Striving to align federal energy decisions affecting Tribal lands with Tribal interests
Today MTERA members include 26 Midwest Tribes and it offers services to all 35 Tribes in the region. MTERA seeks to alleviate the burden of planning, funding, and implementing energy projects for individual Tribes by providing free technical assistance through support to Tribes wherever they are in their energy journey. MTERA has worked to build resources to support energy planning and development to include a network of Tribal energy experts, planning tools, and template documents for grant proposals, among others. To round out the customized technical assistance Tribe’s can receive, MTERA connects Tribes in the process of planning or developing energy projects to Tribal representatives that have successfully completed similar projects.
In addition to providing individualized support to Tribes, MTERA pursues collective action projects to benefit all 35 member and non-member Midwest Tribes. Most recently, MTERA, in partnership with GRID Alternatives, was awarded a $20 million Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Community Change Grant award to support energy efficiency and weatherization upgrades in homes to improve indoor air quality and lower energy costs. This program will also invest in energy leadership development training for Tribal Energy Champions, including resources on navigating Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funding, to build their Tribes’ capacity to access additional funding sources and implement projects to strengthen climate resilience reduce pollution.
Prior to this award, MTERA, along with award partners GRID Alternatives, Alliance for Tribal Clean Energy, Native CDFI Network, Electrical Training Alliance, and the University of Wisconsin Madison, announced in May 2024 that it received a $62 million EPA Solar For All award to support the development of community and residential solar projects for all 35 Midwest Tribes. MTERA’s Solar for All grant will provide $1.15 million to each Tribe to develop Tribally-owned community or residential solar projects, which may be further leveraged through partnerships with state Solar for All programs and resources to support Tribal access to the Investment Tax Credit. Additionally, MTERA will be provide Midwest Tribes with pre-construction technical assistance, project deployment support for financing mechanisms, and workforce development opportunities.
With these two recent, groundbreaking grant awards announced, MTERA continues to empower Tribes to overcome the decades of barriers put in front of Tribal communities and make lasting, positive change. The Great Lakes TCTAC is proud to have MTERA a part of its network.