Community Grants

By helping others fulfill their conservation missions, we support the health of the Salish Sea region.

Partner with Us

The Foundation offers a competitive grant program to qualifying conservation-focused non-profit organizations whose programs and activities preserve and protect environments and living organisms of the Salish Sea region. By helping others fulfill their conservation missions, we support the health of the Salish Sea region.

The Salish Sea region is the intricate network of coastal mountains, land, and waterways that include the southwestern portion of the Canadian province of British Columbia and the northwestern portion of the U.S. state of Washington. Its major bodies of water are the Strait of Georgia, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and Puget Sound.

Our funding criteria for these conservation education grants are based on our by-laws, articles of incorporation, status as an IRS-designated 501(c)(3) organization, and the wishes of Paul Wiseman, founding member of The Foundation.

We Offer Two Levels of Grants

  • Level 1: Community Conservation Education Grants are limited to no more than $5000 and are meant to support modest, short-term projects related to conservation education and consistent with our vision and mission. The Level 1 grants will be offered once during the calendar year, with a grant application deadline on March 6th.
  • Level 2: The Foundation is pleased to announce the expansion of the Paul Wiseman Conservation Education Grant. We will offer two grants during this round with a $15,000 limit for each.
  • We welcome substantial conservation education projects with carefully articulated goals and outcomes.
  • We also welcome restoration projects with a strong educational component.
  • Both grant types should have high impact or visibility and could span multiple years.
  • The Level 2 grants will be offered once during the calendar year: the deadline for this grant application is October 2nd.

We Support

  • selected projects of 501(c)(3) or of other non-profit organizations and of certain agencies such as libraries and schools;
  • selected projects that involve a variety of community organizations

Projects may include:

  • direct educational programs and materials related to environmental conservation
  • lectures, conferences, seminars
  • written or audiovisual awareness materials
  • curriculum or other instructional materials

We Are Unable to Support

  • for-profit organizations
  • regular operating expenses (e.g. overhead, ongoing or administrative salaries, or other indirect costs)
  • projects that include legislative lobbying or support candidates for office
  • commercial ventures or feasibility studies that might lead to commercial products or programs
  • fund drives
  • projects that could harm the environment
  • memberships in organizations
  • projects that have no start/end dates
  • projects that repeat established and/or verified studies
map of the Salish Sea region