2023 Grants
- Downeast Institute, to engage youth in outdoor activities that focus on sustaining natural resources and stewardship of land and water: $15,000
- Friends of Katahdin Woods and Waters, for the Katahdin Learning Project that connects area youth to nature, community and career pathways through place-based education programs: $14,000
- Intercultural Community Center, to provide outdoor access to New Mainers through education and nature-based learning activities: $15,000
- Kindling Collective, to expand its gear library and programming to engage queer people in outdoor activities and increase their access to nature: $15,000
- Land in Common, to create secure, affordable, lifetime access to land with and for Maine’s BIPOC community: $15,000
- Maine Association for New Americans, to provide immigrant youth recreation opportunities through outdoor retreats: $15,000
- Maine Community Integration, for “Sprout Lewiston,” a hands-on ecology education program for New Mainer youth in partnership with Maine Audubon: $15,000
- Maine Youth for Climate Justice, to expand the Outing Club and Food Sovereignty Cohort: $10,034
- Piscataquis County Soil and Water Conservation District, for land and trail maintenance and to expand access to community forests; $15,000
- Southern Maine Conservation Collaborative, to expand capacity: $15,000
- Western Maine Addiction Recovery Initiative, for a Recovery Outings program to connect people in recovery and those affected by substance use disorder through recreation: $12,000
- Wild Seed Project, to partner with Portland schools to create Indigenous plant landscapes: $15,000
- Women for Healthy Rural Living, for Outdoor Women Lead, a program that strengthens women’s and girls’ confidence in the outdoors: $15,000
From donor-advised funds:
- Belfast Bay Watershed Coalition, for a year-round, afterschool nature club for middle schoolers: $2,600
- Climate Change for All Educators, to train Maine educators in lesson plan creation for the Maine Education Hub: $15,000
- Community Conservation Initiative, to educate and empower Black immigrants and asylum seekers in environmental and ecological stewardship: $15,000
- Friends of Katahdin Woods and Waters, for the Katahdin Learning Project that connects area youth to nature, community and career pathways through place-based education programs: $1,000
- Friends of L.C. Bates Museum, for outdoor community activities that use museum resources for environmental learning experiences: $1,290
- Hearty Roots, to improve youth mental wellness through outdoor programming: $7,500
- Somali Bantu Community Association, to provide land access, culturally appropriate livelihood development and increased food security to immigrant families: $10,000
2022 Grants
- Blue Hill Heritage Trust, to create an accessible trail: $15,000
- Friends of the Presumpscot River, Westbrook, to hire an education and outreach employee to increase the scope of its educational programming, especially for youth and immigrants: $15,000
- Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, to expand its impact and reach in the Harpswell community through conservation, education, and access to land and shore: $10,000
- Intercultural Community Center, Westbrook, to expand accessibility for environmental education: $10,000
- Kennebec Land Trust, Winthrop, to increase access to conservation land for underserved populations: $15,000
- Land in Common, Greene, to collaborate with communities directly impacted by injustice on projects that create land access for affordable housing, foodways, ecological stewardship, social transformation, joy, and liberation: $15,000
- Land Peace Foundation, Bangor, to expand environmental- and climate change-focused programs: $15,000
- Main Street Skowhegan, to purchase a fleet of whitewater kayaks: $12,500
- Maine GearShare, Portland, to increase its inventory and break down barriers for people who can’t access gear: $12,500
- Monson Free Public Library Association, to expand its gear library: $11,000
- Southern Maine Conservation Collaborative, Portland, for conservation that addresses social equity, climate change, organizational efficiency, and collective impact: $15,000
- Women for Healthy Rural Living, Milbridge, for its Outdoor Women Lead program: $10,000
From donor-advised funds:
- Downeast Institute, Beals, to engage youth in outdoor activities and environmental stewardship: $15,000
- Friends of L.C. Bates Museum, Hinckley, for its Inspiring Curious Young Naturalists conservation project: $2,900
- Hearty Roots, Bristol, to hire an adventure therapist and purchase a program vehicle: $2,000
- Hurricane Island Outward Bound School, Camden, to empower students through experiential outdoor programming: $4,000
- Maine GearShare, Portland, to increase its inventory and break down barriers for people who can’t access gear: $500
- Portland Parks Conservancy, to create a new public park: $5,000
- Women for Healthy Rural Living, Milbridge, for its Outdoor Women Lead program: $5,000
2021 Grants from the Conservation for All Committee
- Baker Mountain Ski Tow Club, Moscow, to help keep providing the community a fun safe environment to enjoy Maine’s winter recreation activities: $5,000
- Blue Hill Heritage Trust, to create an accessible section of trail on our Hundred Acre Woods trail in Brooklin: $7,500
- Camp CaPella, Holden, to complete expansion of 28 acres of undeveloped land into year-round, handicap-accessible, hiking trail system: $10,000
- Coastal Mountains Land Trust, Camden, to support teachers using the “Learning Landscapes” model for connecting local schools and students with nearby conserved lands for outdoor classrooms: $7,500
- Frenchman Bay Conservancy, Hancock, to create partnerships for conservation planning and community engagement to protect and restore vulnerable coastal wetlands: $7,500
- Gorham Outdoors, to purchase equipment that will help maintain trails: $7,500
- Greater Lovell Land Trust, to expand engagement with our communities and enhance public access opportunities to meet the growing demand in western Maine: $6,000
- Lake George Corporation, Skowhegan, to build a themed playground and forest trail, incorporating a donated sailboat and an existing building to serve as an imaginary lighthouse: $15,000
- Little Cranberry Yacht Club Community Sailing and Education Foundation, to fund discounted class fees for local Cranberry Isles families, in order to reduce barriers to water recreation and build stronger community connections: $5,000
- Rise and Shine Youth Retreat, to offer art, science and outdoor recreation for Afro Indigenous people in Maine and beyond: $12,500
- South Portland Land Trust, to build internal capacity for engaging with South Portland residents who face systemic barriers to access natural spaces and conservation work: $10,500
- Southern Maine Conservation Collaborative, Portland, to expand the definition, practice, and impact of conservation by working in support of and on behalf of land and water conservation organizations: $10,000
- Three Rivers Land Trust, to bolster organizational capacity during development of equitable access and promotion of diverse use at the Sanford Community Forest and the Goat Hill Trail: $10,000
- White Pine Programs, to build an intergenerational nature education program in partnership with the Kittery Community Center: $7,500
From donor-advised funds:
- Bicycle Coalition of Maine, Portland, to construct a multi-use trail connecting the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians’ facilities, providing a safe, off-road transportation route and recreation space benefitting tribal residents: $18,386
- Blue Hill Heritage Trust, to create an accessible section of trail on our Hundred Acre Woods trail in Brooklin: $500
- Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust, Portland, to support fundraising that will make the organization sustainable for years to come: $15,000
- Mercy Hospital, Portland, to expand walking trails and greenspace at Northern Light Mercy Hospital for patients, employees, and the community, and restore access to the historic Fore River: $15,000
- Rise and Shine Youth Retreat, to offer art, science and outdoor recreation for Afro Indigenous people in Maine and beyond: $2,500
- Western Foothills Land Trust, for improved four-season access at Hawk Mountain Preserve in Waterford, including kiosk signs, preserve signs, boulders, bush-hogging of trail corridors, and trail counters: $5,000
- White Pine Programs, to build an intergenerational nature education program in partnership with the Kittery Community Center: $2,500
