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California Wildlands Grassroots Fund
The California Wildlands Grassroots Fund (Cal Wildlands) supports the heroic efforts of grassroots activists to preserve California’s wildlands and natural habitat.
The Fund champion’s conservationists advocating for the permanent protection, including restoration and stewardship, of intact wildlands on both public and private lands, to help preserve California’s wilderness and native biological diversity. This includes policy advocacy, litigation and regulatory watchdogging at the local, state and federal levels; efforts to advance wildlands and open space protection through county general plans and local planning; as well as direct stewardship and maintenance of intact wild areas.
Fund Details
Funding Range:
Up to $10,000
Important Dates:
February 17, 2025 - Spring Applications Due
May 15, 2025 - Summer Applications Due
August 15, 2025 - Fall Applications Due
October 28, 2025 - Winter Applications Due
*If the deadline falls on a holiday or weekend, then applications will be due the next business day at 5 pm.*
Let’s Connect:
Have questions or want to book a consultation? Connect with Aurora Heying, aheying@rosefdn.org
Eligibility and Priorities
- Annual actual expenses and income of $200,000 or less.
- Applicants may be a nonprofit, or an individual/organization fiscally sponsored by a nonprofit.
- Project impact must be within the state of California.
- Projects that protect and preserve wildlands and open space, or support the good stewardship, restoration and management of wild areas.
- Cal Wildlands defines “wildlands” as natural habitats, privately or publicly owned, that are (or have the potential to be) permanently preserved through legislation or deed restrictions, and are on a scale necessary to support significant native plant and animal life.
- Projects in urban or suburban settings, must feature connectivity to larger protected areas and/or be located along critical wildlife corridors.
- Activities such as grassroots organizing and outreach; communications campaigns; regulatory advocacy; lawsuits; wildlands restoration and stewardship (including trail maintenance); scientific research; organizational capacity building and equipment purchases.
- Environmental education programs must include a strong element of environmental advocacy to be considered.
- Community-based advocacy and organizing efforts steered by affected community members.
- Efforts predominantly driven and staffed by volunteers.
- Projects in areas that have not received significant foundation support, including rural communities.
- Projects that build diverse constituencies for wildlands protection and engage non-traditional stakeholders, especially communities of color.
- Project-specific requests, though general support requests will be accepted from strong organizations whose work is well aligned with the fund’s objectives.
- Projects that will establish or combat a critical precedent that will influence other wildlands protection efforts.
- Maximum grant award is $10,000, and typical grants range between $4,000-$8,000.
- If your organization’s actual annual income and expenses are $30,000 or less, we strongly encourage you to request a grant of $5,000 or less.
- Organizations seeking the maximum grant size of $10,000 must be able to articulate a clear project and budget that justifies the full grant.
- Grants are for a one year period.
- Organizations whose proposals are rejected may re-apply at the next funding cycle.
- Organizations that are funded may re-apply after one year if their report form has been submitted and accepted.
- Lobbying activities as defined by IRS 501(c)(3).
- Beach clean-ups.
- Film or video production or completion, although we will fund outreach or communications strategies that use films or videos as advocacy and organizing tools.
Steps To Apply
Please read these instructions carefully and follow them step by step.
Review Eligibility Criteria and Application Materials
Please read the eligibility criteria and priorities above before starting an application.
Review the required application materials.
Frequently Asked Questions
- View the application questions here.
- Be ready to include the following attachments when you fill out the application online:
- Organizational budget for the current year.
- Organizational Year-to-Date Income and Expenses
- Organizational income statement from the most recently completed fiscal year. You may use our combined Budget & Financial Template, or attach your own.
- Project budget and actual income and expenses if it is different from the organizational financial statements.
- Optional Additions:
- Letters of support (2 letters, maximum of 2 pages).
- Press clippings and/or pictures.
- Newsletters or other publications.
- If you need help putting together a budget or income statement please take a look at our How-To sheet, here.
- You may use our combined Budget and Income Statement Template, or attach your own.
- Helpful hints:
- If you are close to the end of your fiscal year, please give us the budget for the upcoming year if you have it.
- Please make sure to indicate what time period your financial statements cover.
- All budgets and financial statements should be for the applicant organization, not your fiscal sponsor.
We will acknowledge the receipt of your application once it is submitted. If you do not receive this confirmation, please contact us. Please let your references know we will be contacting them.
Grant decisions are usually made 3 months after the submission deadline.
If your group is awarded a grant, you must provide a final grant report within one year of receiving the money and before your group can receive additional funding. Please log on to our online application system and submit your report there.
Meet Past Grantees
From grassroots community organizers to groups with nation-wide reach, meet the changemakers supported by Rose grants.
Already a Grantee?
Check out these resources for current Cal Wildlands grant partners.
Grow Your Roots Mini-Grant
Cal Wildlands grantees of the past 4 years are eligible to receive up to $500 to build their organizational capacity. Grow Your Roots Mini-grants can be put towards the cost of trainings, consultants, software, or equipment to help groups strengthen their organizational and administrative skills and systems.
Take the next step
Do you still have questions about this application process or need additional support from Rose Foundation staff? Here are some helpful resources.
Helpful Resources
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