On April 30, 2026, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) announced the launch of a landmark grant initiative from its Regional Office for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean (ORMACC) based in San José, Costa Rica, aimed at tackling the Caribbean’s growing plastic pollution crisis through community-led circular economy action. Titled the Sustainable Small Grants Programme (SSGP) and operating under the broader “Closing the Caribbean Plastic Tap” umbrella, the initiative opens applications for eligible groups across five Eastern Caribbean nations: Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Saint Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Backed by funding from the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI), the SSGP carries a total program budget of €400,000, or approximately $430,000. Funding is split evenly across the five participating countries, with a maximum €80,000 allocated per nation. Individual grants to successful applicants will range from €30,000 to €80,000, designed to support the full implementation of locally tailored projects.
Unlike top-down environmental interventions, the SSGP centers local leadership by extending eligibility to a wide range of community-rooted entities: micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), community-based organizations (CBOs), non-governmental organizations, cooperatives, community associations, local schools, and even informal community groups, so long as they can prove a track record of meaningful local engagement. Funded projects will prioritize two key approaches to plastic waste management: upstream prevention, which cuts plastic production and consumption at the source, and midstream circularity, which reimagines plastic materials as reusable resources rather than disposable waste.
The program is a core component of a wider regional strategy to eliminate plastic pollution at its origin by scaling up systems for waste reduction, product reuse, material recycling, and the adoption of sustainable alternative materials. All funded projects will be required to track and deliver measurable outcomes, both for environmental health and local socio-economic development. These outcomes will align with participating nations’ national climate and environmental priorities, as well as global sustainability commitments including the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF).
Applications for the first round of grants are open now, and interested eligible organizations have until 11:59 p.m. Atlantic Standard Time on May 31, 2026 to submit full proposals. Full application guidelines and submission details are available via the IUCN’s official engagement portal at https://engage.iucn.org/topic/sustainable-small-grants-programme-closing-caribbean-plastic-tap.