Great Lakes Protection Fund Grant

The Great Lakes Protection Fund Grant aims to support projects that deliver significant ecological improvements to the Great Lakes region. The Fund seeks transformative initiatives that involve collaboration among diverse stakeholders and rely on scientific rigor. Eligible applicants include non-profits, universities, and businesses, and the projects must demonstrate a positive environmental impact on the Great Lakes ecosystem. Importantly, the Fund does not support advocacy or compliance-related activities.

NOTE: Give us a call to discuss your vision before applying—after our conversation, we’ll invite you to send a project concept.
Funding Guidelines
The Great Lakes Protection Fund invests for impact. We fund projects that accelerate transformational change and deliver massive improvements to the health of our shared ecosystem.
Meaningful Ecological Outcomes
Projects must deliver ecosystem improvements in the Great Lakes that are real and regionally significant.
Real improvements are measurable positive changes to significant physical, chemical, or biological impairments in the Great Lakes ecosystem.
Regionally significant improvements show increasing system-wide outcomes and potential for impact at the scale of the ecosystem.
A Strategy for Systemwide Change
We support projects with a compelling plan for transformational, basin-wide impact. Successful projects use market forces, new social norms, or policy shifts to change behavior.
A Collaborative Team
Projects teams must include all the parties involved in your strategy: designers, implementers, experts, advisors, and the people who will ultimately use the results to make a difference. It should also include people who express concern about (or even opposition to) new ideas.
Solution Focus and Action Orientation
The projects we support launch new approaches to solving Great Lakes problems. Your work should include concrete actions attempted in the real world that support your transformational strategy. The most impactful teams learn by doing and adapt based on what they have learned.
Scientific Rigor
We fund projects that use the results of existing research and apply the skills of the scientific community — in short, projects that are based on sound science. We only support scientific or policy research if it’s part of a larger action strategy.
The Fund can support team members almost anywhere in the world. This includes for-profit businesses, non-profit organizations, universities, governmental agencies, and individuals. Your team doesn’t need to be located within the Great Lakes region, but your project must have a positive impact on the region’s ecosystem.

Eligibility

The Great Lakes Protection Fund can support a wide variety of applicants based in the United States or internationally.non-profit organizationsuniversitiesgovernmental agenciesGovernment agencies, in particular, must show that our support is not being used to replace or duplicate public funds. individualsfor-profit businessesThe applicant does not need to be located within the Great Lakes region to be eligible. However, the proposed project concept must identify positive environmental impact to the Great Lakes basin ecosystem.Government agencies must show that Fund support is not being used to replace or duplicate public funds.The Fund is able to employ a variety of funding instruments including cash grants, convertible grants, debt, equity or some combination.

Ineligibility

What We Don’t DoAdvocacylobbyinglitigationcompliance obligationsland acquisitionpublic works projects general operating expenses