Upstate Forever receives $75,000 from Hollingsworth Funds

Hollingsworth Funds has awarded Upstate Forever a grant for $75,000 to work with community leaders, residents, and stakeholders to advance progressive land use policies that address our community’s most pressing issues.

“Current land use policies in Greenville County and its municipalities promote sprawl, limit housing diversity, promote residential segregation, and make it virtually impossible for public transportation to operate efficiently,” said Lisa Hallo, Land Policy Director at Upstate Forever. “Many local governments, including Greenville City and County, are taking steps to reverse these trends. With generous support from Hollingsworth Funds, we will work alongside government staff and leaders, as well as residents and stakeholders, to ensure a more balanced approach to growth.”

“Hollingsworth Funds is focused on deploying its philanthropic capital to support the efforts of those working collectively to positively impact the systems that create a more vibrant, just, and inclusive Greenville. Land use planning and policy have a direct influence on many of the systems we care deeply about including housing, transportation, and workforce development. We believe it is critical to the conversations about the future growth of our community,” said Hollingsworth Funds Vice President of Strategic Initiatives Tamela Spann.

“We are deeply appreciative to the staff and board at Hollingsworth Funds, who lend not only their financial capital, but also their social and political capital, to make Greenville a better place to live for all,” said Upstate Forever’s Executive Director Andrea Cooper.

Upstate Forever is a nonprofit conservation organization that protects critical lands, waters, and the unique character of the Upstate of South Carolina. We focus our work on the ten counties of Abbeville, Anderson, Cherokee, Greenville, Greenwood, Laurens, Oconee, Pickens, Spartanburg and Union. Since 1998, we have worked to protect the natural assets that make the Upstate so special: our farmlands, forests, natural areas, rivers, and mountains. We are committed to ensuring that our communities are vibrant and retain their green spaces, outdoor heritage, and unique identities in the face of rapid development and significant sprawl. Upstate Forever has offices in Greenville and Spartanburg. For more information, visit www.upstateforever.org.