Funding Opportunities
Funding Databases
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The Delaware Community Foundation (DCF) is a nonprofit organization focused on partnering with donors to build opportunity and advance equity in Delaware.
Each year, the DCF awards millions of dollars in grants to support the work of nonprofits addressing Delaware’s greatest needs and opportunities, with an eye to building opportunity and advancing equity. Most DCF grants are from donor advised funds. Nonprofits are invited to apply for the grant opportunities on their website, including the DCF’s Community Impact Grants, which are funded by generous donors who believe in our work to build opportunity and advance equity in Delaware.
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Philanthropy Delaware exists to provide information, education, networking and collaboration opportunities to individuals, corporations, and foundations who make significant charitable contributions in Delaware, and to strengthen philanthropy through public information and advocacy. It also works to increase the number of institutional donors supporting nonprofits in the state.
From their website you can search for grants and sign up for thier “Funding Alerts” e-newsletter
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) works to improve domestic and international opportunities for U.S. growers and producers. AMS works with a variety of organizations to support to rural America and the Nation’s agricultural sector.
AMS grant programs include funding opportunities that support a variety of agricultural activities.
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KidsGardening offers a variety of grants to new and existing youth garden programs across the nation. Their website lists dozen of grant/funding opportunites targeted at youth and school gardens.
Each funding opportunity has its own timeline, defining features, eligibility requirements, and reporting expectations. If something catches your eye, you can find more details on each grant’s homepage.
Urban Ag Grants
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The Urban Farmer & Gardener Assistance Mini-Grant Program from the New Castle Conservation District (NCCD) is designed to support and enhance new and existing urban farm and community garden projects in New Castle County, Delaware. “Urban Agriculture” is defined by the USDA National Agricultural Library as “taking the form of backyard, rooftop, and balcony gardening, community gardening in vacant lots and parks, roadside urban fringe agriculture, and livestock grazing in open space.” NCCD will provide grants of up to $3,000 to support projects such as community gardens, urban farms, greenhouses, or hydroponic operations growing fruits and vegetables that strengthen our local food system in New Castle County.
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The Brighter Future Fund was launched in 2020 to assist farmers in successfully launching, growing and sustaining farms in the face of forces impacting the food and agricultural system, including the COVID-19 pandemic, changing markets, severe weather, and climate change. The Fund was initially seeded with a generous contribution from Tillamook, one of America’s favorite farmer-owned co-ops.
A major commitment of this program is to uplift, support, and amplify the work of a wide range of farmers. In recognition of the need for greater equity and inclusion for all groups who have been, and still are, marginalized, this year the Brighter Future Fund will focus on providing resources to farmers who identify as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), women, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual (LGBTQIA+).
Grants will be awarded in amounts up to $5,000 per project. A project may involve one or more individual farmers or farm families. Only one grant can be awarded per farmer/farm family.
Funding for this program is limited. As funding remains, awards will be made an ongoing basis to eligible applicants that fulfill all application requirements and meet selection criteria.
Land tenure (ownership, a lease, license, or other written agreement) for a reasonable time period will be required for projects that involve on-the-ground improvements to farmland. If tenure is less than 5years, please be prepared to demonstrate in the application that the tenure is sufficient in relation to the improvements being made or services being provided.
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The United States Botanic Garden and the American Public Gardens Association are accepting applications for 2022 Urban Agriculture Resilience Program awards to support public gardens and their partners in facilitating collaborative urban agriculture, community gardening, and other food-growing programs. The Urban Agriculture Resilience Program seeks to promote public garden participation in community collaborations that combine food growing and education while addressing food security challenges, including food security challenges exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, awarded programs will share lessons learned through their programmatic collaborations. Is your garden or organization already involved or interested in:
An urban agriculture collaboration between a public garden and a partner organization(s)? Partners may include nonprofit organizations, local government entities (e.g., parks and recreation departments, housing authorities), small businesses, other public gardens, educational institutions, or other qualified organizations.
Combining urban food growing and educational programming
Facilitating public engagement in urban food growing
Addressing community food security challenges exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic
Building capacity in urban agriculture within and beyond the public gardens community?
If so, please consider applying for an Urban Agriculture Resilience Program award. Awards are available to:
Urban agriculture partnership projects not previously awarded by the Urban Agriculture Resilience Program,
Previously-awarded partnership projects that are incorporating significant new components.
Awardees will have the opportunity to participate in a peer support network. Award amounts range between $5,000 and $20,000
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The Gardens for Good grant program supports community gardens across North America that are growing organic food and making a difference in their communities. So far, Nature’s Path has supported 52 community gardens with more than $515,000 in grant funding.
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The White-Reinhardt Fund for Education is a special funding opportunity from the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture® in cooperation with the American Farm Bureau® Women’s Leadership Committee. It was established to honor two former chairs of that committee (Berta White and Linda Reinhardt, leaders in the national effort to improve agricultural literacy) by enlarging agricultural literacy efforts across the United States. The mini-grant is one of two components of the fund.
Purpose
Grants are offered to state and county Farm Bureaus in amounts up to $1,000 for ag literacy programs for grades K-12. Eligibility: Grants are on a competitive basis with priority given to those programs demonstrating a need for financial support.
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Each year we award grants ranging from $1,000-$5,000 for projects that align with one or more of the core ideals detailed in our Sustainable Farming Manifesto. We are looking for projects that will continue to give back to the farm and its community, rather than one-and-done spending. We do not fund land purchases, consultants, labor, administrative, or general marketing costs.
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"The First State Food System Program, administered by the Delaware Council on Farm & Food Policy (a subset of the Delaware Department of Agriculture) provides grant funding to entities that grow, process, store, transport, distribute, or sell food in the State of Delaware. The DCF is facilitating the grant application process, but this is not a grant program of the DCF. View the listing here.
All questions should be directed to the Delaware Council on Farm and Food Policy at DDA_FarmandFoodPolicy@delaware.gov.
Learn More -
Horizon Farm Credit has opened their “JumpStart” grant program which provides funding to assist new farmers in establishing and growing their operations. The JumpStart grant program awards $10,000 to top applicants in the start-up phase of business. Applications will be accepted June 1 through July 31, 2023.
Youth/School Garden Grants
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Our Neighborhood Grants support organizations working at the community level, providing nutrition education and healthy food access to kids. With grants ranging in size from $5,000 to $10,000, we support organizations that help children develop healthy eating habits that last a lifetime. From school and community gardens to youth cooking classes, our partners offer a variety of programs that are interactive, educational, and fun! Since 2016, the Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation has awarded more than $3.5 million in Neighborhood Grants to 320 nonprofit organizations.
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At Whole Kids Foundation, we know that the more kids know and feel connected to their food, the more curious they become about how things grow or taste, and the more willing they are to try new foods. This is why we believe in edible garden learning spaces! Our Garden Grant program provides a $3,000 monetary grant to support a new or existing edible educational garden located at either a:
K–12 School
Non-profit organization (501(c)(3) in the US/Registered Charity in Canada) that serves children in the K-12 grade range
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he American Heart Association is calling all schools and educational facilities interested in connecting children to gardens, addressing food access concerns in their neighborhoods, supporting health, nutrition, and environmental stewardship to be a part of our mission by joining our new Teaching Gardens Network.
10 years ago, the American Heart Association teamed up with noted child-nutrition activist and philanthropist, Kelly Meyer, to create the American Heart Association Teaching Gardens® program. Over the last decade, the American Heart Association Teaching Gardens program has launched over 500 Teaching Gardens nationwide.
Community Oriented Grants
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The WSFS CARES Foundation brings WSFS’ mission of We Stand for Service® to life across the communities we serve. The mission of the WSFS CARES Foundation is to support qualified nonprofit service organizations within our regional footprint that are invested in improving communities, fostering a spirit of inclusion and diversity, and whose focus aligns with the WSFS CARES Foundation’s transformational vision.
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The Wawa Foundation will play a leading role in hunger relief in the communities Wawa serves. To achieve this, we will support programs that enable us to Lead Hunger Relief Efforts by:
Providing food donations to local pantries daily through Wawa Share
Improving access to food through financial grants
Enabling Feeding America Food Banks to reach more communities through annual in-store campaigns
Standing up in the fight against hunger drives us each and every day. Wawa’s origins as a dairy and establishment as a food retailer compel us to continue this fight…and win.
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We are proud to announce our Community Education Program to support communities within our 100 county footprint and Washington D.C. The program will benefit agriculture education and will provide funding for projects and to organizations that make a positive impact in the area. Funding options include up to $2,000 and up to $10,000.
Program Requirements and Guidelines:
Qualifying programs must benefit communities within Horizon Farm Credit’s territory (including Washington D.C.).
Requests must be consistent with the values and mission of The Farm Credit Foundation for Agricultural Advancement. The Foundation will not provide critiques of proposals submitted.
Requests that meet the selection criteria are considered by the Foundation Board. Only 501(c)(3) organizations or those otherwise exempt from federal income tax will be considered.
The Foundation may choose to fully or partially fund requests. Previous funding does not guarantee continuing support to any organization. Funding is discretionary and restricted to a specific purpose.
Learn more: https://fcfoundationforag.org/community-education
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The purpose of the mini-grant program is to support Delaware community partner organizations with projects that improve community health and reduce chronic conditions through policy, systems, and environmental (PSE) approaches, using a health-equity lens.
Watch the information webinar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGnDTedpb0I&t=1s -
The AARP Community Challenge provides small grants to fund quick-action projects that can help communities become more livable for people of all ages. In 2023, the AARP Community Challenge is accepting applications across three different grant opportunities, two of which are new this year.
Seed Donation Programs
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The financial support of Herman Warsh and his wife Maryanne Mott helped to establish our headquarters in Decorah, Iowa: Heritage Farm. To honor their support, we donate seeds to organizations and gardens in need through our Herman's Garden Seed Donation Program. Groups that qualify for seed donations include:
Community and educational groups who will freely share the harvest
Community and educational groups who will save seed for others in need
Non-profits, schools, community gardens, seed libraries and educational programs
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High Mowing proudly engages in charitable donations through our Seed Donation Program, amounting to over 100,000 seed packets donated annually. These seeds go to communities all over the country and support organizations such as community gardens, school gardens, church gardens, food bank gardens, summer camps, seed libraries and disaster relief groups.