Best Operating Grants for Nonprofits

The Access to Health Care Grant Program, initiated by the Oklahoma City Community Foundation, aims to enhance healthcare access for uninsured and medically underserved individuals in central Oklahoma. This program supports 501(c)(3) nonprofits providing essential healthcare services, including primary care, early detection, and hospice services. Preference is given to collaborative programs demonstrating proven success. Interested applicants are encouraged to attend an informational meeting to learn more about eligibility and application requirements.

Purpose

The purpose of this Request for Proposal (RFP) # COMPADM26002 is to solicit applications that will enable the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (referred to as Agency) to select the most qualified applicant to provide technical assistance to Rural Iowa healthcare organizations and providers. This technical assistance will support providers with planning, partnership building, assessment and evaluation, and overall implementation of Hub and Spoke models of care in the areas of maternal and child health, mental/behavioral health, cardiovascular health, and/or chronic disease prevention and management.  

This technical assistance should allow Rural healthcare organizations to achieve success in future Health Hubs Projects of Iowa's Rural Health Transformation Grant. Activities in the Health Hubs Project will include the development of hub and spoke models for health care, including the development of rural provider strategic partnerships and agreements. It will also include developing and implementing arrangements for exchanging best practices, coordinating care across regions via telehealth and referral networks, expanding access to specialty services in a financially sustainable manner, streamlining or centralizing functions to create cost savings, improving the financial viability of rural providers, preserving independence of rural providers, keeping care local in rural communities when appropriate and possible, and developing models of sustainability for rural health care. The Contractor will support the Health Hubs on the items listed above, while also assisting with long-term sustainability planning, workforce development, and telehealth integration. This work implements a portion of the Hometown Connections initiative of the Iowa Healthy Hometowns Project, funded through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Rural Health Transformation Program, opportunity #: CMS-RHT-26-001. 

The Youth Leadership Council Grant, offered by the Yakima Valley Community Foundation, empowers high school students to drive positive change through philanthropy and leadership. This unique program trains a diverse cohort of youth on topics like equity and community needs, allowing them to distribute $50,000-$100,000 annually to impactful projects. Focus areas include health equity, support for immigrant communities, and educational opportunities. Eligible organizations must serve Yakima County or the Yakama Nation and meet specific criteria.

The Asian Cultural Council's New York Fellowship offers a transformative six-month program for artists, scholars, and arts professionals from Asia. Participants engage deeply with New York City's vibrant cultural landscape, attending performances, exhibitions, and workshops while building networks with local communities. This unique opportunity fosters peer-learning and individual artistic development, encouraging fellows to incorporate their experiences into their practices and contribute to their home cultures. The fellowship emphasizes exploration, exchange, and support, culminating in a rich cultural immersion.

The ReFED Catalytic Grant Fund, managed by Refed Inc., supports innovative solutions to minimize food waste and reduce methane emissions, a cost-effective strategy for climate action. This fund prioritizes initiatives that enhance food recycling and improve supply chain efficiency in the beef and dairy sectors. By focusing on proven methods, the grant aims to accelerate impactful changes in the food system, ultimately fostering sustainable practices and collaborative efforts to combat food waste.

The Proposition 13 – Water Recycling – Planning Grant offers ongoing funding to assist local agencies in planning water recycling projects. This initiative aims to enhance the use of treated municipal wastewater, thereby augmenting fresh water supplies across California. All community types, including disadvantaged and severely disadvantaged communities, are eligible for financial support. Eligible projects encompass various aspects of water recycling, such as treatment, storage, and groundwater recharge.

The Asian Cultural Council's Individual Fellowship provides artists, scholars, and arts professionals from Asia and the United States with opportunities for self-directed cultural exchange and research in unfamiliar regions. This program supports activities such as interviews, workshops, and archival research, fostering cultural immersion and collaboration. With a funding limit of $35,000, the fellowship encourages innovative proposals that enhance creative perspectives and relationships among peers, while also ensuring strong eligibility criteria for applicants.

The LFF: Nature-Based Climate Action Grant aims to support initiatives that leverage natural systems to combat climate change. By funding projects focused on tree planting, prairie restoration, and carbon sequestration, the program seeks to engage communities and enhance understanding of climate challenges. Ideal applicants include rural organizations working to create measurable environmental impacts while fostering collaboration and policy change. This grant represents an opportunity for organizations ready to take significant strides in addressing the climate crisis.

The NRP Research Grant Program offers up to $50,000 for healthcare professionals to explore optimal neonatal resuscitation methods. It encourages innovative research addressing gaps in transitional physiology and effective teaching of resuscitation skills. Applications must focus on evidence-based practices and demonstrate potential for meaningful impact in delivery room care. Researchers from Canadian and US institutions are eligible, though applications primarily focused on quality improvement without a research emphasis will not be considered.

The L.P. Jenkins Memorial Fellowship Program supports graduate and undergraduate students conducting vital field research on orangutans and rainforest conservation in Indonesia. Established in memory of Mrs. Lorraine Phyllis Jenkins, a passionate advocate for orangutan research, the fellowship prioritizes proposals focusing on previously unstudied orangutan populations. Eligible applicants must provide evidence of a valid research permit to access funds for their studies, ensuring a commitment to responsible and impactful research.

The Conservation Small Grants program, administered by the Primate Society of Great Britain, provides awards up to £1,250 to support projects benefiting primate conservation and education. The grants aim to address threats to primate populations, enhance conservation incentives, and direct efforts to vital locations. Additionally, funds from the Born Free Foundation and Trentham Monkey Forest are allocated for specific conservation initiatives, fostering local engagement and expertise in habitat countries.

The Jane Bradley Pettit Foundation Grant focuses on enhancing the lives of low-income and disadvantaged communities in Greater Milwaukee. Starting January 1, 2024, the Foundation will support operational and programmatic grants rather than capital projects. It prioritizes initiatives in health, education, arts, and community development, emphasizing the needs of women, children, and the elderly. This shift aims to empower organizations that foster social change and improve quality of life for vulnerable populations.

The Anne Arundel County Community Tree Planting Mini Grant Program, a collaboration between the Anne Arundel County Forestry Board, City of Annapolis, and Chesapeake Bay Trust, provides grants up to $5,000 for community tree planting and invasive species removal. This initiative aims to enhance tree canopy and promote environmental stewardship across neighborhoods and parks in Anne Arundel County. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis until funding is exhausted, ensuring support for local projects that improve air quality and watershed health.

The Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHSC) Program plays a vital role in California's climate strategy by funding projects that promote affordable housing and sustainable transportation. By reducing reliance on personal vehicles, it aims to decrease greenhouse gas emissions. The program supports new construction, renovation of affordable housing, and transportation infrastructure, including transit amenities and safe walking and biking options, thereby fostering equitable access to essential services for all residents.

About HCR

Mission Statement

New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) is the State’s affordable housing agency, with a mission to build, preserve, and protect affordable housing and increase homeownership throughout New York State.

New York State Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program

Funds Available

The NYS CDBG Program is administered by the Housing Trust Fund Corporation’s (HTFC) Office of Community Renewal (OCR) and funds a variety of activities across the State to develop viable communities. CDBG Program funds are allocated to New York State by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the NYS CDBG Program. HTFC will make available approximately $20 million in NYS Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program funds through this Request for Applications (RFA). This RFA is limited to the activities listed below. Applications will be accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis throughout the year. Funding for CDBG public infrastructure and housing activities will be announced separately and subject to a future Request for Applications.

Intermountain Community Care Foundation

Our mission: Helping people live the healthiest lives possible.

Intermountain Health is the largest nonprofit health system in the Intermountain West. We’re dedicated to creating healthier communities and helping our patients thrive.

Intermountain Health was established in 1975, but our legacy of compassion and care extends well beyond that, going back to the late 1800s and the early 1900s in Colorado and Utah respectively. We have since become a 60,000+ person strong nonprofit health system, with operations in six states across the interior West with a shared vision to be a model health system that inspires the future of health.

Intermountain Healthcare, SCL Health, and HealthCare Partners Nevada have now come together to serve communities in Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming.

Grants

The Intermountain Community Care Foundation awards grants to organizations whose programs align with Intermountain Health’s mission, our national community health areas of focus, and priorities identified through our Community Health Needs Assessment. By supporting evidence-based programs and services that strengthen communities, the Foundation is dedicated to helping people live the healthiest lives possible.

What We Fund

We provide grants to organizations whose programs align with Intermountain Health’s mission, our national community health areas of focus, and priorities identified through our Community Health Needs Assessment.

• Healthcare Access Grants
• Social Drivers of Health Grants
• Child & Family Mental Well-Being Grants
• Utah Education Innovation Grants

Child & Family Mental Well-Being Grants

To qualify for Child and Family Mental Well-Being funding, your program or service must focus on families with children. Funding priority areas include:

• Mental well-being for children, including: reducing suicide deaths; reducing frequent mental distress, anxiety, and depression; decreasing substance misuse
• Advance prevention and early intervention addressing risk and protective factors
• Expand comprehensive, family-centered, mental well-being programs
• Build trauma-informed systems for young children including evidence-based prevention, behavioral health treatment, or related interventions or programs
• Strengthen community behavioral health capacity and collaborations through coalition-building

Requirements

• A full and complete financial audit conducted within the last two years. Submission must include the entire audit, including any findings and the auditor's letter
• A copy of the organization's 501(c)(3) designation letter or a comparable government designation
• A completed W9
• A completed Supplier Form (a blank copy will be provided in the application)

Additional information

• In Utah and Idaho, applicants can request a total grant award between $5,000 to $100,000 per year for 3 years (up to $300,000 total) for the entire project period. Projects can last between 12 and 36 months and must begin upon receipt of funding.
• In Colorado, Montana, and Nevada, applicants can request a total grant award between $5,000 to $50,000 per year for 2 years (up to $100,000 total) for the entire project period. Projects can last between 12 and 36 months and must begin upon receipt of funding.
• A funding request may not exceed 20 percent of an organization’s annual operating budget, e.g., to be eligible for a $50,000 grant, your organization’s annual operating budget must be at least $250,000.
• In general, small equipment and materials are eligible at no more than a total $5,000 cost, but large equipment, construction, and capital costs are not eligible. Consideration will be given if computer equipment is necessary and vital to the success of the project.

The Legacy Youth Alliance Grant supports youth-led projects and organizations in Wapello County, aiming to enhance education and health opportunities for local youth. The fund prioritizes innovative initiatives that demonstrate community impact and collaboration. Eligible applicants include 501(c)(3) non-profits or those with a fiscal sponsor. Notably, it excludes funding for individuals, for-profits, and projects lacking youth focus. The foundation seeks to empower youth through impactful programs.

The Sustainable Materials Recovery Program (SMRP) Municipal Grants support municipalities in enhancing recycling, composting, and waste reduction initiatives. Through the Recycling Dividends Program (RDP), eligible cities and towns can receive funding by implementing effective waste management policies. This program encourages local efforts to divert waste from landfills, thus promoting sustainable practices and environmental responsibility. MassDEP evaluates applications based on established criteria, ensuring that communities meet the necessary standards for funding.

The Municipal Waste Reduction Grant in St. Louis County supports innovative projects aimed at improving waste diversion and recycling. Eligible municipalities can apply for funding to implement programs that prevent waste from entering landfills. Past successful initiatives include backyard composting, electronics recycling, and community festival outreach. Applications must be submitted three months prior to the project start date, with a resolution from the city council required for funding consideration.

Department of Agriculture

The Department of Agriculture has a dedicated staff that strives effectively and efficiently to accomplish our mission, to sustain and promote the viability of food, fiber, and agricultural industries in Delaware through quality services that protect and enhance the environment, health, and welfare of the general public.

Delaware Forest Resiliency Fund

The Delaware Forest Service received $1.5 million from the U.S. Forest Service to establish the Delaware Forest Resiliency Fund, a cost-share program through which landowners can address forest resiliency through tree planting, invasive species removal, and prescribed fire.

Program Goals

• Create a cost-share program to improve forest health by using forestry resiliency practices.
• To increase the amount of forest in Delaware.
• To improve forest conditions to increase resiliency.
• To promote practices supported in improving carbon management.
• To support the goals of the 2020 Delaware Forest Action Plan

Through the cost-share program, landowners can address forest resiliency by planting trees, removing invasive species, and using prescribed fire.

Eligible Projects

Reforestation Projects

From a pine monoculture or severely high-graded hardwood stand to include oak species, shortleaf pine, Atlantic white cedar, bald cypress, and pitch pine. All species used will be site-appropriate.

• Site preparation practices are eligible for funding.
• Post-planting maintenance, such as mowing and spot spraying, is eligible for funding.
• Tree shelters are eligible for funding.

Afforestation Projects

To include any native species besides loblolly pine.

• Site preparation practices are eligible for funding.
• Post-planting maintenance, such as mowing and spot spraying, is eligible for funding.
• Tree shelters are eligible for funding.

Invasive Species Removal or Control

Invasive species are a significant threat to the forest as they outcompete and displace native plant species, impact available food, and cover resources for native wildlife.

• Removal or control of any invasive plant as defined by the Delaware Invasive Species Council
• Must be in a forest as defined by the United States Forest Service.

Prescribed Fire Practices

Implementing prescribed fire allows native species that require fire as part of their life cycle to return to the landscape, and invasive species that flourish without fire are removed.

Install permanent vegetative fire breaks.

• Burn plan writing.
• Implementation measures.
• Other practices that are needed to perform a prescribed fire safely.
• Must be in a forest as defined by the United States Forest Service.

Program Rules

• All applicants must complete the Delaware W-9 form online and register as suppliers with the State of Delaware at https://esupplier.erp.delaware.gov.

• Applications will be reviewed to determine the level of cost-share payments. Most cost-share payments will be made at 90% unless otherwise outlined below for the specific project area. Landowners who have owned forestland in Delaware for a total of 10 years or less, own properties in priority areas, are limited resource producers or are veterans of any U.S. Armed Forces who were honorably discharged in the prior 10 years will receive a 100% cost-share payment.

• Prescribed Fire and Invasive Species projects will have a cap of $10,000 dollars per landowner. These payments will be made as reimbursements to the landowner once proof of implementation has been received and verified.

• Tree Planting projects have no maximum payment. Payments for tree planting projects will be directly made to suppliers and contractors.

• Applications will be taken on a rolling basis and approved on a first-come, first-served basis, as funding allows.

• Forest Stewardship Plans are required for any landowner who owns or will own 10 forested acres after afforestation efforts. The landowner can choose to use a private consultant or a Delaware Forest Service forester.

• Applications for prescribed fire practices and invasive species projects should include 3 bids from qualified contractors who will be considered to do the work. This is not required for tree-planting projects.

• Landowners are required to maintain records related to this program for a minimum of three years after the closure of this grant period. The USFS may audit these funds.

• Any work completed before signing a contract with DFS will not be eligible for reimbursement.

The Stimulating Hematology Investigation: New Endeavors (SHINE) program aims to enhance nonmalignant hematology research aligned with the goals of the NIDDK, NIA, and NHLBI. It invites R01 grant applications focused on innovative and early translational hematology topics, fostering growth in this critical research area. Key deadlines for applications span from February 2025 to October 2027, allowing for both standard and renewal submissions.

The Growing Tribal Economies Through Forest Market Innovations grant program, initiated by First Nations Development Institute, aims to empower Tribes and Alaska Native Villages to engage in emerging markets that enhance forest health and resilience. With funding of $200,000 to $500,000 per grant, this initiative supports projects focusing on sustainability, innovation, and traditional knowledge. Eligible applicants are encouraged to develop forest products, certifications, and practices that contribute positively to biodiversity and ecosystem management.

The Anderson-Rogers Foundation Grant supports U.S.-based 501(c)(3) organizations focused on environmental protection, animal welfare, climate change mitigation, and social support. Established in 2001, this family foundation prioritizes innovative projects and general operating support for small organizations facing financial constraints. Note that applicants must first submit a letter of inquiry, as the foundation does not fund scholarships or grants to individuals or religious organizations, nor does it support organizations outside the U.S.

The Green School Grant Program, established by the NYS Association for Reduction, Reuse & Recycling (NYSAR3), offers funding to K-12 schools in New York for waste reduction, reuse, recycling, and composting initiatives. With over 100 schools funded since 2005, this program supports new and existing projects, providing up to $1,000 per award. Schools are encouraged to raise awareness about waste minimization while sharing their outcomes with NYSAR3.

New York State Office of Cannabis Management

The New York State Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) was established upon passage of the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) in March 2021 to implement a regulatory framework for medical and adult-use cannabis and hemp in the state of New York. This includes, but is not limited to production, licensing, packaging, marketing and the sale of cannabis.

Community Grants Reinvestment Fund

Purpose

The Community Grants Reinvestment Fund (“CGRF”) was established under New York’s Cannabis Law to reinvest in communities disproportionately affected by past federal and state drug policies. Decades of criminalization, disproportionate enforcement, and incarceration have left lasting impacts on the social, economic, and health outcomes of individuals, families, and communities across the state.

Through the Community Reinvestment Program, the Office of Cannabis Management (“OCM”) and the Cannabis Advisory Board (“CAB”) aim to promote restorative justice, strengthen community institutions, and invest in organizations that have supported resilience and healing despite the challenges of past drug laws.

For the 2025-2026 Fiscal Year grant cycle, the CAB will award grants to 501(c)(3) communitybased organizations serving youth, defined as individuals aged 0–24, in communities disproportionally affected by prior drug policies. This year’s funding focuses on five (5) program areas:

• Mental Health
• Harm Reduction
• Substance Use Disorder
• Housing
• Workforce Development

The goal is to create equitable, positive, and lasting impacts by investing in community-based programs that offer youth-focused initiatives and wraparound services tailored to local needs in communities disproportionally harmed by prior federal and state drug policies.

Funding 

The applicant pool for the Community Grants Reinvestment Fund will be bifurcated into two tiers: Tier 1 Organizations and Tier 2 Organizations. Tier 1 and Tier 2 Organizations will be determined by the applicant organization’s total expenditures as reflected on their most current IRS tax filing.

• Tier 1: Organizations with total expenditures between $50,000 and $2,499,999.99.
• Tier 2: Organizations with total expenditures equal to or greater than $2,500,000. 

Tier 2 Organizations

For Tier 2 Organizations, award amounts will be $200,000. Tier 2 Applicants must submit a budget request exactly equal to $200,000. 

The Community Reinvestment Program Grants aim to support communities in New York State that have been adversely affected by past drug policies. Grants will fund essential services for young people aged 0-24, including mental health, workforce development, and housing initiatives. This program is financed through 40% of cannabis tax revenue, directed towards fostering equity and resource allocation in historically underserved areas. Nonprofit organizations can apply for funding to enhance community well-being and opportunities.

The Cumberland Plateau Stewardship Fund Grant aims to restore native forests and improve wildlife habitats while supporting working forests in the Cumberland Plateau. The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) invites proposals that enhance forest, grassland, and freshwater ecosystems, promoting conservation practices on agricultural lands. This initiative is backed by funding from USDA agencies and corporate partners, focusing on improving soil health, water quality, and carbon sequestration in the region.