Grants for Environmental and Animal Welfare Nonprofits
Where to find Grants for Animal Shelters & More
Protecting a watershed or rescuing an injured animal takes more than dedication. It also takes funding.
For environmental and animal welfare nonprofits, there’s a lot that goes into keeping programs running. Staff salaries, veterinary care, vehicles, equipment, supplies, and facilities all need to be paid for.
Environmental and animal welfare grants can help nonprofits cover these expenses and provide the resources they need to continue and expand their work.
Funding can come from private and family foundations, community foundations, corporations, and government agencies. However, finding the right foundation involves more than looking for organizations that broadly support environmental or animal welfare causes.
A foundation might mention environmental protection in its mission statement without funding the specific type of work your nonprofit does.
That’s why reviewing a foundation’s historical grant information can often be more useful than relying on its stated interests alone.
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What Can Environmental and Animal Welfare Grants Cover?
Funding needs can vary considerably depending on the type of organization and the programs it delivers.
For example, a conservation nonprofit might need funding to purchase land or restore a wetland. A wildlife rehabilitation centre may be looking for diagnostic equipment or veterinary supplies. An animal shelter could need new kennels, while an environmental education organization might need to hire instructors or arrange transportation.
All of these are legitimate funding needs, but they won’t necessarily appeal to the same foundations.
| Funding Need | Examples |
|---|---|
| Land & Conservation | Land acquisition, conservation easements, habitat protection, stewardship |
| Habitat Restoration | Wetlands, forests, watersheds, invasive species removal |
| Wildlife Protection | Species protection, wildlife corridors, anti-trafficking, research |
| Wildlife Rescue | Veterinary care, rehabilitation, transportation, rescue equipment, enclosures |
| Animal Shelters | Kennels, veterinary treatment, adoption programs, foster programs, food |
| Climate Change Programs | Resilience, adaptation, emissions reduction, energy efficiency |
| Environmental Education | Field trips, outdoor classrooms, STEM programs, nature camps |
| Equipment | Vehicles, medical equipment, monitoring equipment, field equipment |
| Facilities | Shelter renovations, wildlife hospitals, environmental learning spaces |
| Staffing | Veterinarians, rehabilitation staff, educators, field staff where permitted |
| Operating Support | Rent, salaries, utilities, and other eligible operating expenses |
Instead of simply asking whether a foundation supports the environment, it’s more useful to find out whether it has funded projects similar to yours.
Understanding this difference can save your organization considerable time during foundation research.
Conservation Grants Can Support Land Protection and Habitat Restoration
Conservation organizations often have funding needs that are quite different from those of nonprofits delivering traditional one-year programs.
Your organization might be trying to purchase 200 acres of land before it’s developed, restore a wetland over several years, protect a wildlife migration corridor, or remove invasive species from a watershed.
You may also need ongoing funding to maintain land that has already been protected.
Conservation grants for nonprofits may support:
- Land acquisition
- Conservation easements
- Habitat restoration
- Watershed restoration
- Biodiversity
- Species-at-risk programs
- Ecological monitoring
- Stewardship
- Wildlife corridors
- Invasive species management
- Research
- Public access
- Conservation education
For these types of projects, reviewing the purposes and amounts of previous foundation grants can be especially helpful.
Knowing that a foundation has supported land trusts in the past is a good starting point. But finding out that those grants were specifically awarded for land acquisition, conservation easements, or habitat restoration tells you much more.
And if the same conservation organization has received grants from a foundation year after year, that may be another reason to investigate it.
By reviewing foundation giving histories, nonprofits can identify patterns that help them determine whether a particular funder is worth approaching.
Climate Grants Are More Effective When Your Project Is Clearly Defined
Climate action covers a wide range of activities.
While it’s a useful way to describe a general area of work, it doesn’t tell a prospective funder very much about what your organization actually needs money for.
A nonprofit searching for climate grants might be looking to fund:
- Flood resilience
- Extreme-heat programs
- Renewable energy
- Energy efficiency
- Climate education
- Community preparedness
- Environmental justice
- Sustainable agriculture
- Clean transportation
- Emissions reduction
- Coastal resilience
- Nature-based climate solutions
Consider the difference between these two requests.
We are seeking support for our climate initiative.
And:
We are seeking $60,000 to expand a heat-resilience program into three neighborhoods with high numbers of older adults living without adequate cooling.
The second request gives a foundation a clearer understanding of the project, the amount needed, and the people who will benefit.
It also makes your grant research more focused.
Instead of searching for every foundation interested in climate change, you can narrow your search to those that have previously supported climate resilience, community health, older adults, environmental justice, or extreme-heat programs.
This gives your organization a better starting point when identifying foundations that may be interested in its work.
For Canadian nonprofits, Environment and Climate Change Canada provides information about environmental funding programs covering climate, water, species, and ecosystem protection.
Wildlife Rescue and Wildlife Conservation Have Different Funding Needs
Wildlife rescue and wildlife conservation organizations may share similar goals, but their day-to-day expenses can be very different.
Both may focus on protecting wildlife, yet one organization might spend most of its budget on habitat conservation and research, while another needs funding for veterinary treatment and animal rehabilitation.
A wildlife rescue or rehabilitation organization may need grants for:
- Veterinary treatment
- Diagnostic equipment
- Medication
- Specialized food
- Rescue vehicles
- Transportation
- Rehabilitation enclosures
- Wildlife hospitals
- Emergency response
- Staff training
- Release programs
This distinction is important when researching wildlife rescue grants.
For example, a foundation with a long history of funding endangered-species research may be interested in wildlife conservation, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it will pay for veterinary treatment or rehabilitation equipment.
Similarly, a foundation that supports habitat acquisition may not be interested in covering the operating expenses of a wildlife hospital.
That’s why looking closely at previous grant purposes is so useful.
Rather than relying on a general connection to wildlife, nonprofits can investigate whether a foundation has funded the specific type of work they need support for.
For U.S. organizations, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service also provides information on grants and financial assistance related to wildlife and habitat conservation.
Animal Shelters Need Funding for More Than Food and Veterinary Care
When people think about the expenses of operating an animal shelter, food and veterinary treatment are usually among the first things that come to mind.
And while those are major expenses, they’re far from the only ones.
Animal shelters and rescue organizations may also need funding for:
- Spay/neuter services
- Foster programs
- Adoption programs
- Community veterinary clinics
- Behaviour support
- Transportation
- Cruelty response
- Microchipping
- Emergency boarding
- Disaster response
- Shelter renovations
- HVAC systems
- Kennels
- Technology
- Pet-retention programs
Understanding the different aspects of your organization’s work can also help you discover funding opportunities you might otherwise overlook.
For example, consider an animal shelter that temporarily houses pets for people escaping domestic violence.
This is clearly an animal welfare program, but it also connects to family safety and human services.
Or consider a rescue organization that responds to hurricanes and wildfires. Its work involves animal welfare, but it may also be relevant to foundations that support disaster response.
This doesn’t mean your nonprofit should change its mission to fit a grant opportunity.
It simply means describing your programs accurately and considering the different areas they genuinely relate to.
Doing so may help you identify foundations that support aspects of your work beyond traditional animal welfare funding.
The ASPCA is one example of an organization that provides grants within the animal welfare sector.
Environmental Education Can Also Qualify for Education and Youth Funding
Consider a nonprofit that takes Grade 7 students to a local watershed to learn how to test water quality.
It’s an environmental education program, but it’s also a hands-on learning experience involving science and youth development.
That means the organization may have several different funding areas to explore.
Environmental education grants may help fund:
- Outdoor classrooms
- School field trips
- Nature camps
- Environmental curriculum
- Teacher training
- Citizen science
- Youth conservation programs
- Equipment
- Transportation
- Community workshops
- Environmental literacy
If your organization only searches for environmental education grants, it may be worth expanding your research.
Foundations interested in education, STEM, children and youth, conservation, and community engagement may also support programs like yours.
For example, an organization offering outdoor science programs to children may be relevant to foundations that support youth education, even if environmental protection isn’t one of their main funding priorities.
The important thing is to understand how your programs fit within different funding areas without changing how you describe the work itself.
In the United States, nonprofits can also monitor the EPA Environmental Education Grants Program for public funding opportunities.
What Does Environmental and Animal Welfare Foundation Giving Actually Look Like?
Foundation grants in the environmental and animal welfare sector can range from a few hundred dollars to awards worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
However, the amount of funding a foundation gives is only one part of what nonprofits should consider.
The purpose of its previous grants can be just as important when deciding whether it’s a suitable funding prospect.
The following examples from the Grant Advance platform include foundations that have supported animal shelters, wildlife organizations, conservation projects, veterinary care, and other environmental activities.
One example is particularly interesting.
A foundation has awarded grants to organizations such as Wildlife Rescue and Environmental Defense Fund. However, its visible grant records identify the purpose of those awards as art education.
This is a useful reminder that recipient names alone don’t always tell you whether a foundation is a good match.
Just because a foundation has funded an organization in your sector doesn’t necessarily mean it supports the type of work your nonprofit needs funding for.
Examples of Environmental and Animal Welfare Funders in Grant Advance
| Foundation | Examples From Its Grant History | Overall Grant Statistics | What Stands Out | Grant Advance Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 04ARTS Foundation | Historical recipients include Wildlife Rescue, Environmental Defense Fund, and Defenders of Wildlife. However, the visible records list the grant purpose as art education. Wildlife Rescue received $250 in 2024, $150 in 2023, $300 in 2022, and $75 in 2020. | Average: $196; Median: $100; Largest: $1,000 | Environmental and wildlife organizations appear among the recipients, but the visible grant purpose is art education rather than conservation or animal welfare. Grant Advance shows giving in 8 states. | View 04ARTS Foundation |
| 1011 Foundation Inc. | Awarded $25,000 to Friends of LA Animal Shelters in 2024 for services for orphaned animals; $5,000 to Earth League International in 2023 for conservation of wildlife, oceans, and forests; $5,000 to Best Friends Animal Society in 2022, with similar grants in 2021 and 2019; $333,333 to Schwarzman Animal Medical Center in 2022 for animal hospital care; $25,000 to Wildlife Warriors Inc. in 2020; and $5,000 to Adirondack Mountain Club in 2020. | Average: $170,579; Median: $25,000; Largest: $7.3 million | Its visible giving history includes animal shelters, veterinary care, wildlife protection, and conservation. Grant Advance shows giving in 25 states. | View 1011 Foundation Inc. |
| 25th Century Foundation | Awarded $25,000 in 2025 for emergency veterinary needs connected with Main Line Animal Rescue; $40,000 in 2022 associated with Providence Animal Center; $35,000 to Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society in 2021 for capital improvements; and $50,000 to Riverbend Environmental in 2018 for a farmhouse renovation. | Average: $38,217; Median: $36,750; Largest: $120,000 | The visible grants are particularly relevant to animal rescue, veterinary expenses, and capital improvements, with an environmental organization also appearing in the foundation’s giving history. Grant Advance shows giving in 11 states. | View 25th Century Foundation |
Source: Grant Advance foundation profiles and historical grant records. The grant statistics represent each foundation’s overall giving, not only grants related to environmental or animal welfare organizations. Historical funding does not confirm current eligibility or funding availability.
Why Keyword Searches Are Only the Beginning
Imagine searching Grant Advance using terms such as animal rescue, wildlife, environmental, or conservation.
All three foundations discussed above might appear in your results.
However, that doesn’t mean they should all receive the same level of attention.
Once you’ve identified a possible foundation, the next step is to review its foundation profile and investigate its giving history.
Some useful questions to consider include:
- What types of projects has the foundation funded?
- How recently were those grants awarded?
- What were the grant amounts?
- Does the foundation repeatedly support certain organizations?
- Where are previous recipients located?
- Are the funded projects similar to what your nonprofit needs support for?
These questions can help you move beyond general search results and identify foundations that are more closely aligned with your work.
Grant Size Is Important, but It Needs Context
The foundation examples above also show why looking only at the largest grant can be misleading.
The 04ARTS Foundation has an overall median grant size of $100.
The 1011 Foundation has a median of $25,000, along with a visible $333,333 grant for animal hospital care.
Meanwhile, the 25th Century Foundation has a median grant size of $36,750, with visible animal welfare grants ranging from $25,000 to $40,000.
These foundations have very different giving patterns.
If your animal rescue needs $30,000 for veterinary care, the most useful information may not be the largest grant a foundation has ever awarded.
Instead, you’ll want to understand what it has typically given to organizations and projects similar to yours.
Reviewing historical grant amounts and funding priorities can help your nonprofit make more realistic funding decisions.
What Makes a Strong Environmental Funding Request?
Environmental work often involves broad goals such as biodiversity, sustainability, conservation, and climate resilience.
These are important goals, but foundations also need to understand what their funding will help your organization accomplish.
For example, a conservation nonprofit might explain:
This funding will protect 120 acres of wetland habitat.
A wildlife rehabilitation centre might say:
This equipment will allow us to increase the number of injured animals we can treat from 800 to 1,100 annually.
An animal shelter could explain:
Our new foster program will give us the capacity to care for 150 additional animals each year.
An environmental education organization might state:
Our program will provide hands-on watershed education to 600 students from 12 schools.
A climate nonprofit could describe its project as:
This initiative will provide heat-resilience support to 400 households in three neighborhoods.
These examples help a prospective funder understand the connection between the amount requested, the work being funded, and the expected results.
You don’t need to make the biggest possible promise.
What matters is explaining what your organization plans to achieve and how the requested funding will help make it happen.
Useful Impact Metrics Depend on Your Organization’s Work
There isn’t one universal way to measure environmental or animal welfare impact.
Different organizations carry out different types of work, so the information they track should reflect their programs.
A Conservation Nonprofit Might Track:
- Acres protected
- Habitat restored
- Conservation easements completed
- Species protected
- River miles restored
- Wildlife corridors protected
A Wildlife Rescue Might Track:
- Animals admitted
- Veterinary cases
- Number of animals rehabilitated
- Release rates
- Species served
- Emergency rescues
An Animal Shelter Might Track:
- Adoptions
- Foster placements
- Spay/neuter procedures
- Veterinary treatments
- Average length of stay
- Animals kept with their families through retention programs
An Environmental Education Nonprofit Might Track:
- Students reached
- Schools participating
- Programs delivered
- Teachers trained
- Field experiences completed
- Knowledge and skills gained
The most useful metrics are those that help explain what your organization accomplished through its work.
Don’t Overlook Public Environmental Funding
Private foundations are an important source of funding, but they aren’t the only option for environmental nonprofits.
Government agencies also provide grants and financial assistance for certain environmental and conservation activities.
In Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada provides information on funding programs related to climate, water, species, and ecosystem protection.
In the United States, nonprofits can also research opportunities through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
Your organization doesn’t necessarily need to choose between public funding and private foundation grants.
You can pursue suitable government programs while also developing relationships with foundations whose giving history aligns with your work.
How to Research Environmental and Animal Welfare Funders in Grant Advance
When researching foundations, start with the language that best describes your organization’s work.
Different keywords can help you discover foundations that support different aspects of your mission.
Conservation Nonprofits Can Search for:
- Land conservation
- Habitat restoration
- Biodiversity
- Wildlife habitat
- Wetlands
- Watershed
- Open space
Wildlife Organizations Can Search for:
- Wildlife conservation
- Wildlife rehabilitation
- Species protection
- Habitat
- Wildlife rescue
- Wildlife trafficking
Animal Shelters Can Search for:
- Animal welfare
- Animal rescue
- Animal shelter
- Humane society
- Companion animals
- Veterinary care
- Spay and neuter
Environmental Education Nonprofits Can Search for:
- Environmental education
- Conservation education
- STEM
- Outdoor education
- Youth environmental programs
Once you’ve identified relevant keywords, you can use Grant Advance’s Search Engines to explore prospective foundations.
You can then review Foundation Profile Pages to investigate their previous grants and funding patterns.
Some of the information worth reviewing includes:
- Previous recipients
- Grant purposes
- Grant amounts
- Geographic preferences
- Repeat giving
- Organizations similar to yours
The goal isn’t simply to find as many environmental and animal welfare foundations as possible.
It’s to identify foundations whose previous giving provides a reason to believe they may be interested in supporting your organization’s work.
Frequently Asked Questions About Environmental and Animal Welfare Grants
Do Nonprofits Receive Environmental Grants?
Yes. Environmental nonprofits may receive foundation or public funding for conservation, habitat restoration, climate programs, biodiversity, water protection, environmental education, and related activities.
Funding availability and eligibility depend on the individual foundation or program.
Are There Grants for Animal Shelters?
Yes. Animal shelters, humane societies, and rescue organizations may receive grants for veterinary care, shelter improvements, adoption programs, foster programs, spay/neuter initiatives, equipment, and other animal welfare activities.
Can Animal Welfare Grants Cover Veterinary Expenses?
Some foundations provide funding for veterinary expenses.
For example, the 25th Century Foundation’s historical grant records include funding connected with emergency veterinary needs, while the 1011 Foundation has a visible $333,333 grant for animal hospital care.
However, whether veterinary treatment is currently an eligible expense depends on the funder’s guidelines.
Are There Grants for Wildlife Rehabilitation?
Yes. Depending on the foundation, wildlife rehabilitation grants may support veterinary treatment, rescue equipment, transportation, facilities, enclosures, staffing, and direct animal care.
Are There Grants for Wildlife Conservation?
Yes. Wildlife conservation grants may support habitat protection, species conservation, research, wildlife corridors, anti-trafficking activities, biodiversity, and related projects.
The specific activities covered will depend on the funder’s priorities and requirements.
Can Conservation Nonprofits Get Grants to Purchase Land?
Some foundations support land acquisition, conservation easements, and other property-related conservation projects.
Others may restrict capital expenditures or land purchases.
Reviewing previous grant purposes and current funding guidelines can help nonprofits determine whether a foundation may support land acquisition.
Are There Grants for Climate Nonprofits?
Yes. Climate-focused nonprofits may find funding for resilience, adaptation, emissions reduction, environmental justice, clean energy, climate education, and related initiatives.
Are There Grants for Environmental Education?
Yes. Environmental education programs may qualify for funding from environmental foundations as well as funders interested in education, STEM, children and youth, conservation, and outdoor learning.
Can Environmental Grants Pay Staff Salaries?
Some foundations allow funding for staff salaries, educators, researchers, field personnel, veterinary staff, and other program-related personnel expenses.
Others restrict staffing or general operating costs.
Nonprofits should review individual funding guidelines before including these expenses in a grant request.
Can Small Animal Rescues Receive Foundation Grants?
Yes. Smaller animal rescue organizations may find suitable opportunities among foundations that have previously funded similar nonprofits, projects, and geographic areas.
Reviewing typical grant amounts and recipient types can help determine whether a foundation may be a realistic prospect.
How Can I Find Foundations That Fund Environmental and Animal Welfare Organizations?
Start by identifying the specific activities your nonprofit needs funding for.
Then research foundations that have previously supported similar organizations, projects, and geographic areas.
Reviewing historical grant purposes, award amounts, and funding patterns can help you decide which foundations are worth approaching.
You can also use Grant Advance’s foundation research tools to search for and compare prospective funders.
Funding the Work Behind the Mission
When people see the work of environmental and animal welfare nonprofits, they often see the results.
An injured animal receiving treatment.
A forest protected from development.
A restored river.
Wildlife returning to its natural habitat.
Students learning about the environment outdoors.
What they don’t always see is the work and expense involved in making those results possible.
The veterinary treatment, vehicles, field staff, land, equipment, insurance, facilities, and ongoing monitoring all require funding.
Foundations that support environmental and animal welfare causes help nonprofits cover these expenses and continue delivering their programs.
The challenge is finding foundations whose priorities and giving history reflect the work your organization does.
That means being specific about what you need funding for and looking at evidence of what prospective funders have supported in the past.
Grant Advance helps nonprofits research foundation giving histories, compare potential funders, and organize their grant funding efforts around opportunities that are more closely aligned with their missions.
