Deadline: 1-Dec-21
The Island Foundation is offering grants to support projects in coastal areas of Maine, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island.
The Foundation seeks organizations that are innovative, well-regarded, sustainable, nondiscriminatory in any way, and able to demonstrate the impact of their work.
The Foundation also gives preference to organizations based in and working within a community, particularly in regards to the city of New Bedford.
Priorities
The Island Foundation’s grant priorities fall within four major categories:
- Environment: In Southeastern Massachusetts, Maine, and Rhode Island, the Island Foundation promotes the conservation of marine and coastal resources. For many years, the Foundation has given priority to North Atlantic right whale research, protection of coastal waterbird habitat, and preservation of coastal lands. More recently, the Board has been interested in new initiatives that:
- link climate change, renewable energy, and regional planning and support those most impacted by climate change;
- support working landscapes (sustainable agriculture and community-based fisheries) and the people who rely on them for their livelihoods;
- help local conservation organizations strengthen their own capacity;
- connect community health, quality of life, and environmental conservation; and
- promote environmental justice and seek to include the voices of those most affected by environmental harms.
- New Bedford: The Foundation works with organizations that promote progressive social change and combat discrimination in all its forms in New Bedford. In this historic city, the Foundation supports youth programs, community development, arts and culture, and basic needs. The Foundation funds groups that have community-wide recognition and support and demonstrate a positive vision for the present and future of New Bedford. Within the New Bedford program area, the Board currently seeks proposals addressing:
- youth educational attainment, life skills, and career preparation, with an emphasis on workforce development for at-risk youth ages 16-24;
- strategies to address food insecurity;
- assistance for immigrants;
- activities that increase civic engagement, access, and inclusion;
- appreciation for the history and cultures represented in this community; and
- professional development/capacity building for the nonprofit sector.
- Alternative Education: The Island Foundation supports a limited number of experiential education programs, after-school programs, and alternative education schools. Drawing on its tradition of seeking alternative and unconventional approaches, the Island Foundation looks for informal and school-based programs that connect young people to their natural world, foster an appreciation for community service, and respect individuals with diverse backgrounds and learning styles. Maritime trades, hands-on marine education, and programs that increase access and opportunity for at-risk youth are of particular interest.
- Womxn and Girls: The Island Foundation works with organizations addressing root causes of inequality for womxn and girls in the United States. The Foundation works to strengthen and support the work of womxn- and girls-led and focused organizations across sectors and funding interests, particularly for womxn and girls of color. The Foundation supports intergenerational collaborations and organizations at the forefront of innovation and systems change for gender equity and inclusion. On the path to equality, the Foundation currently seeks proposals for initiatives that:
- Ensure access to healthcare, including but not limited to prenatal and menstrual care,
- Establish economic security, stability, and mobility within the context of class, race/ethnicity, and sexual orientation,
- Promote mechanisms that give and amplify womxn and girls’ voices in politics and government institutions,
- Provide safe spaces, legal assistance, and trauma healing services,
- Uplift womxn and girls’ access to participate in and lead the social and economic life of their community.
Eligibility Criteria
- The Island Foundation supports 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations in Maine, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island.
- The Board funds some groups outside of these areas when their programs relate to work the Foundation is supporting within its programmatic and geographic priority areas.
- On a case-by-case basis, the Foundation provides funding to groups without nonprofit status that use a fiscal sponsor.
- The Island Foundation accepts both general operating and project-focused grant requests and occasionally makes multi- year grant commitments to organizations it has supported for many years.
Who does the Island Foundation not fund?
- The Foundation does not support proposals outside its priority areas (issue and/or geographic) or requests from individuals, for-profit businesses, or religious groups.
For more information, visit http://islandfdn.org/index.php/grant_application