The Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) has awarded Natick $50,000 for an Atlantic White Cedar Study and Restoration Plan. The town partnered with No Loose Braids, a Nipmuc-led organization, on the application for grant money focused on advancing resilience to climate change, according to the MAPC.
The Nipmuc community harvests Atlantic White Cedar, including at Pickerel Pond, to use in part to build domed huts called wetus.
Natick was one of eight recipients of awards totaling $300,000. Some 45 applicants sought the grants, according to MAPC Director of Environmental Planning Van Du, who spoke with us by phone. She said they requested a total of $2m, far more than the MAPC had in its coffers for the Accelerating Climate Resilience Grant Program.
Du said the Natick project is unique, and that the MAPC looks forward to seeing tangible outcomes from it with hopes of replicating best practi in other communities across the region. “It’s a way of engaging a diverse community of voices in the climate conversation,” Du said of Natick’s plan.
More: Town builds floating boardwalk at Pickerel Pond
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