ENVIRONMENT & COMMUNITIES
ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES

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Applicant Eligibility

Organizations must be classified as tax-exempt under Section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code and as public charities, under Section 509(a) of that code.  Individuals and for-profit organizations are not eligible for funding.  

Supporting organizations—known as 509(a)(3) organizations as described through the  Pension Protection Act of 2006, are required to complete and sign a Grantee Certificate of Supporting Organization Status form and provide the Foundation with a copy of their Bylaws and Articles of Incorporation.  

In order to solicit funds in Pennsylvania, organizations must be registered with the Bureau of Charitable Organizations within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania prior to submitting Letters of Inquiries to the Foundation. 

Organizations applying for funding are expected to provide a completed Audit, Review, or Compilation within six months of their most recent fiscal year, based on gross contribution revenue standards set by the Bureau of Charitable Organizations within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Churches and religious organizations may be eligible to receive funding for activities that are non-sectarian and benefit the larger community.  Government agencies are not generally funded, except in certain cases where there is no suitable tax-exempt organization to carry out a program or project.    

If your organization is not classified as tax-exempt, you may not use a conduit organization.  

Organizations should have at least a three-consecutive-year history of programming as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization.

Project Eligibility

The Foundation provides funding for a wide variety of purposes that address the priorities within Environment and Communities and strengthen the effectiveness and capacity of nonprofit organizations that are doing this work.   Examples of the types of projects funded include:

• Promoting sustainability of the region’s ecosystems and older communities
• Cross-sector collaborations that build on the region’s assets 
• Develop and promote innovative leadership and best practices
• Innovative projects that accelerate the strategic redevelopment of targeted neighborhoods in the region’s urban areas
• Research
• Promote regional growth
• Policy-related work and advocacy.
• Project evaluation.
• Strategic planning.
• Organization capacity building.
• Capital expenditures.

Virtually all of the Foundation's grants are made to organizations located in the six-county Greater Philadelphia Region (Bucks County, Camden County, Chester County, Delaware County, Montgomery County, and Philadelphia County). 

Grants for community revitalization are limited to targeted neighborhoods in the cities of Philadelphia and Camden. Grants are also made beyond our typical geographic area as part of our efforts to preserve and protect the Delaware River Watershed, New Jersey Pinelands, New Jersey's Delaware Bayshores, and the Pennsylvania Highlands.

We will also consider funding requests for projects that, although administered by an organization located outside this region, are expressly for the benefit of this region and its constituents. Occasionally, grants are made to national organizations for work performed by local affiliates.

Following are broad categories of activities that we do not fund:

• Work that does not fit our funding priorities, objectives, and strategies.
• Institutions that discriminate on the basis of race, creed, gender, or sexual orientation in policy or in practice.
• Scholarships, fellowships, or grants to individuals.
• Non-public schools.
• Programs to treat or rehabilitate those with specific physical, medical, or psychological conditions or diagnoses.
• Debt reduction.
• Sectarian religious activities, political lobbying, or legislative activities.
• Hospital capital projects.
• Endowments
• Housing construction or rehabilitation, including financing and capital costs.
• For-profit enterprises
• Programs targeted for the elderly.
• Medical research.
• Direct replacement of discontinued government support.
• National or international programs that do not have a significant regional impact.