Clean Water Fund
Clean Water Fund is a Washington, DC-based public charity, established in 1974, that supports grassroots environmental leadership and community efforts focused on clean water, cleaner air, and protection from toxic pollution. Its website describes locally staffed environmental and health protection programs serving communities in more than 15 states, with work at local, state, and national levels.
Clean Water Fund at a glance
- Total assets
- $5,727,518
- -16.7% vs 2023
- Revenue (2024)
- $6,129,795
- -8.3% vs 2023
- Net investment income (2024)
- $86,264
- -47.1% vs 2023
- Expenses (2024)
- $7,773,558
- +14.4% vs 2023
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990, 2024 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990, 2024; updated September 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Clean Water Fund
- How to Apply
-
Clean Water Fund welcomes grants and donations from donor-advised funds, community foundations, and family or private foundations. Its website invites prospective grantmakers to contact its team to plan or arrange a grant and says it can provide tax-exempt documentation, payment information, application forms, or proposal materials. It notes that many foundations and donor-advised funds restrict gifts to 501(c)(4) organizations; in most cases, the recipient must be a 501(c)(3), such as Clean Water Fund.
- Contact
Mailing address: 1444 Eye Street Nw Suite 400, Washington, DC 20005
Phone: (586) 280-5166
Website: https://cleanwaterfund.org
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Clean Water Fund funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Grant Size Distribution
59 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 57 grants of 59 (97%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The website says Clean Water Fund operates locally staffed programs in more than 15 states and works at local, state, and national levels. Its 2024 filing lists New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. The 2023 grants listed include recipients in New Jersey, Washington, DC, Maryland, and Massachusetts.
Grant Distribution by State
Cities
Is Clean Water Fund open to new grantees?
55%
first-time grantees, 2023
In 2023, 6 of 11 grantees (55%) were first-time recipients. With only 11 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 9 points. First grants averaged $15K; repeat grants $41K. How we count
Medians: $11K first-time, $45K repeat.
- 45% of 2023 grantees were also funded in 2022. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2020 to 2023 (+3%). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990 filings (2019–2023). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2019 to 2023, annual grant giving ranged from $165K (2022) to $390K (2019). In 2023 it made 12 grants totaling $291K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Centro De Apoyo Familiar Riverdale, MD | OTHER | $45,000 |
| Ironbound Community Corporation Newark, NJ | ENERGY | $44,792 |
| New Jersey Environmental Alliance Trenton, NJ | ENERGY | $42,417 |
| Clinton Hill Community Action Newark, NJ | ENERGY | $29,583 |
| Friends of Anacostia Park Washington, DC | WATER | $27,000 |
| Ridge to Reefs Sykesville, MD | OTHER | $25,000 |
| Conservation Law Foundation Boston, MA | ENERGY | $25,000 |
| Clinton Hill Community Action Newark, NJ | ENERGY | $15,208 |
| South Baltimore Community Land Tr Baltimore, MD | OTHER | $12,000 |
| Salem Alliance for the Enviroment Salem, MA | ENERGY | $10,000 |
Ready to take the next step with Clean Water Fund?
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $5,727,518 | $6,129,795 | $7,773,558 | — | — | $86,264 |
| 2023 | $6,877,316 | $6,682,806 | $6,794,377 | $291,000 | 12 | $163,016 |
| 2022 | $7,279,998 | $6,641,543 | $5,638,674 | $164,750 | 9 | $-184,440 |
| 2021 | $6,131,440 | $6,555,415 | $5,158,064 | $186,808 | 8 | $69,199 |
| 2020 | $5,205,740 | $5,114,059 | $5,252,911 | $282,089 | 30 | $39,167 |
| 2019 | $4,133,148 | $6,918,532 | $6,076,675 | $389,720 | 25 | $35,026 |
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
Clean Water Fund’s stated mission is to develop strong grassroots environmental leadership and bring diverse constituencies together to improve lives, focusing on health, consumer, environmental, and community problems. Its 2024 filing describes programs addressing environmental justice and health; clean water protection from watershed to tap; sustainable energy and climate change; and waste prevention, including reducing single-use products and promoting producer responsibility, reuse, and composting.
The 2023 grants listed include community organizations and environmental or conservation groups. For example, Ironbound Community Corporation describes its mission as engaging and empowering individuals, families, and groups to create a just, vibrant, and sustainable community. Friends of Anacostia Park describes work using restorative park engagement, supporting park care, and providing green-workforce programs and fellowships. Conservation Law Foundation says it uses law, science, and markets to protect New England’s environment and build healthy, resilient communities.
Grantmaking
The filing data reports 12 grants totaling $291,000 in 2023, an average of $24,250 per grant. Examples include $44,792 to Ironbound Community Corporation, $29,583 and $15,208 to Clinton Hill Community Action, $27,000 to Friends of Anacostia Park, and $25,000 each to Ridge to Reefs and Conservation Law Foundation. The 2024 filing data reports a grant count of zero.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
Officers and directors listed on the 2024 filing are Jeffrey Carter, President/CE; Lewanda Gipson, Assist Secre; Dianne Akabli, Secretary; Michael Hansen, Erica Holloman-Hill, Vernice Miller-Travis, Ayako Nagano, and Guy West, Directors; Kate Reid Koeze, Treasurer; and James Rhodes, Chair.
Clean Water Fund is led by Jeffrey Carter, President on every filing since 2023; 3 of 10 officers listed in 2024 are compensated.
Officers on the 2024 filing
Jeffrey Carter
President
On filings since 2023
38 hrs/week
$103K (2023) → $141K (2024)
James Rhodes
Chair
Director → Chair, 2024
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Vernice Miller-Travis
Director
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Ayako Nagano
Director
Director → Treasurer, 2023
Treasurer → Director, 2024
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Michael Hansen
Director
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Erica Holloman-Hill
Director
New on the 2024 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Guy West
Director
New on the 2024 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Dianne Akabli
Secretary
On filings since 2019
40 hrs/week
$68K (2019) → $81K (2024)
Lewanda Gipson
Assistant Secretary
Assistant Secretary → Assistant Co, 2022
Assistant Co → Assistant Secretary, 2024
On filings since 2021
38 hrs/week
$12K (2021) → $103K (2024)
Kate Reid Koeze
Treasurer
New on the 2024 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (7)
- Former: Maxine Lipeles (2019–2023) — Chair
- Former: Erica Holloman (2021–2023) — Director
- Former: Robert Wendelgass (2019–2022) — President
- Former: David Hahn-Baker (2019–2021) — Director
- Former: Katharine Reid Koeze (2019–2021) — Treasurer
- Former: Kathleen Aterno (2019–2021) — Assistant Secretary
- Former: William Fontenot (2019–2021) — Director
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2024. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Compensation Overview
From 2024 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2024 filing was $141K, to Jeffrey Carter (President/Ce). 3 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.
Frequently asked questions about Clean Water Fund
How large is Clean Water Fund?
Clean Water Fund reported $5.7M in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $6.1M.
What does Clean Water Fund fund?
Clean Water Fund’s stated mission is to develop strong grassroots environmental leadership and bring diverse constituencies together to improve lives, focusing on health, consumer, environmental, and community problems. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Clean Water Fund?
Clean Water Fund welcomes grants and donations from donor-advised funds, community foundations, and family or private foundations. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
Where does Clean Water Fund make grants?
The website says Clean Water Fund operates locally staffed programs in more than 15 states and works at local, state, and national levels. Its 2024 filing lists New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. The 2023 grants listed include recipients in New Jersey, Washington, DC, Maryland, and Massachusetts.
What is Clean Water Fund's EIN?
Clean Water Fund's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 52-1043444. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2024.
Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(6)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS July 2, 2020)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS May 13, 2021)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS November 11, 2022)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS November 13, 2023)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS August 12, 2024)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in Clean Water Fund's focus areas in our free grants database
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Clean Water Fund down — hundreds of funders to go?