MVP 2.0 Planning Vendor

Location:	Massachusetts
Posted:	May 5, 2026
Due:	May 25, 2026
Agency:	Town of Newbury
Type of Government:	State & Local
Category:	C - Architect and Engineering Services - Construction
Publication URL:	To access bid details, please log in.

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[Town of Newbury]

[Conservation Department]

Contents:

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

MVP 2.0 Planning Vendor

5/4/2026

• Overview of Opportunity

• MVP 2.0 Summary

• Experience & Skill Sets Required of the Planning Vendor/ Vendor Team

• Resources & Support

• Scope of Work & Checkpoints

• Roles & Responsibilities

• Reporting & Final Deliverables

• Details on Materials that Result from this Contract

• Budget

• Submittal Requirements

• Evaluation of Proposals

Overview of Opportunity

Cities, towns, and Tribes throughout Massachusetts are identifying climate vulnerabilities and

investing in community resilience. The MVP 2.0 program, run by the Massachusetts Executive

Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, expands on the work communities have done to date

and supports communities with new methods, tools, and resources for building climate resilience.

MVP 2.0 is a way for grantees to revisit their community resilience priorities with a focus on equity

and translate those priorities into action through project development and implementation.

The Town of Newbury seeks proposals from qualified individuals or firms to expand the bandwidth

and the capacity of the community, as well as bring skill sets that will benefit the MVP 2.0 process.

The selected Planning Vendor should have demonstrated previous experience in providing

specified services to municipalities. A complete RFP may be obtained, without charge, at 12 Kent

Way, Byfield, MA, or by contacting the conservation department at 978-465-0862 x310,

conscom@newburyma.gov. Documents will be available after 4/6/2026 at 12:00 pm through to the

submission deadline on 5/25/2026 at 12:00 pm. Vendors must submit one digital copy, sent to

conscom@newburyma.gov. It is recommended that respondents to this request thoroughly review

the vendor qualifications and the MVP 2.0 Process Guide available here:

https://www.mass.gov/doc/mvp-20-process-guide/download.

MVP 2.0 Summary

The MVP 2.0 program expands on the climate resilience work communities have done to date and

supports them with new methods, tools, and resources for building climate resilience. In

particular, the vendor will support the Grantee in revisiting their community resilience priorities

with a focus on equity and translating those priorities into action through project development and

implementation. The MVP 2.0 program does this through:

• Convening a community team to lead equitable climate resilience work;

• Providing training on strategies for building climate resilience, equity, and climate justice;

• Revisiting resilience priorities with the involvement of the wider community and a stronger

assessment of social vulnerability and resilience;

• Helping the municipality and community to co-develop and implement a project that builds

community resilience, with guaranteed funding for implementation; and

• Providing a process that can be replicated for future, competitive MVP Action Grants.

This work will be different to the original MVP Planning Grant (MVP 1.0) approach that you may be

familiar with. It focuses less on understanding how extreme weather events will impact

infrastructural and environmental assets in the community, and more on building social resilience.

This includes exploring the factors that create vulnerability or resilience for people living or working

in the community. It involves digging deeper into issues like food security and housing affordability

and understanding how those factors shape what is needed for building resilience to climate

change. The MVP 2.0 process calls on a Core Team with strong connections to communities that

will be most impacted by climate change, and Planning Vendors that bring different skill sets than

in MVP 1.0 (see skill sets detailed in evaluation section below). In addition, every municipality or

region in the MVP 2.0 Program is paired with an Equity Partner. The Equity Partner helps provide

coaching and guidance on topics such as inclusive engagement and measuring the equity impacts

of projects. Together, this team will focus on connecting with and collaborating with community

members, and expanding the voices involved in climate resilience efforts.

The MVP 2.0 process is broken down into three phases. It’s designed to be completed over two

years, knowing that it takes time to build new relationships, expand the involvement of the broader

community, and work together to develop and implement a project. Grantees may also continue to

apply for Action Grants while participating in MVP 2.0.

The Planning Vendor will be hired before Step 3 of the process and will be responsible for assisting

the community in implementing Steps 3-8 of the MVP 2.0 Process Guide. If the Planning Vendor is

selected and hired earlier in the process, they may also contribute their support during Steps 1 and

2. Tasks and responsibilities for these initial steps are outlined in the MVP 2.0 Roadmap, which

details how the Planning Vendor can support the Equity Partner and Municipal Lead until Step 3.

Phase 1 - Develop a Core Team. The Core Team is a team of municipal staff/volunteers and

community members who will lead the MVP 2.0 process. Half of the Core Team members will be

community liaisons – members of the community or region who have strong connections with

Environmental Justice (EJ)1 and other priority populations2 who will lead outreach to these

communities throughout the process and who will be compensated for their time with grant

funding. As part of Phase 1, the Grantee, Equity Partner, and Planning Vendor will investigate lived

1 Environmental Justice (EJ) Populations are defined in the 2021 EJ Policy and can be viewed in the MA EJ viewer.

2 Other priority populations are people or communities in addition to mapped EJ populations who may be

disproportionately impacted by climate change due to life circumstances that systematically increase their exposure

to climate hazards or make it harder to respond. In addition to factors that contribute to EJ status (i.e., income, race,

and language), other factors like physical ability, access to transportation, health status, and age shape whether

someone or their community will be disproportionately affected by climate change.

expertise in the community to identify perspectives that will be important to include on the Core

Team. It’s expected that Phase 1 will take about five months.

Phase 2 - Revisit resilience priorities. Building on MVP 1.0 and any climate resilience planning

since, the Core Team facilitated by the Planning Vendor and Equity Partner, will dig deeper into the

factors that contribute to social vulnerability and resilience for people who live and work in the

community. This step will kick off collaboration of the Core Team with team-building activities, and

then involve connecting with EJ and other priority populations in the community or region and

investigating community and climate data to identify community resilience needs. Finally, the Core

Team will revisit their community resilience priorities from MVP Planning 1.0 to make sure they

reflect any progress, new information, as well as updated understanding of community resilience

needs. Throughout, the Equity Partner will provide coaching on how to think about climate equity in

the community and inclusive engagement. It’s expected that Phase 2 will take about six months.

Phase 3 - Implement a Seed Project. A Seed Project is a project selected by the Core Team that will

advance the community’s resilience priorities, and that can be completed in 9-10 months. In

Phase 3, the Core Team will develop a project idea, vet that idea with the community, develop an

implementation plan (including a session led by the Equity Partner on equity metrics), and

implement the Seed Project. The MVP 2.0 process finishes by reflecting on what went well and how

it will adjust the approach for future Action Grants or other resilience efforts. The actual

implementation of the Seed Project will be covered under separate procurement and will be

allotted $50,000 of grant funding per community with no local match required. The responsibility of

the Planning Vendor being hired through this RFP will be to help the community select a Seed

Project and build out the implementation plan. It does not include actual implementation of the

Seed Project unless specified by the Grantee. It’s expected that Phase 3 will take about 13 months.

Experience & Skill Sets Required of the Planning Vendor/ Vendor Team

The Planning Vendor or vendor team will need to bring capability and experience in the following

three areas:

1. Equity-Centered Project Facilitation – This skill set is important for managing the process

and guiding and facilitating decision-making within the Core Team. Equity-centered project

facilitation requires skills and experience in consensus building, managing various types of

power dynamics, cultural sensitivity, project management, and organizational

development to support diversity, equity, and inclusion. Ideally, the person or team bringing

this experience would be a neutral entity without prior stake in the issues.

2. Community-Driven Processes – This skill set is important for supporting the Equity Partner

and municipal staff in recruiting a Core Team, and community outreach and engagement.

This area requires expertise in equitable and inclusive approaches to outreach,

engagement, and community-led processes. Strong local knowledge and connections

within the community are a significant asset. This role could be filled by someone who has

strong relationships with communities throughout the town, city, or region.

3. Climate and Community Resilience – This skill set is important for supporting the Equity

Partner and Core Team in identifying the root causes of climate and social vulnerability,

developing actions for building community resilience, and in designing a Seed Project. This

area requires expertise in project design and development, climate and community data,

assessing climate and social vulnerability, approaches to building climate resilience,

equity and climate justice. Strong local climate data and impacts knowledge is a significant

asset. This role should be filled by someone that has strong experience with climate-related

work.

Additional Experience

In addition to the qualifications listed above, the Planning Vendor/ vendor team should have

demonstrated experience in the following areas:

• Experience with facilitation or consensus building.

• Experience working in multi-racial, multicultural, or socially vulnerable groups.

• Experience managing projects.

• Local expertise.

Resources & Support

The Grantee will work with the Planning Vendor to help manage and facilitate the process and will

be provided with a set of guidance documents and tools for completing the process. Additionally,

the project team will use the Guides for Equitable and Actionable Resilience (GEAR) online tool

which provides access to community data, downscaled climate projections, and guidance for

investigating and understanding local climate vulnerability. The MVP Program’s team of Regional

Coordinators (RCs) will also provide support and guidance in the process (see list of MVP

checkpoints below).

Scope of Work & Checkpoints

The Planning Vendor will work with the Grantee to conduct the following tasks to complete the MVP

2.0 process. The Planning Vendor will be hired before Step 3 of the process and will be responsible

for assisting the community in implementing Steps 3-8 of the MVP 2.0 Process Guide. If the

Planning Vendor is selected and hired earlier in the process, they may also contribute their support

during Steps 1 and 2. Tasks and responsibilities for these initial steps are outlined in the MVP 2.0

Roadmap, which details how the Planning Vendor can support the Equity Partner and Municipal

Lead until Step 3.

Phase 1: Developing a Core Team

Step 1: Starting to Build Yor Team (1-2 Months) - TO BE LED BY THE MUNICIPAL PROJECT

MANAGER

Goals:

• Hire a Planning Vendor (or

vendor team) to support the

MVP 2.0 process

• Recruit the municipal staff

who will be on the Core

Team.

MVP Checkpoints:

• Just after award - The Municipal Project Manager will

receive an award letter, a timeline, a contract, and the

name and contact information of the Equity Partner

(EP) assigned to the community from the MVP team.

The MVP Regional Coordinator (RC) for your region

will contact you to schedule quarterly check-ins.

• Just after award - The community’s EP will be in

contact to set up a meeting between the Municipal

Project Manager, RC, and EP to kick off the process

and to discuss Planning Vendor selection.

• After selecting a Planning Vendor - Email the

contract, contact information, and qualifications for

your selected Planning Vendor to your RC, EP, and the

MVP inbox (mvp@mass.gov).

Step 2: Identifying Lived Expertise (1 Month) - TO BE LED BY THE EQUITY PARTNER

Goal:

• Identify lived expertise of

people who live and work in

the community and

perspectives that will be

important to include on the

Core Team.

MVP Checkpoints:

• Upon completion - Email your completed

Community Exploration to your RC and the MVP

inbox (mvp@mass.gov) before moving on to Step 3.

Step 3: Recruiting the Rest of Your Team (2 Months) – PLANNING VENDOR MUST BE HIRED

BY THIS POINT

Goal:

• Recruit and onboard the

Community Liaison Core

Team Members.

MVP Checkpoints:

• Upon completion - Email a list of your Core Team

members to your RC and the MVP inbox

(mvp@mass.gov) before moving on to Step 4. Note

which members are Community Liaisons, the

communities they are connected to, and how much

they will be compensated.

Phase 2: Revisiting Resilience Priorities

This is the opportunity summary page. It provides an overview of this opportunity and a preview of the attached documentation.

Bid Title:	MVP 2.0 Planning Vendor
Category:	Conservation Commission
Status:	Open

MVP 2.0 Planning Vendor

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See also