Grants for Marine & Fresh Water
Learn about grants for marine and freshwater by exploring our curated list of top funders below. Members can also research funding opportunities for marine and freshwater by using the search tool for GrantFinder. Become a member.
Key Funders
Funding trends for marine and ocean conservation
Funding for marine and freshwater causes is limited. According to Candid data, roughly $400 million goes to freshwater annually, a figure dwarfed by the scope of giving to other causes and the scale required to address linked issues.
The U.N.’s Global Panel on Water puts the scale of global economic losses related to water insecurity at $470 billion per year with global investment needs at approximately $6.7 trillion by 2030. Our endangered oceans, rivers, lakes and drinking water cover more than 70% of the earth’s surface. There is an urgent need to engage more funders and attract more dollars as climate pressures mount and clean water threats intensify.
One of the biggest challenges to orchestrated funding for water is the field’s size and complexity, which, by necessity, has resulted in a siloed approach for now. On the marine side, oceans are a core issue for some of the largest foundations in the world, including the David & Lucile Packard Foundation, Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation, and the Walton Family Foundation.
Philanthropists are focused on addressing sources of ocean degradation and protecting ecosystems and economic viability while mitigating climate impacts.
Other ocean challenges attracting funder attention include degradation from agricultural runoff, plastic pollution, habitat destruction, and illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing, as well as addressing inequities in the beneficiaries of the ocean economy.
On the freshwater side, the challenges are every bit as urgent. A set of key funders (Walton Family Foundation, Pisces Foundation) and some notable collaborative efforts (Water Funder Initiative, Water Foundation) have emerged to move water systems from a niche issue into a major philanthropic effort. But the highly localized impact of climate change, the growing need to resolve contaminated drinking water issues — like that seen in Flint, Michigan — and the unequal access to clean water heightened by the pandemic are not being addressed well.
On the freshwater side, the challenges are every bit as urgent. A set of key funders (Walton Family Foundation, Pisces Foundation) and some notable collaborative efforts (Water Funder Initiative, Water Foundation) have emerged to move water systems from a niche issue into a major philanthropic effort. But the highly localized impact of climate change, the growing need to resolve contaminated drinking water issues — like that seen in Flint, Michigan — and the unequal access to clean water heightened by the pandemic are not being addressed well.
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Additional Resources
The Urban Water Funders, part of the Water Funders Network, also seeks to motivate more philanthropic participation, centering equity, a “one water” approach, and sustainable infrastructure.
The Water Equity Network is a new organization that works to act as “a force for equity and opportunity” for vulnerable communities.
Resources Legacy Fund (RLF) is a management group that helps large donors to set goals, develop strategies, and execute complex initiatives around environmental concerns, including water.
