Proposals for this cycle are due no later than 5 pm Pacific Time on Friday, January 23, 2026. No exceptions will be made for late submissions, and no extensions will be granted. Funding decisions will be made no later than March 13, 2026.
Grants Program
How to Apply
Basic Eligibility
The Campbell Foundation funds both solicited and unsolicited grants, but the steps to apply differ. If your organization is new to the Foundation and seeking grant funding, learn how to apply below. If you are already a grantee with a pending request, please visit the grantee portal. If you have received an invitation to apply, please click on the link in the email invitation to start your proposal. You can also contact Tech Support for assistance.
We only accept proposal requests from US-registered 501(c)3 public charitable organizations, including educational institutions* and government agencies**. The Foundation also accepts proposals for fiscally sponsored projects.
*170(b)(1)(A)(ii)
**170(c)(1)ee
Application Steps
This application process is for organizations that have never received a grant from The Campbell Foundation. Please follow the steps outlined below to ensure your initial application is complete and help us make the process seamless.
If you get stuck along the way, please review the Frequently Asked Questions section. If questions remain, email Khloe Graczyk.
Deadlines and Grant Cycles
We offer two unsolicited grant cycles per year. We welcome organizations that have not previously received a grant to submit a proposal for our current open cycle. Once the proposal has been submitted, you will receive an email confirmation that it has been received by the Foundation. Funding decisions will be made according to the timelines listed for each cycle.
Cycle 1 – 2026: Open
Cycle 2 – 2025: Closed
Proposals for this cycle were due no later than 5 pm Pacific Time on Tuesday, September 30, 2025. No exceptions will be made for late submissions, and no extensions will be granted. Funding decisions will be made no later than October 24, 2025.
Amount to Request
The maximum amount you can request for an unsolicited grant is $25,000. Though the maximum amount you can request is $25k, award amounts may differ from requested amounts.
As a guide, in 2024, we awarded 38 grants. Of those, two were for $2,500; ten were for $5,000; three were for $10,000; three were for $15,000; five were for $20,000; and 15 were for $25,000.
Previous Unsolicited Grant Recipients
To view a searchable database of grant recipients that have been awarded an unsolicited grant, click on the button below.
View All Grant Recipients
To view a searchable database of all grant recipients, click on the button below. If you have received a grant previously, your organization is not eligible to apply.
FAQS
While the amount of time the proposal takes to complete is highly variable, based on grantee feedback, it is estimated that the proposal form will take two to four hours to complete.
We are open to funding work anywhere in the United States or around the world. However, please note that we have areas of special interest, including the following:
- California, specifically the following counties: Fresno, Kern, Kings, San Francisco, or Tulare
- Maryland, specifically the following counties: Dorchester, Wicomico, Worcester, or Somerset
- Pennsylvania, specifically the following counties: Lancaster and York Counties
We encourage you to view our recent Unsolicited Grant Recipients to gain an understanding of the variety of organizations and projects we support with unsolicited grants.
Please be advised that the applying organization must be a US-registered 501(c)3 public charitable organization, including educational institutions* and government agencies**. Fiscally sponsored projects are also eligible.
*170(b)(1)(A)(ii)
** 170(c)(1)
Individual grants will vary in size but will be no greater than $25,000. The maximum amount you can request for an unsolicited grant is $25,000.
As a guide, in 2024, we awarded 38 grants. Of those, two were for $2,500; ten were for $5,000; three were for $10,000; three were for $15,000; five were for $20,000; and 15 were for $25,000.
Though the maximum amount you can request is $25,000, the amount you are awarded may differ from the amount that was requested. Funding levels are determined by a variety of factors.
As a guide, in 2024, we awarded 38 grants. Of those, two were for $2,500; ten were for $5,000; three were for $10,000; three were for $15,000; five were for $20,000; and 15 were for $25,000.
Currently, we are accepting unsolicited proposals for General Support.
While The Campbell Foundation has primarily funded work on the environment in the Chesapeake Bay region and in California, we also are deeply interested in supporting nonprofit organizations that engage with and serve diverse populations and constituencies, and that seek to dismantle systems that constrain the choices and opportunities of individuals. We have a particular interest in organizations that are helping to promote racial equity.
Please note that while we are open to accepting proposals for any geographic area, we have areas of special interest, including the following:
- California, specifically the following counties: Fresno, Kern, Kings, San Francisco, or Tulare
- Maryland, specifically the following counties: Dorchester, Wicomico, Worcester, or Somerset
- Pennsylvania, specifically the following counties: Lancaster and York Counties
Additionally, our Unsolicited Grants Program prioritizes organizations that:
- Have been in operation for five or more years
- Have operating budgets between $1MM and $12MM
- Have a minimum of five funders of $5k or more
- Have a minimum of five board members
- Match the priorities in one of the following Program Areas:
- Have programming focused on racial equity and/or on Black, Indigenous, and/or other communities of color
- Have leadership that reflects the communities served by your organization
After reviewing the above priorities, we encourage you to utilize our Prescreen Tool* to help determine if your organization is a good candidate for an unsolicited grant. The Prescreen Tool will generate a score designed to help you decide whether to move forward with a proposal. You may also skip directly to the proposal if you prefer.
We encourage you to view our recent Unsolicited Grant Recipients to gain an understanding of the variety of organizations and projects we support with unsolicited grants.
We recognize there are innumerable causes worthy of support. However, The Foundation does not provide unsolicited grants in the following areas:
- Academic or Medical Research
- Alcohol and Drug Recovery Programming
- Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation
- Disease Research and Prevention
- Ecosystem Restoration
- Films
- Hospitals
- Individuals
- Marine Protected Areas (Outside of California)
- Non-Community-Based Fisheries and Ocean Management
- Plastic Pollution
- Single Species Management or Conservation
Programs can be ongoing, but the expectation is that the funds would be expended within 12 months of receiving the grant.
Yes, these grants are intended to cover future, rather than past, expenses and activities.
We regret that we are not able to provide information about the probability of funding until we have reviewed your complete proposal.
To get a sense of our funding history and priorities, please explore our searchable Grants Database to view previous grant recipients, or review the Foundation at Work and Program Areas sections of our website.
We recognize there are innumerable causes worthy of support. However, The Foundation does not provide unsolicited grants in the following areas:
- Academic or Medical Research
- Alcohol and Drug Recovery Programming
- Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation
- Disease Research and Prevention
- Ecosystem Restoration
- Films
- Hospitals
- Individuals
- Marine Protected Areas (Outside of California)
- Non-Community-Based Fisheries and Ocean Management
- Plastic Pollution
- Single Species Management or Conservation
Yes! Please do apply. We are looking for organizations doing good work, even if they don’t fit into our usual programmatic “boxes.” We encourage you to utilize our Prescreen Tool* to help determine if your organization is a good candidate for an unsolicited grant.
We are accepting proposals from nonprofit organizations, particularly those that engage with and serve diverse populations and constituencies, and that seek to dismantle systems that constrain the choices and opportunities of individuals. We have a particular interest in organizations that are helping to promote racial equity.
Please note that while we are open to accepting proposals for any geographic area, we have areas of special interest, including the following:
- California, specifically the following counties: Fresno, Kern, Kings, San Francisco, or Tulare
- Maryland, specifically the following counties: Dorchester, Wicomico, Worcester, or Somerset
- Pennsylvania, specifically the following counties: Lancaster and York Counties
We recognize there are innumerable causes worthy of support. However, The Foundation does not provide unsolicited grants in the following areas:
- Academic or Medical Research
- Alcohol and Drug Recovery Programming
- Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation
- Disease Research and Prevention
- Ecosystem Restoration
- Films
- Hospitals
- Individuals
- Marine Protected Areas (Outside of California)
- Non-Community-Based Fisheries and Ocean Management
- Plastic Pollution
- Single Species Management or Conservation
At this time, we are only accepting proposals for General Support.
Only one proposal per cycle can be submitted.
We recognize there are innumerable causes worthy of support. However, The Foundation does not provide unsolicited grants in the following areas:
- Academic or Medical Research
- Alcohol and Drug Recovery Programming
- Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation
- Disease Research and Prevention
- Ecosystem Restoration
- Films
- Hospitals
- Individuals
- Marine Protected Areas (Outside of California)
- Non-Community-Based Fisheries and Ocean Management
- Plastic Pollution
- Single Species Management or Conservation
Unfortunately, the Foundation’s staff can’t meet with applicants prior to submission. However, if your proposal is being considered for a grant, a Foundation staff member may request a meeting.
Once you’ve read through the process above and explored the FAQs thoroughly, you can email Khloe Graczyk with any unanswered questions.
However, due to anticipated volume, we are not able to schedule phone calls or meetings with prospective unsolicited grantees.
No. The Foundation will only respond to full and complete proposals submitted through our grants management system. Please follow the steps outlined above for a seamless submission process.
No. We prefer not to be included on your mailing list unless we request to opt in.
To support our effort to help reduce paper consumption, please do not mail any hard copy materials.
Most likely, no. Decisions about grants might not be made any sooner than the decision date listed above, regardless of when the proposal is submitted. Grants may be reviewed both as individual requests and in comparison to other requests in the same cycle.
To see information about how many applications we have received per cycle, and how many and which ones received awards, view our list of Unsolicited Grant Cycle Recipients.
Proposals are reviewed on a number of factors, including, but not limited, to:
- Completeness of proposal
- Organizational financial health and sustainability
- Ability to adhere to cycle guidelines as noted on this page
Due to the volume of proposals we receive, we are not able to provide feedback to individual organizations if declined.
Yes, but there is a minimum two-year waiting period between applications. As an example, if you applied in Cycle 1 2025 and were declined, you will be eligible to reapply in Cycle 1 2027.
The Foundation sets a two–year waiting period for applications to allow organizations adequate time to evolve between applications and to reduce the burden on applicants. We also strive for a diverse pool of applicants so that a wide variety of organizations can apply.
Renewals are determined on a case-by-case basis. The majority of grants that are awarded through unsolicited cycles are one-time grants.