key and unique features of the parcel; and d) a public ribbon-cutting event to celebrate the opening of the new kiosk.

Please stay tuned for future updates on these projects, and look for the final reports from these conservation commissions in our “Success Story” archive next May.