WASHINGTON — Even though ongoing low interest rates have hurtits income, the National Credit Union Foundation has called forapplications for this year's Innovation Grants.

NCUF renamed its traditional grant program the Innovation Grantsto tie it more closely to its ongoing REAL Solutions effort andafter it stopped making grant awards several times in favor of onceper year. REAL Solutions is a cooperative effort between thefoundation and state credit union leagues to both foster innovativeideas of how credit unions can better serve lower incomecommunities and to assist the in tailoring those ideas to their ownparticular situation.

Executive Director Steve Delfin explained that it made sense totie the grant program to the REAL Solutions effort since creditunions themselves are often the best incubators of good ideas. NCUFspecifically said it was interested in grants addressing financialeducation, transaction services, savings, credit andhomeownership.