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<br />2841 <br />17. Does your project <br />accelerate or expand on <br />existing programs that <br />already show positive <br />impact? <br />Yes. The program Urban Sustainability Solutions (USS) employs <br />was piloted as BETC (Bionomic Education and Training Center) at <br />Southern School of Sustainability and Engineering <br />(https://www.dpsnc.net/site/Default.aspx?PageType=3&DomainID <br />=4&PageID=1&ViewID=6446ee88-d30c-497e-9316- <br />3f8874b3e108&FlexDataID=1712) and extended to Northern High <br />School and Lowe’s Grove Middle School in Durham, NC, utilizing <br />Durham Public School (DPS) teachers of non-academic/core <br />classes and their students, most of whom came from low-income <br />or marginalized communities. Nearly identical to the program we <br />have outlined here for Orange County, Durham’s program pays <br />students & teachers to design and install stormwater control <br />measures throughout Durham County and continues to prosper <br />today: https://www.dconc.gov/county-departments/departments-f- <br />z/soil-water-conservation-district/ag-economic/betc-bionomic- <br />educational-training-center. USS Chairman Michael Dupree and <br />former board member Linda Schmalbeck (then a science faculty <br />member of the NC School of Science and Math (NCSSM)) <br />collaborated to develop and implement the stormwater curriculum <br />at NCSSM, after which Dupree (while working for Durham County) <br />partnered with DPS to incorporate the BETC program into its <br />highschool curricula. Dupree also helped create Durham’s <br />Impaired Stream Improvement (ISIP) program <br />(https://www.dconc.gov/county-departments/departments-f-z/soil- <br />water-conservation-district/community-conservation-assistance- <br />program), employing Durham youth for Environmental Services <br />provided to low-income people of color. <br />18. Does your project take <br />advantage of other funding <br />sources? <br />Yes. We have obtained $220K from the EPA (for 60% cost- <br />share on BMP installations in the Bolin Creek watershed) <br />and $30,000 from Burt’s Bees Foundation for teacher <br />trainings and installations in Orange and Durham Counties. <br />The Triangle Community Foundation, Raleigh Stormwater <br />Services, and private donors have funded us for installations <br />in Wake County. As the project for which we seek 2024-25 <br />OCCCA funding serves as one piece of the holistic <br />sustainable stormwater management puzzle envisioned for <br />the Triangle, the State of North Carolina, and beyond, our <br />synergistic work in neighboring Durham, Wake and Orange <br />counties is central to improving air and water quality for all. <br />Docusign Envelope ID: 7E7D300B-F83F-4917-A8A3-638B79C7D566