Children's Environmental Health Initiative
Frequently asked questions
Can I apply if my organization works only in one city?
Yes! This docket is open to organizations working in one community, as well as organizations with national level programs in multiple states/communities, as long as your organization is addressing a children’s environmental health issue related to toxics in products or the environment, your org budget is at least $250,000 and less than $10 million, and your organization has leadership of color.
My organization budget is over $10million, but the program we are seeking funding for has a budget within Cedar Tree’s stated range of $250,000 - $10million. Can I apply for funding based on that project budget?
No. If your organization has a budget greater than $10 million, we will ask you NOT to apply for this round of grants, even if you have a smaller sized program budget. Cedar Tree is specifically looking to support organizations with more modest budgets to build diverse sources of power and voice in the environmental health movement.
My organization has a budget of less than $250,000. Can we apply?
No. Cedar Tree would like to make grants between $70,000 and $100,000 /year, so we set a budget requirement which would make sure that a grant of this size would not overwhelm an organization’s budget. We would appreciate it though if you let us know that you would have applied, but for the budget restriction as this may inform future dockets.
I note that all the other dockets in this Initiative are focused on Marketplace Campaigns. Do we need to have a marketplace campaign to apply?
No. For this docket we are open to proposals beyond marketplace campaigns, although we would prefer to have some connection to toxics in products. If your campaign is looking more broadly at toxics in the environment, but there is some connection between the toxic chemical you are addressing and products (either upstream or downstream from your issue) that would be ok too. If in doubt, go ahead and apply as we would appreciate the opportunity to learn about your organization and work.
Why is Cedar Tree asking for information about how many of our Board and Staff identify as something other than white?
The Cedar Tree Foundation recognizes that the majority of funding from foundations goes to white-led organizations, while the most significant impacts of environmental hazards are often felt most deeply by communities of color. The Cedar Tree Foundation would like to try to support groups who are connected to and led by the communities who are impacted by the problems they are trying to solve, and for this docket, we are prioritizing groups led by and issues identified by communities of color. We ask about your organization’s racial diversity as one way to understand who is making decisions and framing the priorities for your work.
We have previously applied for a Cedar Tree grant. Are we able to re-apply for this funding?
Yes! Past Cedar Tree grantees are welcome to submit Letters of Inquiry to this docket.
Are all the grants awarded in this docket going to be multi-year? What if we can’t predict our workflow in year 3?
Yes! Cedar Tree recognizes that work in the environmental health space takes time, and we would like to make multi-year grants on this docket so that organizations have the space/time they need to develop relationships and build their campaigns. We understand that it can be hard to predict the details of the third year of your grant work. If you can’t know the specifics, tell us what factors will impact your decision making in year three, and what your best guess steps are for achieving your goals. You will be asked to file interim reports each year, and you can use those reports as a place to update us on your plans.
Our campaign is focused on great work outside of the US. Can we apply for these funds?
No. All of Cedar Tree funds must be used to support work within the United States.
What happens after I submit a completed Letter of Inquiry?
Staff of the Cedar Tree Foundation will read and review each submitted LOI. If we have questions or want more information about anything that you submitted we will reach out to the contact you include on the form. We will then work with the Board of the Cedar Tree Foundation to narrow down the LOI’s to invite proposals from a select few (number to be determined by how many LOI’s are submitted as well as content of the LOIs). We plan to reach out to organizations in September with information about the next steps. Final grant awards will be made by the end of 2019.
What should I do if I still have questions?
Reach out to Dana Karlsson Campion at dana(at)cedartreefound.org with any additional questions and she will help!