What is the aim of the Gortahile Wind Farm Community Fund?
The aim of the Gortahile Wind Farm Community Fund is to support existing groups and individuals (once they form a team) to start or expand an existing project, with the ultimate goal of improving the quality of life for communities. All projects must meet the criteria outlined in the following section. Applications will be assessed and scored based on the criteria below, and on the proposed positive impact it will have in its local community.
All projects should be managed in an inclusive and welcoming manner and any events organised as part of your project should comply with any relevant public health guidance.
Criteria
The following criteria must be met by all applicants:
Opening date
The challenge opens for applications on March 20, 2024. Registrations for all projects will close on July 10, 2024.
Open grant applicants will be notified by July 31, 2024, whether they have been allocated funding and can progress with the 30 Day Challenge or whether they have been unsuccessful.
If you have any questions on your application or have not heard back by July 31, please reach out to Claire Dineen - [email protected].
What can the funding be used for?
The Gortahile Wind Farm Community Fund can be used to cover direct costs relating to the set-up or maintenance of the new or existing project. For example, funds can be used for space rental, insurance fees, seeds and planting materials, tools, training fees; or any materials you might need for a project that benefits your community.
Any potential tax consequences, reporting requirements, and consents from third parties are solely the responsibility and liability of the recipient of the funding.
What can the funding not be used for?
Funds may not be used to promote or engage in criminal acts of violence, terrorism, hate crimes, the destruction of any state, or discrimination on the basis of race, national origin, religion, military and veteran status, disability, sex, age, gender identity or sexual orientation, or support of any entity that engages in these activities.
The fund cannot be used to cover costs of work that has already been carried out and can’t be used for anything that is not related to the set up and maintenance of the new or existing community project. It cannot be used to cover the promotion of religious causes, non- charitable activities, sponsorship or fundraising events, however, in some cases, can be used to fund projects led by places of worship, where they play a key role in community cohesion or development, for example, capital projects i.e. repair or maintenance of buildings etc. Funds cannot be used as payment to group members for their work on the project.
Reporting Requirements and Funding
In return for any funding you may receive, you are required to share the outcomes of your new project with ChangeX and Gortahile Wind Farm.
The funding allocated to your new project is divided into two stages. The first payment (70% of total funding amount) can be accessed once your application is approved. The second payment (30% of total funding amount) will be issued to you after you have completed an impact survey demonstrating the outcomes of your project and shared photos and a narrative description of the activities carried out.
It is very important that you keep all receipts and records of how any funding you might receive is spent. If receipts cannot be shown, or the funds are found to have been spent on costs other than those relating to the set-up or maintenance of the new or existing community project, no further funds will be allocated to this project and ChangeX reserves the right to retrieve the funds that have already been distributed. The applicant will be indefinitely ineligible to apply for any subsequent grants through ChangeX.
Multiple applications
Each individual is only eligible to submit one application to receive funding. Multiple applications from the same individual will result in disqualification from entry. Existing community groups can submit up to three applications for funding, for different projects. Projects taking place at the same location must be different and complementary.
Family
Employees of ChangeX, Gortahile Wind Farm, and Greencoat Renewables, and their close family and are not eligible to apply for funding.
Accessibility
If you require any additional support to complete the application process or access resources please contact [email protected] and we will do everything in our power to help.
Where is this funding coming from?
This fund is sponsored by Gortahile Wind Farm. Gortahile Wind Farm, via Statkraft Asset Management Ltd is responsible for the management of the fund, including the selection of applicants, starter support, fund distribution and impact tracking. This will take place using the ChangeX platform.
Sharing your project with media or on social
We encourage you to share news about your community project through your local media or on social media in order to find people to join and support your project, or just to share some positive news with your wider community. When talking to media, we kindly ask you to mention the source of the funding for your project. For example, you can say: “The project received funding through the Gortahile Wind Farm Community Fund, run by ChangeX.” OR “The project has been made possible thanks to funding from Gortahile Wind Farm and support from ChangeX.” On social media, please use the following hashtag when announcing your project: #GortahileWindFarmCommunityFund
In the event that circumstances beyond the reasonable control of ChangeX effect, or could effect, the proper operation of this fund, ChangeX reserves the right to cancel or amend the fund or these terms and conditions at any time but will make every effort to avoid causing undue disappointment to applicants where such action is deemed necessary.
If you are a successful fund awardee, you agree that ChangeX and Gortahile Wind Farm may use your name, image and location for any reasonable and related promotional purposes. You further agree to participate in any reasonable publicity required by ChangeX or Gortahile Wind Farm.
Your fund application and any accompanying material submitted to ChangeX (such as motivation statements, group or impact photos, action plans) will become the property of ChangeX on receipt, and many be used by Gortahile Wind Farm for any reasonable and related promotional purposes.
Any images or videos shared on ChangeX must meet our criteria:
Parental/guardian consent must be secured for any images or videos featuring children, and any images uploaded to ChangeX will be presumed by ChangeX to have parental/guardian consent. Individual children should not be identified by name on the ChangeX site.
You have permission from all people featured in an image or video to share their image or feature them in the video.
You own the image/video OR you have secured the photographer’s permission/videographer's permission to share it with ChangeX and our partners.
You have the rights/appropriate permissions for any music used in your video.
In the event that we need to check any of the above, you will be able to provide evidence that the necessary permissions are in place.
By applying to this fund, you:
Agree that any personal information provided by you with the fund application may be held and used only by ChangeX and Gortahile Wind Farm to administer the fund and for any other purposes to which you have expressly consented;
Understand that you may withdraw such consent at any time by contacting ChangeX at [email protected]
Are deemed to have read, understood and accepted the ChangeX privacy policy, a copy of which can be found at https://www.changex.org/ie/sites/privacy.
Insofar as is permitted by law, ChangeX will not in any circumstances be responsible or liable to compensate applicants or accept any liability for any loss, damage, personal injury or death occurring as a result of taking part in the fund except where it is caused by the negligence of ChangeX or its employees.
Nothing in these terms and conditions shall operate to limit or exclude its liability for death or personal injury caused by its negligence or for fraud (including, but not limited to, fraudulent misrepresentation) or for that which cannot lawfully be excluded.
Nothing in these terms and conditions shall impact the awardee’s statutory rights.
If any provision of these terms and conditions is held by a competent authority to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions of these terms and conditions will not be affected and will remain valid.
Nothing in these terms and conditions shall confer any rights on any third person owing to the rule of privity of contract.
These terms and conditions shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Republic of Ireland. Any dispute arising under these terms and conditions (whether such disputes or issues are contractual or non-contractual in nature, such as claims in tort, for breach of statute or regulation or otherwise) shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the Republic of Ireland.
