Search Through Environmental Education Grants in Wisconsin in the U.S.

The Minneapolis Foundation

The Minneapolis Foundation drives collective action to realize strong, vibrant communities. We cultivate generosity by taking action on the greatest civic, social, and economic needs—partnering with nonprofits, facilitating grantmaking, driving research and advocacy, and providing services to donors seeking to make a difference in their communities.

Great Lakes Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Grantmaking Program

In partnership with the Midwest Environmental Justice Network, NDN Collective, and RE-AMP Network, the Minneapolis Foundation will award environmental justice grants to organizations working in and for underserved communities throughout the Great Lakes region.

Grants will be awarded to community-based nonprofits and other eligible organizations in the following three tiers:

• Tier 1: Assessment and Engagement
• Tier 2: Community Education and Planning
• Tier 3: Project Development and Implementation

We aim to distribute 30% of grant funding to federally recognized tribes and Native American organizations, 25% to rural communities, and 45% to urban communities. The partnership anticipates making 206 grants: 83 in Year 1, 85 in Year 2, and 38 in Year 3.

You may submit an application for multiple tiers at the same time, in any order.

Program Goal

The Great Lakes TCGM Partnership will distribute $40 million to organizations working in and for underserved communities throughout the Great Lakes region. The partnership was selected by the EPA as one of 11 grantmakers around the nation in its new Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Grantmaking program.

The program’s goal is to lift up community-led innovation and strengthen community-based groups by breaking down barriers to federal funding. All grants will be given to environmental and public health efforts in underserved communities as defined by the EPA.

Issue Areas

Grants will support projects that focus on issues including, but not limited to:

• Environmental health
• Air, soil, and water quality
• Healthy homes
• Access to healthy food
• Stormwater and green infrastructure
• Emergency preparedness
• Disaster resilience
• Environmental job training

Tier 1: Assessment and Engagement

Tier 1 awards are one-year grants of up to $150,000 for assessment and engagement efforts that increase understanding of the breadth, depth, or impact of local environmental or public health issues. These grants are limited to capacity-constrained and entry-level applicants, as determined by the information you submit in the intake form. These grants will be paid on a milestone basis: 50% up front and 50% at the midway point, upon completion of agreed-upon milestones.

Eligible activities include, but are not limited to:

• GIS mapping
• Air quality sensor purchasing and siting
• Air, water, or soil sampling, testing, and monitoring
• Research, surveys, and studies
• Power mapping, public engagement, and public education to improve collective understanding of community challenges, needs, and opportunities.

Through a noncompetitive process, we will also award grants of up to $75,000 to capacity constrained communities and community-based organizations under Tier One.

You need not develop a new project to receive a grant. These one-time grants are well suited to support existing work that is currently not funded by another source or to complement other projects for which you already have funding. We also welcome proposals for high-priority new projects. 

The Minneapolis Foundation

The Minneapolis Foundation drives collective action to realize strong, vibrant communities. We cultivate generosity by taking action on the greatest civic, social, and economic needs—partnering with nonprofits, facilitating grantmaking, driving research and advocacy, and providing services to donors seeking to make a difference in their communities.

Great Lakes Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Grantmaking Program

In partnership with the Midwest Environmental Justice Network, NDN Collective, and RE-AMP Network, the Minneapolis Foundation will award environmental justice grants to organizations working in and for underserved communities throughout the Great Lakes region.

Grants will be awarded to community-based nonprofits and other eligible organizations in the following three tiers:

• Tier 1: Assessment and Engagement
• Tier 2: Community Education and Planning
• Tier 3: Project Development and Implementation

We aim to distribute 30% of grant funding to federally recognized tribes and Native American organizations, 25% to rural communities, and 45% to urban communities. The partnership anticipates making 206 grants: 83 in Year 1, 85 in Year 2, and 38 in Year 3.

You may submit an application for multiple tiers at the same time, in any order.

Program Goal

The Great Lakes TCGM Partnership will distribute grants to organizations working in and for underserved communities throughout the Great Lakes region. The partnership was selected by the EPA as one of 11 grantmakers around the nation in its new Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Grantmaking program.

The program’s goal is to lift up community-led innovation and strengthen community-based groups by breaking down barriers to federal funding. All grants will be given to environmental and public health efforts in underserved communities as defined by the EPA.

Issue Areas

Grants will support projects that focus on issues including, but not limited to:

• Environmental health
• Air, soil, and water quality
• Healthy homes
• Access to healthy food
• Stormwater and green infrastructure
• Emergency preparedness
• Disaster resilience
• Environmental job training

Tier 2: Community Education and Planning

Tier 2 awards are one- to two-year grants of up to $250,000 for community-focused efforts that design, inform, and highlight solutions to local environmental or public health priorities. Up to 50% of the grant can be used for relevant property acquisition. Grants will be paid on a reimbursement basis, with a small number of grantees eligible for one advance payment of up to 10% of the total grant.

Eligible activities include, but are not limited to:

• Developing project plans
• Developing communications and outreach plans
• Conducting workshops and trainings
• Developing curricula, toolkits, or guidelines; developing social media content
• Producing videos or printed materials
• Hosting events and gatherings
• Building or strengthening partnerships and collaboration
• Creating local advisory committees
• Engaging in public review or comment periods
• Developing or updating disaster resilience plans, emergency preparedness plans, or other community planning and visioning efforts

You need not develop a new project to receive a grant. These one-time grants are well suited to support existing work that is currently not funded by another source or to complement other projects for which you already have funding. We also welcome proposals for high-priority new projects. 

The Minneapolis Foundation

The Minneapolis Foundation drives collective action to realize strong, vibrant communities. We cultivate generosity by taking action on the greatest civic, social, and economic needs—partnering with nonprofits, facilitating grantmaking, driving research and advocacy, and providing services to donors seeking to make a difference in their communities.

Great Lakes Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Grantmaking Program

In partnership with the Midwest Environmental Justice Network, NDN Collective, and RE-AMP Network, the Minneapolis Foundation will award environmental justice grants to organizations working in and for underserved communities throughout the Great Lakes region.

Grants will be awarded to community-based nonprofits and other eligible organizations in the following three tiers:

• Tier 1: Assessment and Engagement
• Tier 2: Community Education and Planning
• Tier 3: Project Development and Implementation

We aim to distribute 30% of grant funding to federally recognized tribes and Native American organizations, 25% to rural communities, and 45% to urban communities. The partnership anticipates making 206 grants: 83 in Year 1, 85 in Year 2, and 38 in Year 3.

You may submit an application for multiple tiers at the same time, in any order.

Program Goal

The Great Lakes TCGM Partnership will distribute grants to organizations working in and for underserved communities throughout the Great Lakes region. The partnership was selected by the EPA as one of 11 grantmakers around the nation in its new Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Grantmaking program.

The program’s goal is to lift up community-led innovation and strengthen community-based groups by breaking down barriers to federal funding. All grants will be given to environmental and public health efforts in underserved communities as defined by the EPA.

Issue Areas

Grants will support projects that focus on issues including, but not limited to:

• Environmental health
• Air, soil, and water quality
• Healthy homes
• Access to healthy food
• Stormwater and green infrastructure
• Emergency preparedness
• Disaster resilience
• Environmental job training

Tier 3: Project Development and Implementation

Tier 3 awards are one- to two-year grants of up to $350,000 to pilot or implement project plans. Projects may have educational and outreach components, but must focus on developing tangible community assets or providing environmental or public health benefits to one or more disadvantaged communities. Up to 50% of the grant can be used for relevant property acquisition or purchase. Grants will be paid on a reimbursement basis, with a small number of grantees eligible for one advance payment of up to 10% of the total grant.

Eligible activities include, but are not limited to:

• Strengthening cumulative impact, public health, or environmental protections
• Increasing access to healthy food
• Reducing the use of pesticides or toxic substances
• Cleaning up contaminated sites
• Conducting healthy home assessments
• Increasing energy or water efficiency in homes or buildings
• Launching community energy or water efficiency programs
• Installing water filters; developing community gardens
• Creating community resilience hubs
• Installing green infrastructure projects
• Creating internships or implementing workforce development programs

You need not develop a new project to receive a grant. These one-time grants are well suited to support existing work that is currently not funded by another source or to complement other projects for which you already have funding. We also welcome proposals for high-priority new projects. 

Laird Norton Family Foundation

The Laird Norton Family Foundation (LNFF) is a private family foundation in Seattle, Washington, with a mission to honor and reflect the family’s shared values through giving and engage the family in philanthropy as a platform for strengthening family connections.

Primary Grantmaking Programs  

Our grantmaking reflects the values of the Laird Norton family. We give in program areas that reflect the family's shared interests:

Arts in Education

Our Arts in Education grantmaking program supports equitable educational opportunities for students using arts integrated and culturally informed instruction, including sustained professional development for public school teachers. Funding will be directed toward programs that seek to enhance students’ educational outcomes in public Pre-K through grade 12 classrooms rather than to simply increase participation in, or appreciation for, the arts.

• Our current support focuses on organizations that provide: long-term, push-in, professional development opportunities for public Pre-K through grade 12 teachers and schools; programs that aim to serve students furthest from educational justice; and programs with culturally relevant instruction and are focused on the whole child.

Climate Change

Climate change is a global, complex challenge facing our world. The goal of our Climate Change program is to help the planet heal and mitigate adverse impacts of climate change for all people, communities, and the natural world. Grantmaking is centered around carbon sequestration work and recognizes organizations as the experts and stewards to advance climate and environmental justice. Grantmaking is focused in the West Coast of the US.

•  We are focused on supporting work that increased the abilities of forests, coastal ecosystems, and agricultural lands to sequester carbon. Through projects involving healthy forests, blue carbon, and regenerative agriculture, we seek to learn from and follow the lead of communities impacted first and worst as our planet changes. 

Human Services

• Our Human Services grantmaking program supports organizations working directly with youth and young adults (age 12-25) who are experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness, and/or involved with child welfare, juvenile legal or behavioral health systems. Grantmaking is currently only with organizations in King County, WA. 

• Our current support prioritizes organizations that are created and led by the communities they seek to serve, that acknowledge and seek to address racial and social injustice in their work, and that offer programming with the aim of preventing youth and young adult homelessness and creating systems change.

Watershed Stewardship

​Watersheds have social, ecological, and economic significance. The goal of the Watershed Stewardship program is to create enabling conditions for long-term social and ecological health and resilience in places of importance to the Laird Norton Family. Currently, we prioritize work in Minnesota and Wisconsin as well as a few key watersheds in the Western United States, consistent with the Laird Norton family's priorities.

We take a long-term view on healthy watersheds and invest in organizational capacity with an eye to future resilience. We encourage our partners to focus not on single-species recovery or restoration to historical conditions as a primary end-goal, but to also consider the potential value of significantly altered — but functioning — ecosystems as we continue to face the impacts of climate change and other natural and human-caused changes into the future.

​We believe the wellbeing of the people who live in a place must be considered alongside ecological goals; understanding the diverse interests and values of a watershed’s human inhabitants is an important component of long-term success. ​

What We Do

The Community Foundation is a repository for more than 700 charitable funds worth more than $50 million. Each of these funds was created by donors to enhance the quality of life in Southern Wisconsin. We service these funds by managing the investment, encouraging and supporting additions, overseeing the disbursement of grants and scholarships, and managing the requisite government paperwork.The Community Foundation of Southern Wisconsin serves communities in nine Southern Wisconsin counties: Crawford, Grant, Green, Iowa, Lafayette, Rock, Sauk, Vernon, and Walworth. We provide services to donors, non-profit organizations, and students in each of these counties.

Parkview Community Fund

The Parkview Community Fund was established in 2024 as a charitable option for current and former residents to make gifts within the Parkview School District area, including the towns/townships of:

• Avon
• Center
• Footville
• Hanover
• Magnolia
• Newark
• Ordfordville
• Plymouth
• Rock
• Spring Valley

Our Mission is to create a vehicle for local community members, donors, businesses to give back to our communities through charitable contributions. Donations to the Parkview Community Fund qualify as a charitable gift and are placed into a permanent endowment fund. All gifts are tax deductible to the full extent of the law.

Annually, a percentage of the Fund’s earnings are given back as grants to our communities that make up the Parkview School District. Grants may be awarded to support historical and environmental preservation, education, health care, youth programs, community development, human services, arts education, public safely, etc. Grant applications may be accepted to nonprofits, schools, government and churches serving the Parkview School District area.

Valero Energy Foundation 

Valero, its employees and the Valero Energy Foundation are committed to improving the quality of life in communities where we work and live, fulfilling a mission that was set from the beginning. We set the standard for corporate citizenship and promotes prosperity in our communities. 

The Valero Energy Foundation -- a public charity and Valero's philanthropic arm -- funds nonprofit agencies that serve predominantly disadvantaged children and families. In 2019, the Foundation contributed appoximately $40 million in assistance in the communities where Valero has major operations.

Four Pillars of Support

Our funding focuses on our four pillars of giving in communities where we have major operations.

• Basic Needs:  Valero gives assistance to agencies that provide basic needs of life, including shelter, food and clothing necessary for the development of a strong and safe community. 
• Health Care: We invest in the development of strategic community health resources and facilities that will support the needs of all members of our nearby communities, with major gifts going to children’s hospitals, university medical centers and service providers that offer specialized health care services and programs.
• Education: Valero is a strong advocate of education as it creates a necessary foundation for all children to thrive and for adults to lead productive lives. 
• Civic: We support civic and environmental initiatives directly related to the success of the communities where we live and work.

Division of Care and Treatment Services

The Division of Care and Treatment Services (DCTS) manages and supports seven care and treatment facilities for people living with psychiatric disorders and intellectual disabilities, community mental health and substance use services, community mental health and substance use treatment services for people in the criminal justice system, and the protection of client rights for people receiving services for intellectual disabilities, mental health, and substance use.

Prisoner Reintegration Program

The Division of Care and Treatment Services is seeking applications for funding to support individuals from Milwaukee County transitioning from prison or jail who face a range of behavioral, social, and economic challenges. Specifically, some of these challenges include but are not limited to substance use, mental health, physical health, social isolation, complex trauma, unemployment, and environmental factors.

The Prisoner Reintegration Program is under Wis. Stat. § 46.48(8). Under this authorization, DHS developed an application process to award funds to organizations to assist individuals reentering Milwaukee County.

Recipients of this funding will provide qualified staff, such as a case manager, certified peer specialist, or both, offering program participants individualized support and assistance with referral to community services. This could include but is not limited to housing, substance use/mental health counseling, employment assistance, transportation, educational, community engagement, health care, and family reunification. The reentry plan may consist of goals and objectives and challenges or barriers to achieve the goals and objectives.

Recipients of this funding must collaborate with prisons and jails to coordinate release dates and meet with program participants within 48 hours of release. The coordination of care with community partners from pre- to post-release increases the likelihood of achieving successful community adjustment, creating prosocial relationships, minimizing substance use, and reducing recidivism.

Alliant Energy Foundation

Since 1998, the Alliant Energy Foundation has invested more than $76 million in local community organizations and initiatives. The Foundation supports projects that help families thrive, encourages communities to innovate and protects the natural beauty of Iowa and Wisconsin.

Focus Areas

We focus our giving on four strategic areas that align with our values: 

Hunger and Housing

• In this category, we support programs in:
  • Clothing and household needs:
    • Clothing; baby essentials such as cribs, car seats and diapers; household necessities.
  • Food and nutrition:
    • Food pantry support, food delivery and meal outreach, school and backpack nutrition, refrigeration needs, emergency food, farm-to-table.
  • Housing and shelter:
    • Emergency shelter support, refrigeration needs (excluding heating equipment), transition and permanent housing, housing for people with disabilities, home ownership, homelessness prevention, case management assistance, independent living.
  • Transportation: 
    • Bus passes, ride share.

Workforce Readiness

• In this category, we support programs in:
  • Agriculture:
    • Youth agriculture (FFA, 4-H), school gardens, farm education and innovation, county fairs.
  • Literacy and education:
    • Libraries and bookmobiles; after school and summer reading; adult literacy; financial and digital literacy; STEM programming, workshops and festivals; STEM grants for K-12 classrooms; interactive classroom programs/tools; after school and summer STEM programs.
  • Workforce development and transportation:
    • Career exploration and job training, employment skills for disadvantaged youth, employment for people with disabilities, school-to-career solutions, energy industry programs, work transportation assistance and ride share.
  • Youth development: 
    • Leadership and mentoring, anti-bullying, after school programs, YMCA.

Environmental Stewardship

• In this category, we support programs in:
  • Environmental conservation:
    • Protecting wildlife spaces, planting trees and prairies, creating and protecting habitats, water cleanup.
  • Environmental education:
    • Public education, workshops, and school programs about environmental issues, endangered species and wildlife protection.
  • Park updates:
    • Improving city parks with benches, signs and picnic tables.
  • Trail projects: 
    • Enhancing trails with benches, signs, picnic tables, garden beds and maintenance.

Community Safety and Engagement

• In this category, we support programs in:
  • First responders:
    • Lifesaving equipment such as thermal cameras, gas monitors, fire gear and AEDs. (Standard funding: $1,000)
  • Community events:
    • Festivals, fairs, holiday lights and parades.
  • Playground updates:
    • New equipment for public parks. (Standard funding: $1,000)
  • Disaster readiness and relief:
    • Aid for natural disasters, fires and pandemics.

About The Foundation

“Consistent with the Potawatomi heritage, the mission of the Forest County Potawatomi Foundation is to fight poverty, promote economic opportunity, strengthen communities and provide an example of responsible citizenship by assisting charitable organizations and support the pursuit of education by offering scholarships".

The Potawatomi were once a large nation with much land, but after forced removal and the loss of millions of acres, scattered pockets of Potawatomi across regions of the United States and Canada resulted. Although diminished in number, our ancestors who remained in Wisconsin would eventually become known as the Forest County Potawatomi Community, Bodwe’wadmi, Keepers of the Fire. For many generations, we relied on the environment for sustenance. We recognized the importance of using what one needs and giving away what one can. Our tribe took only what the earth and land was able to replenish. Unfortunately, our people struggled with oppressive poverty that made for a very difficult life. But throughout our history, we have maintained our traditional ways, guided by tribal values that include reverence for the wisdom of our elders, embracing responsibilities for family and tribe, respect for the environment, and a willingness to share.

With the advent of Indian gaming, our tribe was able to establish and build two casinos — the first in Forest County, followed by one in Milwaukee. The revenue generated by gaming has had an impact on our way of life beyond our imagination. Our people now have good jobs, good homes, exceptional health care, and are closer to the realized vision of self-sufficiency. The resulting impact of these two businesses on the surrounding communities has been positive as well, through our family-supporting jobs and shared revenue payments that fund services for citizens. Through our casinos and tribal ventures, our tribe is the largest employer in Forest County, and among the top employers in Milwaukee.

When building the Milwaukee business, we realized early on that simply being located in the community wasn’t enough. We longed for a way to express our belief in giving back. We were committed to investing in, and providing, promising futures to individuals and families in the community. And so it was in 1999, that the Forest County Potawatomi Foundation was born with these guiding principles: to help fight poverty, promote economic opportunity, strengthen communities and provide an example of responsible citizenship by assisting charitable organizations. To date, the Foundation has proudly contributed over $30 million to charitable causes in both Forest County and in the Greater Milwaukee area.

But the story does not end here. Through the work of our Foundation, our tribe’s vision of building a better tomorrow for future generations continues … the fire still burns.

The Foundation is a result of the rich history and beliefs of the Potawatomi tribe. The cornerstone of those beliefs is the Circle of Life. Paralleling the seasons of nature, the Circle of Life is a demonstration of the Potawatomi reverence for all living things and nurtures the belief that they are a self-reliant and self-determined nation of people. Difficult times have sometimes made that self-reliance seem impossible to achieve. The Potawatomi people have witnessed both young and old struggle against the oppression of poverty. They have learned much in their past struggles, and the Circle of Life guides them to use the fruits of these lessons to help others overcome their obstacles.

Therefore, a major effort of the Foundation and its funds is to assist charitable organizations that help those people who are faced with economic challenges. As a result, the Foundation targets its resources to those areas with a high percentage of individuals with low and very low incomes.

Program Areas Considered:

• Arts & Culture
• Civic & Community
• Economic Development
• Education (After School Programs Only)
• Elderly
• Environmental
• Health & Human Services
• Native American
• Veterans
• Youth Development

We Make Grants for Lake Michigan

Our grants support organizations and communities committed to enhancing the Lake’s health though projects with both immediate and long-term benefits. The growing economic and environmental impact of this work is reflected not only in improved water quality but also in Wisconsin job creation, property value increases, and new economic activity.

Grant seekers are welcome to submit pre-proposals to the Fund for Lake Michigan at anytime throughout the year for projects that fit within our mission and grant making priorities. We make grant decisions four times a year at our quarterly board meetings (March, June, September and December). The mission of the Fund for Lake Michigan is to improve the health of Lake Michigan, its shoreline and river systems, for the benefit of the people and communities that depend on it for water, recreation and commerce.

Grant Making Priorities

The Fund for Lake Michigan gives priority to on-the-ground projects that have near-term, direct and quantifiable impacts on water quality in the Lake Michigan watershed. These projects include protecting critical natural habitats, reducing polluted runoff and generally making water resources more swimmable, fishable and drinkable. The Fund also supports water quality monitoring and planning that informs and leads to on-the-ground restoration and water-quality improvement projects. 

A legacy of generosity began with founder Elisha D. Smith in the nineteenth century. Charitable giving was given a bigger, more formal structure in 1953, with the formation of Menasha Corporation Foundation, our company’s primary source of philanthropy.

The Foundation provides grants to nonprofit organizations and causes in communities across North America, with a focus on making a difference in places where Menasha Corporation has its operations. What drives every grant is the desire to enhance the lives of individuals and build strong communities.

Mission

To lead and guide Menasha Corporation’s philanthropic activities with special consideration given to communities in which it operates, thereby fulfilling the vision of the corporation’s founder, Elisha D. Smith..What does the Foundation support?

• Community Betterment
• Educated Society
• Environmental Sustainability
• Safe and Healthy Citizen

Grants are awarded to organizations that address areas of need in the following four categories:

Safe and Healthy Citizens

Helping our communities meet basic needs for food, shelter, and healthcare.

Community Betterment

Supporting community improvement, artistic and cultural activities.

An Educated Society

Funding programs that create and expand learning opportunities and experiences.

Environmental Sustainability

Encouraging the understanding, protection, and sustainability of our natural resources.

Our History

People often ask me why I started Trees Forever back in 1989. I’m a very visual person by nature and have always loved driving through the Midwest countryside and enjoying the beautiful scenery. I was driving to a meeting once on a very windy winter day. The ditches were piled high with snow, and I began to notice all the black soil that had collected on top of snowbanks. As I drove along, the wind blew cornstalks and dried-out weeds across the road in front of me—along with our beautiful black topsoil!

As I continued to drive, I also noticed some of the magnificent windbreaks that were protecting many of the farmsteads—and the fields full of precious topsoil—from the blowing winds. Many landowners had obviously cared for and added to their windbreaks over the years, keeping them healthy and well maintained. Others had removed them completely or had let nature take its course, with only a few scraggly trees remaining. Along streams and rivers, trees and shrubby vegetation were often missing.

I wondered how our water quality would suffer, thinking of what could be done to help. I thought to myself, “Something needed to change… and soon!” As I talked with friends and colleagues later, we came to the conclusion that someone needed to replant all those trees, and work to keep others from being lost. And that someone had to start with us! That is, basically, how and why Trees Forever came to be—a grassroots group of citizen volunteers determined to make a difference in our neighborhoods, communities and state. And it’s why we continue to do the important work we do today; to make sure our world is a greener, healthier, more vibrant place for our children and grandchildren! 

Alliant Energy One Million Trees Initiative

Alliant Energy’s Community Tree Planting Program, Part of the One Million Trees Initiative is a nationally recognized and award-winning tree planting program in which Alliant Energy, Trees Forever and your community work together to plan, fund and implement community tree planting projects. The program is designed to encourage energy efficiency, environmental awareness and community stewardship.

Communities can apply for grants up to $5,000 to pay for the cost of trees only. Trees must be landscape-sized in 5 to 10-gallon pots and are purchased locally by the community with the grant funds from Alliant Energy. In Iowa, a small number of trees are covered by customer’s Energy Efficiency contributions. Trees Forever administers and facilitates the program, providing organizational, educational, planning and planting support through our network of experienced field staff.

Project grants are awarded once per year, but plantings can occur anytime in the Spring or Fall.

Please see FAQs for additional guidelines.

Mission

The Red Cliff/Miskwaabikaang Fund assists programs and services contributing to the traditional values of the Ojibwe way of life through arts, language, medicinal foods and ceremonies in Red Cliff, Wisconsin. Grants benefit the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa/Gaa-Miskwaabikaang through work by organizations located in or providing service to residents of the Red Cliff Reservation. The fund does not directly provide grants to individuals or families but rather to nonprofit organizations serving individuals and families. Grants may support any program that improves the quality of life of the Red Cliff community.

But generally, the fund supports work reflecting four priorities:

• Culture or language revitalization
• Dietary or health programs, including social services and substance use disorder treatment
• Artistic programs or services
• Environmental programs, including protection, conservation and testing

The fund encourages co-sponsorship and co-funding of projects.

Examples

The following are representative but not exclusive examples of projects:

• Educational programs that emphasize environmental awareness and an appreciation of nature in everyday life
• Ojibwemowin language teaching programs, lectures, authors
• School programs emphasizing wild rice camp, sugar bush and other traditional food-sustaining activities
• Beading, drum-making, birch bark basketry, textiles, painting and design of moccasins, mukluks or medicine bags
• Ceremonies or feasts that benefit community well-being
• Social service programs addressing, creating awareness of or providing solutions to: alcoholism, substance use disorder, mental illness, diabetes and elder abuse

Pablo Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the Pablo Group. The Pablo Group owns and oversees a collection of businesses including hotels, restaurants, commercial buildings, and apartment complexes. Pablo Group's founders—Zach Halmstad, Julia Johnson, and Jason Wudi—wish to contribute to a financially, culturally, and environmentally healthy Eau Claire community.

To support this vision, Zach, Julia, and Wudi founded Pablo Foundation in 2017 to bolster a revitalized, diverse, and sustainable Eau Claire. Its first significant contribution to this effort began with funding the Pablo Center at the Confluence, a state-of-the-art performing arts venue located downtown where the Chippewa and Eau Claire rivers meet. Since then, Pablo Foundation has expanded its funding beyond the arts to housing, health, and education, with a focus on projects bound to build a financially and environmentally healthy, robust, and vibrant Eau Claire for all our neighbors, including—and especially—the most vulnerable among us.

• Our mission to create a model for a healthy and sustainable community by funding toward our vision and the four pillars of housing, health, education, and arts is unified by our commitments to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion and our commitment to Environmental Sustainability. We seek to be partners with organizations that value and prioritize their work culture and projects around human equity and environmental sustainability.

• While our focus is on the Eau Claire area, our overall goal is to create a philanthropic model that can be replicated in other communities.

Pablo’s Business Directed Giving

Pablo’s Business Directed Giving (BDG) is a program through which Pablo Foundation sponsors or makes donations that are capped at $2,000 per quarter, to local 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations but at the request and recommendation of Pablo Group’s Care Committee. The Care Committee consists of a diverse group of employees representing the various Pablo businesses. The Committee is encouraged and empowered to select local nonprofit organizations whose requets align with the Foundation’s:

• mission to create a model for a healthy and sustainable community,
• vision to empower organizations to inclusively transform Eau Claire by ensuring sustainability in the areas of health, housing, education, and the arts,
• commitment to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, and
• commitment to Environmental Sustainability.

Get To Know Us

The Milton Fund was established in 1996 as a means for current and former residents to give back to the community through charitable contributions. Donations to the Milton Fund are placed into a permanent endowment fund. A percentage of the Fund’s earnings are given back to the community annually in the form of grants. Grants are awarded to support historical and environmental preservation, education, health care, youth programs and the elderly. The Fund is advised by community volunteers who initiate fundraising activities and determine grant awards.

Learn About Our Grants

Once per year the advisory board awards grants to non-profit organizations, the local school district, and/or local government agencies providing charitable programs and projects serving the good of the community. 

What is a Community Fund?

A Community Fund allows individuals and groups to contribute time and money toward the betterment of a specific community. Each community fund has a volunteer advisory board comprised of local members who encourage the growth of the fund and oversee distributions in the form of grants. These grants are awarded to community projects and programs based on the changing needs of that community. The Community Foundation of Southern Wisconsin oversees 16 community funds in its nine-county service area.

Mission

The Four Cedars Environmental Fund provides financial incentives that initiate, stimulate, enrich and assist programs and organizations involved in the protection, preservation and education of the unique natural resources found primarily within the western Lake Superior watershed. The fund supports programs and organizations with capital requests, start-up costs, technical assistance and project/program support.

Examples

• The University of Wisconsin-Superior, located in Douglas County, Wisconsin
• The Sigurd Olson Institute at Northland College, located in Ashland County, Wisconsin
• The McCabe Chapter of the Izaak Walton League, located in St. Louis County, Minnesota
• Sweetwater Alliance, located in St. Louis County, Minnesota
• The Great Lakes Aquarium, located in St. Louis County, Minnesota
• The Sustainable Farming Association of Northeast Minnesota, located in St. Louis County, Minnesota
• The research vessel L.L. Smith of the Lake Superior Research Institute, located in St. Louis County, Minnesota

Mission

The Mission of the Foundation is to provide resources to nonprofit organizations that build thriving communities and improve the quality of life primarily in the St. Croix Valley geographic region of Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Funding Priorities

The Foundation has established a focused set of priorities and welcomes requests for general operations, programs, or projects.  Capital requests may be considered on a more limited basis.

• Healthcare
  • Medical Research
  • Mental/Chemical Health
  • Hospitals
• Housing
  • Affordable Housing for Families and Seniors
• Education
  • Youth Education Initiatives
• Human Services
  • Basic Needs
  • Food Insecurity
  • Employment
• Civic
  • Local Initiatives
• Environment
  • Environmental Education

About Us

The Green Bay Packers Foundation has been giving back to Wisconsin’s communities since it was established in 1986 by Judge Robert J. Parins, then president of Green Bay Packers, Inc. “as a vehicle to assure continued contributions to charity.” It is a component of Green Bay Packers Give Back, the all-encompassing community outreach initiative.

Our Mission

The Foundation, an entity independent of the Green Bay Packers, Inc., supports charities possessing one or more of the following goals: perpetuates a community environment that promotes families and the competitive value of athletics; contributes to player and fan welfare; ensures the safety and education of children; and/or prevents cruelty to animals.

Project/Program Focus Areas

The Foundation will accept a maximum of one grant application from an eligible organization during each four-year cycle. Organizations that fit into multiple focus areas are encouraged to submit an application during the year in which their most urgent funding need is the focus area. Grant applications are accepted online and must be submitted with a project/program that addresses one of that year's specific focus areas.

Specific project/program focus areas by year for the 2026 – 2029 four-year cycle:

• 2026 - animal welfare, homelessness, human services
• 2027 - arts and culture, environmental, hunger
• 2028 - athletics, education
• 2029 - elderly, health and wellness (including drug/alcohol and domestic violence)

Pablo Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the Pablo Group. The Pablo Group owns and oversees a collection of businesses including hotels, restaurants, commercial buildings, and apartment complexes. Pablo Group's founders—Zach Halmstad, Julia Johnson, and Jason Wudi—wish to contribute to a financially, culturally, and environmentally healthy Eau Claire community.

To support this vision, Zach, Julia, and Wudi founded Pablo Foundation in 2017 to bolster a revitalized, diverse, and sustainable Eau Claire. Its first significant contribution to this effort began with funding the Pablo Center at the Confluence, a state-of-the-art performing arts venue located downtown where the Chippewa and Eau Claire rivers meet. Since then, Pablo Foundation has expanded its funding beyond the arts to housing, health, and education, with a focus on projects bound to build a financially and environmentally healthy, robust, and vibrant Eau Claire for all our neighbors, including—and especially—the most vulnerable among us.

• Our mission to create a model for a healthy and sustainable community by funding toward our vision and the four pillars of housing, health, education, and arts is unified by our commitments to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion and our commitment to Environmental Sustainability. We seek to be partners with organizations that value and prioritize their work culture and projects around human equity and environmental sustainability.
• While our focus is on the Eau Claire area, our overall goal is to create a philanthropic model that can be replicated in other communities.

Pablo Foundation Grant

To create as broad an impact and to touch as many lives as possible, Pablo Foundation approves project- or program-based requests greater than $10,000 that meet the Foundation’s:

•  vision, mission, and anti-discrimination policy.
• commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion and its commitment to organizational and project-specific environmental sustainability.
• Is innovative, transformative, and either fulfills an existing gap or meets a new need concerning health, housing, education, and/or the arts in the greater Eau Claire area.
• Demonstrates a need for funding along with the significance of the impact in the greater Eau Claire area, including the number of people from varying backgrounds that will benefit and the longevity of the impact.

Funding Categories

Social Services

Services that provide safety nets and supports for under-resourced, low-income communities. This includes programs that assist homeless or almost homeless people with immediate needs and/or future success; programs that provide help for marginalized communities such as veterans or people exiting the prison system; shelter/housing; food/anti-hunger programs; and employment programs.

Health and Human Services

Support for programs that provide subsidized, low cost or free healthcare for the uninsured and under-insured of all ages; access to mental health; access to low or free-cost dental services; healthcare outreach programs; assistance for disabled individuals or other populations with specific challenges; and services for the elderly.

Environment

Our interests are primarily focused on conservation efforts to protect wildlife, the preservation of natural areas and public interest environmental law.

Education

Funding for exceptional early childhood, school age, high school, and college programs; after school programs; adult continuing education; and educational opportunities for adults who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. Our funding often goes toward scholarship programs so that low-income communities have access to the same high quality programs as their peers.

Art and Culture

Most grants are designated for arts/culture access for under-privilaged populations such as subsidized entry to museums or other cultural sites or events. 

About the DNR

In keeping with our mission, the DNR is dedicated to working with Wisconsinites while preserving and enhancing the natural resources of Wisconsin. In partnership with individuals and organizations, DNR staff manage fish, wildlife, forests, parks, air and water resources while promoting a healthy, sustainable environment and a full range of outdoor opportunities.

Purpose

The Surface Water Grant Program supports surface water management from start to finish. Whether your organization is looking for help with outreach, assessments and surveys, planning, project design, or management, there may be a grant program that can help you. Funds can be used for a wide variety of projects related to surface water, under one of two general categories:

• EDUCATION & PLANNING PROJECTS help communities understand surface water conditions, determine management goals, and develop strategic management plans.
• MANAGEMENT PROJECTS protect and improve water quality and aquatic habitat and prevent and control aquatic invasive species (AIS). Some projects require an approved recommendation in a management plan to be eligible for funding.

Our Mission...

The mission of The Needmor Fund for Social Justice is to work with others to bring about social justice. We support groups of people who come together to organize their community, build power, and challenge the social, economic, or political conditions that bar their access to participation in a democratic society.

Our Vision...

Our work is informed by a vision of democracy and justice:

• We strive to engage those whose participation in our democratic society has been systemically denied, because we believe our nation will operate most equitably when all of its people are actively involved in crafting the vision, values, and policies that affect their lives. This includes, but is not limited to, those who have traditionally been excluded — i.e., low- and moderate-income communities, BIPOC communities, the disabled, immigrants, and members of the LGBTQ community.
• We seek a just society in which all persons are treated with dignity and assured their fundamental rights, including equal access to the basic necessities of life: food, shelter, safety, healthcare, education, livable wages, and a clean environment.
• We work to build a nation in which all people are free to exercise their rights regardless of race, ethnic origin, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, economic status, or faith.
• We believe in the power of community and its ability to collectively determine the best strategies for improving the lives of its members.

Our Values...

Our work together is guided by the following beliefs:

• Every individual has inherent worth and has the right to have his or her voice heard.
• Community organizing is one of the most effective means to engage and lift the voices of those whose participation in our democratic society has been systematically denied.
• Equality, equity, and inclusion of the diverse voices of our society are central to responsible deliberation and decision-making, within both our institutions and society-at-large.

Core Grants

The Needmor Fund for Social Justice’s Core Grants Program provides general operating support to groups engaged in the work of community organizing. Grantees funded through this program are eligible to receive funding for up to three years, after which an organization may not apply for at least two years.

Needmor’s Core Grants Program will focus on supporting community organizing in the Midwest — specifically an eight state region that includes Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, and Wisconsin.

Basic Criteria

While Needmor embraces the opportunity to fund emerging organizations, our commitment remains to funding strong, effective community organizing. We thus seek to support groups that:

• Organize primarily low- and moderate-income people, as evidenced by demographic/ statistical data indicating social and economic distress.
• Have a multi-issue agenda that reflects an intersectional approach to addressing issues associated with race, economic justice and equality.
• Demonstrate a commitment to long-term base building and effectively link issue work to building organizational power.
• Are democratically run and consist of a dues-paying membership base, with deep member engagement and a process for both developing and regenerating a strong cadre of leaders over time.
• Have developed a power analysis and a clearly defined plan for challenging/altering the dynamics of power within their communities.
• Engage in direct action and have demonstrated the ability to win concrete victories of increasingly larger scale.
• Have a vision to continually build and aggregate power, enabling them to take on bigger policy issues and expand its base of allies to increase its impact over time.
• Are well managed, engage in strategic planning, and have a sound budget and diversified fundraising plan.

Additional Screens

In addition to meeting the above basic criteria, Needmor is interested in funding groups that:

• Organize across lines of race, class, and gender; and, promote the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Are linked to and leverage the power of faith, labor, and community into powerful organizations.
• Demonstrate a willingness to work collaboratively for the purpose of building collective power to achieve systematic change at the regional, state, and national level. 
• Are connected to larger organizing networks that are working to implement new, broad, and creative public policies that address systemic issues facing low- and moderate-income communities.
• Integrate voter engagement strategies and the expansion of democracy into the building of powerful community organizations.
• Demonstrate the ability to develop an agenda that frames issues of relevance to both urban and rural constituencies.
• Recognize and address the impact of global corporatization as it relates to issues of economic and environmental justice.
• Have potential for attracting the interest and support of other funders.

Injection Drug Use Prevention Program RFA

The Division of Care and Treatment Services is seeking applications from agencies interested in receiving funding to provide services that protect and promote the health and safety of people who inject drugs.

Purpose of the Funding/GFO

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) is seeking applications for the Injection Drug Use Prevention (IDUP) program. IDUP services utilize evidence-based and innovative approaches to expand and enhance services for persons who inject drugs (PWID). Goals of IDUP are to prevent and reduce overdose-related deaths and health complications associated with drug use.

Primary prevention is an important component of the continuum of care that addresses the root causes of substance use. This is done through different strategies that address the protective and risk factors of substance use and promote general health and wellbeing. Primary prevention activities should be evidence-based, relevant, and culturally appropriate to the community. Primary prevention should address an identified community need. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) Strategic Prevention Framework offers an approach to understanding and addressing the substance misuse and related behavioral health problems facing communities. The framework includes assessment, capacity, planning, implementation, and evaluation. This is also guided by two cross-cutting principles of cultural competence and sustainability. DHS is requesting applications demonstrating evidence-based strategies and innovative approaches for expanding and/or enhancing prevention services to PWID by applying SAMHSA’s Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) primary prevention strategies. These six strategies include:

• Information dissemination: One-way communication to provide information and awareness about substances and substance use disorder as well as available prevention, treatment, harm reduction, and recovery programs and services. 
• Prevention education: Two-way communication between an educator or trained peer and participants that provides information and activities aimed to support behavior change and/or risk reduction and to improve critical life and social skills.
• Alternative activities: Provides opportunities for priority populations to participate in activities that exclude high-risk behaviors and/or substance use by providing alternative, healthy activities.
• Problem identification and referral: Aims to identify those who are using substances and to assess if their high-risk behavior can be reversed and/or moderated through education.
• Community-based processes: Enhances the ability and capacity of the community to more effectively provide substance use prevention services and provides ongoing networking activities and technical assistance to community groups or agencies. It encompasses neighborhood-based, grassroots empowerment models using action planning and collaborative systems planning.
• Environmental: Establishes or changes community standards, codes, and attitudes, with the goal of reducing substance use in the focus population. 

Global Awareness Fund

The Global Awareness Fund supports projects that promote mutual understanding, cooperation, and the development of civil societies to ensure the well-being and survival of the global community. The Fund focuses on issues such as peace and security, economic well-being, justice and human rights, environmental sustainability, and citizen understanding of global cultures, political systems, and the need for tolerance.Examples of funded projects include global education initiatives in schools, support for libraries and media on topics like international trade and peace, planning conferences or lectures on U.S. foreign relations, media production on global issues, efforts to establish sister city relationships, and projects to create or enhance peace and justice centers.

Background

The Mid Wisconsin Foundation Legacy Fund was established within the Community Foundation of North Central Wisconsin when the Mid Wisconsin Foundation was dissolved in 2013 as a result of the bank’s merger with Nicolet Bank.

An advisory committee reviews applications and makes recommendations to the board of directors of the Community Foundation regarding grant distribution annually.

Mid Wisconsin Grants

Proposals are accepted for specifically identified projects and programs that will benefit nonprofit organizations located in communities formerly served by Mid Wisconsin Bank.

Requests for funding are limited to nonprofit organizations that serve Wisconsin communities where Mid Wisconsin Bank once operated:

• Abbotsford
• Colby
• Eagle River
• Fairchild
• Medford
• Minocqua
• Neillsville
• Phillips
• Rhinelander
• Rib Lake
• Rib Mountain
• Wausau

The Dickinson Area Community Foundation is a permanent, charitable endowment created by the community, for the community. The Foundation is made up of 101 charitable funds, each named and designated by donors to benefit the area. 

Mission Statement

Grants are available from the following funds to 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations and agencies or organizations affiliated with non-taxable organizations (i.e., schools, churches, cities) located in or servicing people in the Dickinson County and surrounding Michigan and Wisconsin areas.

Veterans Assistance Fund

Funds available for grants to non-profit organizations that support veterans of the United States Armed Forces.

Civic Improvement Fund

Funds available for collaborative project(s) to benefit or serve the Iron Mountain, Kingsford, and Breitung Township communities. The Grant Committee includes a representative from each community.

Community Health Fund

Funds available for grants for youth and senior health-related programs (i.e., programs designed to reduce behavioral risk factors such as substance abuse, alcohol/binge drinking, smoking, and depression; and to encourage healthy activities). 

Environmental Fund

Funds available for grants for projects that improve or create methods of enhancing natural resources in the region.

Fine Arts Fund

Funds available for grants for projects in the area of theatrical, musical, and performing arts.

Health Care Fund

Funds available for grants for programs involved in prevention, primary physical health care, educational, and other health related services.

Homeless Prevention Fund

Funds available for grants for programs that provide assistance to people in need to prevent loss of homes

Hunger Fund

Funds available for grants to organizations that provide food to people in need.

Iron Mountain/Kingsford Kellogg Youth Fund

Funds available for granting to applicants from the Iron Mountain/Kingsford area by the Iron Mountain/Kingsford Youth Advisory Committee (YACs) for youth-related programs.

The mission of the Fund for the Environment is to promote livable communities throughout the Lake Superior watershed and northwoods through public education, land use planning, and collaboration. Livable communities are defined as those that prosper economically while conserving natural ecosystems to maintain the region’s high quality of life for future generations.

Goals and Strategies

Goal I: Individually and collectively, citizens will recognize and assume responsibility to maintain the region’s natural resources.

Strategies include:

• Undertake needs assessment to avoid duplication and enhance collaboration among environmental education programs.
• Develop community-wide environmental education projects that increase understanding of ecological and economic value of natural resources and the role of citizens in conservation. This would include a focus on public officials, college students, business leaders, and continuing adult education programs. Wherever possible, projects should be experiential and encourage networking and information sharing.
• Support demonstration projects that increase public awareness about environmental issues and can be replicated throughout the region.

Goal II: Innovative, livable community models will be developed regionally based on land use planning, natural heritage preservation, waste minimization, and green business development.

Strategies include:

• Undertake assessment to determine community planning needs regionwide.
• Help implement Duluth 2001 and assist communities throughout the region to develop and implement comparable vision plans. Projects could include brownfield and urban area reuse and cluster development and support for green business and pollution prevention oppor
• Support demonstration projects to conserve natural resources to maintain the area’s high quality of life.

Goal III: Unique collaborations will be created to build consensus and achieve a shared vision among diverse stakeholders.

Strategies include:

• Undertake needs assessment to determine opportunities to creatively resolve community conflict.
• Foster new community leadership and partnerships among citizen groups, public officials, business, and academia to build livable communities.
• Proactively support model processes that anticipate and attempt to resolve issues to strengthen community