Small steps toward a stronger, more resilient regional economy.
Applications for the Microgrant Program closed on March 6, 2026. We are currently reviewing submissions and will announce selected initiatives in early April.
Thank you to everyone who applied and shared their work. We’re grateful for the depth of ideas and commitment across the region.
Big change starts small.
The Resilient Futures Co-Lab Microgrant Program supports organizations, initiatives, and individuals working to strengthen a resilient and prosperous regional economy in Western North Carolina and the greater Charlotte region.
The program offers small amounts of quick, flexible funding to help local projects take their first—or next—step. This might mean testing an idea, bringing people together, or building readiness for future partnerships and financing. We believe that supporting people and teams willing to try new ideas is essential to building resilient communities and systems.
Microgrants are designed to unlock momentum and create traction, not to fund entire projects.
About the Program
The Microgrants Program is part of the Resilient Futures Co-Lab’s broader effort to bring aligned, place-based financing into the region.
In this initial round, we are offering grants of $2,000 and $5,000 to support small but strategic actions that help promising initiatives move forward.
The Program is designed to:
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Invite new and diverse voices into regional transition efforts
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Discover initiatives we may not yet know about
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Understand emerging needs and opportunities
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Identify natural points of connection across systems
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Test how integrated, hands-on collaboration can work in practice
Why Microgrants?
The grants are small by design. They are intended to move quickly, build trust, and create space for ideas to surface – especially those that may not yet be “investment ready,” or that don’t fit conventional funding categories.
We see this phase as a way to understand what is already happening across the region, learn where the real bottlenecks and unlocks are, and begin assembling change portfolios grounded in what’s happening on the ground.
Some microgrant recipients may go on to become part of larger financing rounds later this year. Others may not – and that’s ok. The goal at this stage is learning, connection, and momentum.
Later this year, we aim to deploy significantly larger amounts of capital through blended financing structures that combine grants, recoverable grants, loans, and investment. This microgrant phase helps us do that work with much greater clarity and care.
What we are looking for
Microgrants are designed to be used flexibly. They are meant to support early-stage initiatives working towards a resilient economic system. We are inviting ideas, initiatives, and experiments that contribute to the objectives of the broader initiative – whether directly or indirectly.
Particularly, we’re looking for initiatives that work towards the following outcomes:
A resilient, locally rooted food system:
Producing more food locally while strengthening regional value chains, supporting farmers, and making healthy, affordable food more accessible.
Stable, climate-resilient living:
Ensuring people have access to secure housing and essential infrastructure—such as energy, flood protection, and connectivity—that support long-term stability and resilience.
Health, wellbeing, and everyday resilience:
Strengthening the local conditions and systems that support physical and mental wellbeing, especially in places facing gaps in care and resilience.
Circular materials and manufacturing:
Building locally rooted material and manufacturing systems—including textiles, forestry and wood products, and construction—that reduce waste, rebuild skills, and keep value in the region.
Uses of the microgrant might include:
Early Implementation
Practical, on-the-ground projects that need a small boost to move forward
Scoping & Alignment
Early-stage concepts that require feasibility work or coordination
Systems Connectivity
Initiatives that help link rural and urban systems in new ways
Enabling Infrastructure
Work that builds the conditions for change: trust, policy, shared infrastructure, and skills.
We are especially interested in how different efforts might fit together — how one initiative’s success could unlock another’s, and how collective progress could be faster and more resilient than isolated wins.
If you are working on something that doesn’t neatly fit a category, we still want to hear from you. The “other” ideas are often where the most important insights live.
A concrete example:
Consider a regional food system challenge.
At first glance, the need might appear straightforward: farmers need better access to processing infrastructure to sell more locally. That’s true — but it’s rarely the whole story.
Through our conversations, we’ve heard that:
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Individual producers often can’t justify investing alone in shared facilities
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Trust between actors may be too low for joint ownership or co-investment
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Zoning, health regulations, or procurement rules block otherwise viable ideas
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Urban food waste is expensive to dispose of, while rural land needs organic inputs
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New farmers struggle not just with land access, but with housing stability and income volatility
A change portfolio in this space might therefore include:
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A small grant to explore a shared processing facility model
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Support for a cooperative or governance structure that enables joint investment
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Capacity-building around collaboration and conflict resolution
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A pilot that redirects urban food waste into rural soil regeneration
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Policy or advocacy work to remove regulatory friction
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Housing solutions that make farming a viable livelihood
No single initiative solves the problem. Together, they might get there.
This is the kind of systems-level learning we are trying to surface — and the kind of alignment we hope to support over time.
Who Should Apply
We welcome applications from people and groups working in the region, including local organizations, community groups, small businesses, social entrepreneurs, and collaborative teams.
If you are working to strengthen the region’s long-term resilience through community wellbeing, land stewardship, local enterprise, or circular and regenerative practices, we encourage you to apply.
Projects do not need to be fully formed.
We are looking for:
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A clear purpose
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A realistic next step for a microgrant
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A commitment to community benefit and collaboration
What you’ll gain
Beyond funding, grantees will be invited into a growing regional network of peers, partners, and practitioners. Participants may have opportunities to share learnings and insights with other related projects, as well as build new relationships and collaborations.
Key Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible, projects must:
Be based in or focused on the 59 counties within the Mountain or Piedmont regions of North Carolina
Address critical regional economic, environmental, or social challenges
Be led by individuals or teams with clear experience, community trust, or a strong local connection
Be able to receive funds through a North Carolina–registered organization (both nonprofit or for-profit organizations are welcome)
This may not be a fit if:
You are looking for full project funding (microgrants are for early steps and momentum-building)
Your work is based outside the Mountain and Piedmont counties of North Carolina
Your project does not fit with the central objectives of this initiative
Missed This Round of Microgrants?
Applications for our first microgrant round are now closed and under review.
Even if you didn’t apply this time, we’d still love to learn about the work you're doing. We’re building toward larger grant pools and impact investments that may better align with your work later in the year.
In the meantime, take a few minutes to complete our short, simple form so we can learn more about your initiative and what support would be most helpful. It’s quick to fill out and ensures you’re on our radar as new opportunities emerge.
FAQs.
Applications open: January 19, 2026
Applications close March 6th, 2026.
Grant recipients will be announced by early April 2026.
Projects should be completed within 12 months.Applications are submitted through a short online form and typically take 20–30 minutes to complete.
Applications are reviewed by a regional committee made up of members of the Metabolic team and local partners with deep experience in place-based economic development, circular economies, environmental stewardship, and collaborative work.
Each application is assessed based on:
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Relevance
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Community value
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Readiness
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Learning potential
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Feasibility
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Yes. All applicants will receive a brief note about the outcome, along with general insights from the review process.
Grantees will receive a simple agreement and be asked to share a short reflection on how the funds were used and what was learned. Reporting is intentionally light. Optional learning or networking sessions may be offered.
Micro-grants cannot support:
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Purely commercial activities without community benefit
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Major capital purchases (e.g. vehicles)
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Large equipment or ongoing salaries
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Political campaigning or lobbying
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Questions can be directed to:
If a microgrant just doesn’t seem like a fit, we are working towards larger pools of grants and impact investments that may be more relevant later in the year. You can let us know what your needs are and what you’re up to via this simple form so you’re on our radar.