2014 has barely begun, and already it’s full of excitement for Invoking the Pause and our community of partners! We received 36 applications for grants—32 for Invoking the Pause grants from first-time applicants, and four from previous grant partners taking their collaborations in new directions via the Seeding Possibilities program.

This year’s pool brings a diverse blend of people from a multitude of backgrounds: academics, artists, scientists, journalists, students, photographers and healthcare workers are all in the mix. Some are working together to embark on new collaborations, while others seek to take existing partnerships and projects to the next level. It’s exciting to see folks from all walks of life using such different and creative approaches, all towards the common goal addressing climate change and environmental justice issues.   

While we are still very much in the thick of the review process, some interesting trends are emerging:

•    The consensus that data and facts alone do not lead to behavior change continues to build, and as a result several of the projects we received are focused on telling stories via films, photo documentaries, fiction and art installations.

•    While in the early years of Invoking the Pause we tended to receive most applications from individuals and small organizations, we are increasingly hearing from people working within larger institutions—universities, news organizations, and national and global networks—who express a need to “Pause” from the fast pace of their daily work to re-introduce some creativity into their approach and find new paths for advancing their goals.

•    The fast-paced progress on harmful practices such as fracking and the building of cross-country natural gas pipelines is lending an urgency to the work. We are reviewing several proposals from organizations and individuals seeking to highlight the destructive nature of these practices before it’s too late.

The Advisory Committee will come together on March 13 to review these proposals and determine how to best allocate ITP funds towards projects that provide hope and promise of catalyzing progress on climate change.

We look forward to updating you on the results and introducing you to the 2014 grant partners—stay tuned!