AARP Nebraska Now Accepting 2024 Community Challenge Grant Applications

AARP Nebraska invites eligible, local nonprofit organizations and government entities to apply for the 2024 AARP Community Challenge Grant, which funds quick-action projects that help communities become more livable by improving public places, transportation, housing, digital connections, and more.

The Community Challenge application deadline is March 6, 2024, at 5 p.m. Eastern. All projects must be completed by December 15, 2024. Grants can range from several hundred dollars for small, short-term activities to tens of thousands for larger projects. To submit an application and view past grantees, visit AARP.org/CommunityChallenge.

“AARP Nebraska is committed to working with local residents, advocates, and policymakers to make our communities better places to live for people of all ages,” said Todd Stubbendieck, AARP Nebraska’s State Director. “The Community Challenge has proven that quick-action projects can lead to long-term change.”

Now in its eighth year, the Community Challenge is part of AARP’s nationwide Livable Communities initiative, which supports the efforts of cities, towns, neighborhoods, and rural areas to become great places to live for all residents—especially those age 50 and older.

The AARP Community Challenge accepts applications across three different grant opportunities. All projects must be consistent with AARP’s mission to serve the needs of people 50 and older along with other eligibility criteria.

• Capacity-building microgrants are paired with additional resources, such as one-on-one coaching, webinars, cohort learning opportunities and more for improving walkability, bikeability, and implementing safe, accessible home modifications.
  
• Demonstration grants focus on improving digital connections to prepare and respond to disasters, reconnecting communities divided by infrastructure, and housing choice design competitions.
  
• Flagship grants support projects that improve public places, transportation, housing, DEI, civic engagement, community health, and economic empowerment, community resilience, and digital connections.

“AARP is committed to meeting the needs of a rapidly aging population in communities across the country,” said Nancy LeaMond, AARP Executive Vice President and Chief Advocacy & Engagement Officer. “The Community Challenge aims to be a catalyst for action in cities, towns, and rural areas through quick-action community improvements that benefit people of all ages and abilities."

Since the grant program’s launch in 2017, AARP has invested $16.4 million toward 1,370 projects, nonprofit organizations, and government entities across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.