Grants for Wildlife Conservation
Learn about wildlife grants by exploring our curated list of top wildlife funders below. Grantseekers can also research funding opportunities using the search tool for Grant Finder. Become a member.
Key Funders
- Animal Network
- Arcus Foundation
- Arizona Community Foundation
- Communities Foundation of Texas
- Community Foundation of Sarasota County
- Liebchens Gift Foundation
- Lilly Endowment
- Richard King Mellon Foundation
- Minneapolis Foundation
- National Wild Turkey Federation
- Oregon Community Foundation
- Placer Community Foundation
- Seventh Generation Advisors
Funding trends for wildlife conservation grants
This page addresses grantmaking for wildlife conservation. For information on grants for animal rescue and welfare, see IP”s Grant Finder page on grants for animal rescue and welfare.
More than a million species are threatened with extinction. There are more than 46,000 species on the Red List of threatened species created by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Human activities cause about 99% of threats to species (Britannica), including habitat destruction, poaching, the introduction of non-native species, trafficking, hunting, overfishing and the many drivers of climate change.
Reflecting on species’ “critical role” in “ensuring clean water, food security, cultural connections, economic stability, and social justice,” the IUCN, in 2024, called on all sectors to prioritize conservation because “protecting animals, fungi, and plants is fundamental to sustaining life on earth.” Indeed, the UN calls biodiversity “our strongest natural defense against climate change.”
As the number of plants and animals on earth rapidly declines, the biodiversity crisis clarifies the inextricability of climate and wildlife conservation concerns. “Climate change is a primary driver of biodiversity loss. And climate change depends on biodiversity as part of the solution,” says Elizabeth Mrema of the U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity.
Even in the face of these mounting interrelated crises, animals and the environment together received only about 3.8% of U.S. charitable giving in 2023, according to Giving USA. Grants dedicated to wildlife conservation represent an even smaller share of this already small slice of philanthropy. Analyzing admittedly “imperfect” data – as data on this philanthropic sector is limited – Animal Grantmakers estimates that less than 1% of U.S. philanthropy is dedicated to wildlife conservation.
Small as it may be, this is a global giving area that several large private foundations and major donors participate in, alongside smaller foundations, corporate philanthropies and individual donors at all levels. Some community foundations also make grants to protect local habitats and wildlife
Some of the grantmaking for wildlife conservation is part of environmental conservation, marine and freshwater conservation or climate grantmaking programs, while some grantmaking is very specific to particular species, such as the Arcus Foundation’s program dedicated to great apes and gibbons. The Biodiversity Funders Group brings together funders at the intersections of environmental and wildlife grantmaking.
Where are wildlife conservation grants going?
Grants for wildlife conservation support nonprofits involved in various kinds of work to protect wild animals, plants and fungi and their habitats. Large national and international nonprofits such as Ducks Unlimited, Wildlife Conservation Society and the Audubon Society receive substantial grant support.
Conservation grants fund activities such as the creation of protected areas like wildlife refuges, sanctuaries and migration corridors; rehabilitation; and policy advocacy. Grant-funded programs address threats to wildlife including poaching and trafficking, invasive species, diseases, hunting, pesticides and climate change. Grants are also made for research and media such as the nonprofit conservation news source Mongabay.
There is debate in the field about whether zoos and aquariums can be considered “wildlife” organizations, but some wildlife funders do make grants to select zoos that are engaged in conservation activities.
Gaps in wildlife conservation funding
The current U.S. administration’s energy policies will have disastrous effects on habitats and wild species. Wildlife conservation nonprofits and the philanthropies that support them face steep challenges in the effort to protect and preserve wildlife in this time. With giving for wildlife conservation representing an estimated less than 1% of all U.S. institutional philanthropy, more funding is needed across the board to resource critical efforts to preserve biodiversity and all life on earth.
Though the project is no longer active, the Animal Funding Atlas, created by several funders, is still online, providing some additional data about this funding space.
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Additional Resources
Environmental Grantmakers Association, which has the widest focus among these groups, also counts members that support animals and wildlife through their grantmaking.
