Established in 1994, the STEP program is a partnership between the University of Massachusetts and the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs. The program was established to assist businesses with the development and promotion of innovative, technology-based solutions to environmental problems in the Commonwealth.

• Executive Office of Environmental Affairs (EOEA)
• The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)
• Office of Technical Assistance (OTA)
• The Environmental Business and Technology Center (EBTC)
• Centers and Institutes at each UMass campus

The Advanced Technology and Manufacturing Center is responsible for managing the STEP activities at UMass Dartmouth. The Associate Director at the ATMC monitors and evaluates the effectiveness of the programs in meeting performance targets and provides oversight of campus activities in project management. A staff engineer is assigned to coordinate the program at ATMC and participate in the working groups with members from participating agencies and UMass campuses. There are two major working groups functioning under the partnership; the Technology and the Research Groups.