Funding Navigator
Unlocking Funds Faster Through Technical Assistance
EPIC’s Funding Navigator team works for small and under-resourced communities by providing rapid-response project management and technical assistance, driving access to capital for more resilient, reliable, and affordable water, wastewater, and stormwater systems.
What Drives Us
We work to quickly uncover barriers to developing and financing water infrastructure capital projects and provide targeted solutions, so we can help bolster local capacity and accelerate funding applications. We want to see small and under-resourced communities thrive, and we connect them with the resources and investments they need to create lasting, affordable water infrastructure.
Why It Matters
Financing water infrastructure capital projects—especially with government funding—is complicated, and yet it’s crucial to human and environmental health, public safety, and economic prosperity. One of the quickest ways to get to more resilient, reliable, high-performing, and affordable water systems is to provide direct technical assistance that addresses local priorities and expands local capacity.
Our Process
Our streamlined, step-by-step process is designed to cut through complexity and reduce delays, while adapting to the specific challenges of each community. Each needs-based technical assistance project is tailored to include steps whose outputs will serve community governance, processes, and infrastructural outcomes in both the immediate and long terms.
Through localized capacity support and financing, we help our partners more quickly identify and develop capital projects, meet regulatory requirements, and apply for and secure public funds to improve infrastructure. We offer these services through philanthropic support and as a national Environmental Finance Center funded by the US Environmental Protection Agency.
Request Technical Assistance
Interested in technical assistance? Reach out today by submitting our request form!
Our Way Forward
We support utilities, municipalities, Tribes, and local agencies who manage the water resources in their communities—playing a connector role between our clients, place-based partners, technical and local community experts, and state and federal resources. We want to empower all communities to identify and more efficiently pursue available funding for reliable drinking water, wastewater conveyance and treatment, and stormwater management. By listening first and acting quickly, we help those we serve navigate complex funding programs, connect with the right experts, and move critical water projects from vision to reality with fewer delays.
Case Study: The City of Chelsea
More Case Studies Coming Soon!
Featured Resources
-
To help support EPA’s network of WaterTA and other TA providers, as well as communities interested in applying for SRFs, EPIC has developed a Clean Water SRF (CWSRF) Database and a Drinking Water SRF (DWSRF) Database detailing financial terms, conditions, definitions, and other application information.
-
The purpose of this loan fund is to accelerate water infrastructure projects in the Great Lakes, and ultimately, to ensure clean and safe water throughout the region. The program is open to underserved communities in Illinois, Michigan, or Wisconsin who have a direct connection with the Great Lakes or any of their tributaries or drainage basins. Communities will receive predevelopment (planning/design) technical and financial assistance to help secure infrastructure project application funding through available federal programs.
Interested communities can learn about eligibility and submit a request for assistance by using the “Submit Request Form” button under the “Request Technical Assistance” section above. Simply include ‘Great Lakes Loan Fund’ in the description of your water infrastructure challenge or concern.
For further information on the loan fund, please use the “Learn More” button below:
Meet Our Funding Navigators
-
![]()
Denise Schmidt
Director of Water
-
![]()
Steve Barr
Assistant Director, Funding Navigator
-
![]()
Jake Adams
Senior Advisor, Conservation & Infrastructure Finance
-
![]()
Abigail (Abby) Bradshaw
National Funding Navigator Manager
-
![]()
Tessa Edelen
Southeast Funding Navigator Manager
-
![]()
Palencia Mobley
Senior Advisor for Water Infrastructure
-
![]()
Christina Petagna
Mid-Atlantic Funding Navigator Manager
-
![]()
Mary Samar
Funding Navigator Manager
-
![]()
Lilly Slaughter
Funding Navigator Associate
