For more than three decades, the Environmental Finance Center has helped hundreds of local, state, and federal partners throughout the Mid-Atlantic region advance policies, programs, and financing strategies that achieve outcomes for people, places, and the environment. See EFC’s featured work below.
EFC's Featured Work
Region 3 WaterTA Program
The Region 3 WaterTA program offers direct support to municipalities, tribes, and water utilities in US EPA Region 3 to help them access federal and state funding to address water infrastructure needs.
Maryland Local Government Climate Action Support Program
EFC is coordinating with the Maryland Department of Environment to help build the local capacity of Maryland communities to plan, fund, and implement climate projects and community-based climate-related outreach campaigns.
Mid-Atlantic Sustainable Breweries
The Mid-Atlantic Sustainable Breweries Program offers free sustainability consultations to help craft brewers assess operations and implement practices related to energy, water, wastewater, air emissions, and cleaning and sanitizing – all while saving costs and improving brand recognition.
Rainwater Harvesting for Urban Farms
EFC is coordinating with UMD's School of Public Health, Extension, and USDA Agricultural Research Services to help urban farmers harvest and filter rainwater to nourish their crops and create more sustainable farms and resilient communities.
EFC Projects and Publications
See EFC’s work in action by browsing our current and archived (completed) projects below.
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2024 (November)Landscape Architecture: Maximizing the Economic Benefits of Nature-based Solutions Through Design
The University of Maryland Environmental Finance Center developed a brief to help translate the benefit values (monetary) of landscape architects’ work on nature-based solutions. The brief offers an overview of nature-based economic benefits in five key areas: health and livability, expanded investment and sustainable jobs, increased biodiversity, carbon sequestration and improved resilience. A supplementary analysis offers lessons from 175 case studies in the U.S. Five key takeaways from the EFC brief include: View Project Details for Landscape Architecture: Maximizing the Economic Benefits of Nature-based Solutions Through Design -
2024Economic Benefits of Nature Based Solutions and Landscape Architecture
The American Society of Landscape Architecture (ASLA) believes that landscape architects maximize the benefits of nature-based solutions through design. Nature-based solutions to climate change and biodiversity loss are more than mangroves, forests, and grasslands. Using landscape architecture strategies, they can be woven into places where people live. They take the form of parks, recreation areas, streets, coastal infrastructure, and more. Through inclusive design, they can provide even greater benefits to people and support the healthy urban ecosystems people rely on.View Project Details for Economic Benefits of Nature Based Solutions and Landscape Architecture -
2023 - PresentSmart Salting: Enhanced Winter Maintenance
The Smart Salting: Enhanced Winter Maintenance training addresses salt pollution on parking lots, driveways, and sidewalks. This voluntary, statewide road salt certification program is targeted to private applicators and aims to balance the safety and mobility of people during winter weather months with improving application practices to reduce contamination to local streams, wells, and drinking water reservoirs and prevent damage to infrastructure, the environment, and potentially human health.View Project Details for Smart Salting: Enhanced Winter Maintenance -
2023 - 2025Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Center (EJ TCTAC)
What is the Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Centers Program (EJ TCTAC)?View Project Details for Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Center (EJ TCTAC) -
2023 - 2025Building Local Capacity to Implement Climate Action
EFC designed and delivered broad-reaching education and training opportunities to increase awareness and implementation of the Climate Solutions Now Act (CSNA) via deployment of federal funds to leverage clean energy projects and investments. The initiative included webinars, leadership trainings, and technical assistance focused on key climate topics such as building electrification, renewable energy, and electric vehicle transition.View Project Details for Building Local Capacity to Implement Climate Action -
2023 - 2024Developing a Stormwater Master Plan for Timberbrook Condominium
Building on EFC’s 2022 Sustainability Action Plan with Timberbrook Condominiums in Gaithersburg, Maryland, EFC partnered with Green Mechanics, BLLC to help the community develop a Stormwater Plan. The plan identified stormwater problem areas and produced a prioritized list of stormwater Best Management Practices (BMPs), along with a concept design for the top-ranked project.View Project Details for Developing a Stormwater Master Plan for Timberbrook Condominium