Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC) has released it's 2022 Annual Report detailing grants made for amateur radio projects.

In 2022, overall, ARDC approved nearly $6.7 million in grants, and distributed nearly $7.7 million.

ARDC's 2022 grants were distributed in four categories: Amateur Radio, Education, Scholarships, and Research & Development. Below is a list of the total grant amounts distributed in each category.

Amateur Radio $2,145,686

Education $2,326,744

Scholarships $1,561,548

Research & Development $2,402,293

In 2022, international grant making was expanded to 13% of funded projects, which was an increase from 9% in 2020, and is an area where ARDC is aiming for additional growth in 2023.

ARDC made 47 grants to amateur radio in 2022, which accounts for almost half of the total projects funded.

These included nine college amateur radio club projects and 33 community amateur radio club projects which involve network build outs, equipment upgrades, and repairs to old equipment.

Communications vehicles were commonly applied for, meaning that they were more competitive and difficult to obtain funding for. Clubs often share that these projects re-energize their membership and activities.

ARDC reviewers focused on selecting projects with strong outreach plans or opportunities to bring new people into the hobby. Projects with unique approaches and ones that aimed for big impacts stood out from the crowd. At the same time, funds were available for bread-and-butter club projects in order to continue supporting typical groups enjoying the hobby.

An example of a stand-out project is the one proposed by Bay Area Mesh (BAM). BAM's goal is "to install a resilient, high-speed, wireless network throughout San Francisco and the greater Bay Area." The network would be used by responders, volunteers, and served agencies during disasters, emergencies, and large community events.

ARDC noted in the awarding of the grant, "They're building this network using inexpensive, commercial-grade Wi-Fi equipment, running open-source software developed by the Amateur Radio Emergency Data Network (AREDN)." Using AREDN software allows BAM volunteers to set up a node with minimal expertise and effort, Advanced network technology is not needed because the software configures the network automatically.

Scholarships continue to be a focus for ARDC. In 2023, ARDC is funding 95 scholarships, bringing the all-time ARDC scholar total to 313. The ARRL Foundation was the biggest beneficiary, with a grant of $500,000. And, in keeping with their goal of reaching underserved groups, scholarship programs were also funded for the Society of Women Engineers and OMIK (a multicultural amateur radio organization), among others.

ARDC is a private foundation that exists to support amateur radio and digital communication science and technology.

The mission of ARDC is to support, promote, and enhance digital communication and broader communication science and technology, and to promote amateur radio, scientific research, experimentation, education, development, open access, and innovation in information and communication technology.

You can read more about ARDC at their website.