Mini-Grants Available for Youth Mental Health, Healthy Eating, and Physical Activity Projects

The Cambridge Public Health Department’s Health Promotion Mini-Grant Program will award up to $20,000 in total funding to projects that promote healthy eating, physical activity, or youth mental health.

Eligible groups for mini-grants include community organizations, schools, businesses, garden and farm programs, and government agencies that serve Cambridge.

A project proposal must address one of the categories below and is only eligible for one type of mini-grant (i.e., healthy eating/physical activity or youth mental health) per funding cycle:

• Healthy Eating and Physical Activity. $1,000 mini-grants are available for projects that promote healthy eating and/or physical activity in children and adults. Up to 10 projects will be funded. Last year’s winning projects included a community cooking program; a public dance and wellness program; and a garden-to-table community cooking program.
• Youth Mental Health and Wellness. $2,000 mini-grants are available for projects that promote mental health and wellness in Cambridge youth, with a focus on youth age 12-18. Up to five projects will be funded. Last year’s winning projects included an arts and activism curriculum designed by middle schoolers; a full-time social worker to support campers and families; and workshops and events to build community between program staff and parents/guardians and caregivers.

See the full list of 2023 mini-grant award winners.
In 2011, the health department separately launched the healthy eating and physical activity mini-grants and the youth mental health mini-grants. This is the second year these two grant award programs are being offered together.

This year, we are hosting two virtual information sessions on March 12 and 14.  These sessions are open to anyone who is interested in applying for either grant and will provide potential applicants the opportunity to review the application, ask questions, and talk about potential project ideas. Additional meeting details will be announced soon and added here.

The mini-grants are competitive. All applications are reviewed by representatives from the Cambridge Public Health Department, the Hideo Sasaki Foundation, and other organizations and groups.

The mini-grant guidelines and application are available on the Cambridge Public Health Department’s Mini-Grants web page.

The deadline for submission is Friday, April 5, 2024.

To learn more about the mini-grant program, contact Brigitte De Veau (617)-665-3759 or bdeveau@cambrdgepublichealth.org or Sarah Lincoln (617-665-3874) at salincoln@cambridgepublichealth.org.

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About Cambridge Public Health Department
The Cambridge Public Health Department (CPHD) protects and promotes the health of everyone in Cambridge through services, information, policies, and regulations. Main focus areas are communicable disease prevention and control, emergency preparedness and community resilience, environmental health, epidemiology, population health initiatives, regulatory enforcement, and school health.

About The Hideo Sasaki Foundation
The Hideo Sasaki Foundation believes design has the power to address the most urgent challenges facing us, from social equity to environmental resilience. Design is an agent of change. And yet, access to design—for communities who need it the most—is often limited. Making change requires collective impact. At the intersection of philanthropy, education, and community, the Hideo Sasaki Foundation is committed to advancing the value of design, inviting diverse partners to co-create change. The Hideo Sasaki Foundation serves as the fiscal agent for the mini-grant program.