Grants and funding

Click on these links for more information about annual funding availability and writing a successful application:

Caring for Our Country

Caring for our Country integrates the Federal Government’s existing natural resource management programs, the Natural Heritage Trust, the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality, the National Landcare Program, the Environmental Stewardship Program and the Working on Country Indigenous land and environmental program.

For more information click on this link: http://www.nrm.gov.au/funding/open.html

The Australian Government's Community Water Grants programme offers grants to help local community organisations save, recycle or improve the health of their local water resources. Grants are available for projects related to water saving and efficiency, water recycling, water treatment and improving surface and groundwater health.

Your group is eligible to apply for an Australian Government Community Water grant if it is a:

• rural organisation
• local government
• school, university or childcare facility
• Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander corporation, council or incorporated association
• fundraising organisation, such as a Rotary or Lions club
• sporting and recreation club
• religious organisation
• health care organisation, such as a nursing home
• environmental or conservation group

http://www.communitywatergrants.gov.au/

NSW Environmental Trust

The Environmental Trust is an independent statutory body established by the NSW government to support exceptional environmental projects that do not receive funds from the usual government sources. The Trust is empowered under the Environmental Trust Act 1998, and its main responsibility is to make and supervise the expenditure of grants. The Trust is administered by the Department of Environment and Conservation.

The objectives of the Environmental Trust are:

* to encourage and support restoration and rehabilitation projects
* to promote research into environmental problems of any kind
* to promote environmental education in both the public and private sectors
* to fund the acquisition of land for the national parks estate
* to fund the declaration of areas for marine parks and for related purposes
* to promote waste avoidance, resource recovery and waste management (including funding enforcement and regulation and local government programs)
* to fund environmental community groups and
* to fund the purchase of water entitlements for the purpose of increasing environmental flows for the State's rivers and restoring or rehabilitating major wetlands.

http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/grants/envtrust.htm

Coles Group Community Grants Program

The Coles Group Community Fund was established in 2006 and supports local and national charitable organisations with the aim of building healthier communities.

Programs include community grants, strategic partnerships, fundraising initiatives and workplace giving.

The program allows registered charitable organisations to apply for funding for inspiring projects and programs in communities where we have stores and conduct our business.

The Community grants aim to benefit local organisations whose core work supports one of our priority areas: Health and Wellbeing, Environment, and Life-long Learning.

www2.communitybuilders.nsw.gov.au/funding/3163.html

Carbon Credit Opportunities

The benefits of tree planting for soaking up carbon are becoming recognised in new schemes that
can benefit Landcarers. Two projects that may interest you are Greenfleet www.greenfleet.com.au.
and CarbonSMART www.carbonsmart.com.au.

Other funding

For funding programs that have various funding rounds a year or are always open, see www2.communitybuilders.nsw.gov.au/funding/.

* Funding calendar, presentation on writing successful grant applications, and grants terminology reproduced with kind permission of Glenn Hamilton, Project Officer Landcare, Lake Macquarie City Council.