Applications are now being accepted for the Laura Jane Musser Fund’s Environmental Initiative.
Donor Name: Laura Jane Musser Fund
State: Selected States
County: Selected Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 10/08/2025
Size of the Grant: $10,000 to $100,000
Grant Duration: 2 Years
Details:
The Laura Jane Musser Fund assists public or not-for-profit entities to initiate or implement projects that enhance the ecological integrity of publicly owned open spaces, while encouraging compatible human activities. The Fund’s goal is to promote public use of open space that improves a community’s quality of life and public health, while also ensuring the protection of healthy, viable and sustainable ecosystems by protecting or restoring habitat for a diversity of plant and animal species.
Projects must:
- FOCUS on protecting/restoring a sustainable ecosystem that is a defined, public open space
- Promote PUBLIC ACCESS to and use of the defined open space
- INVOLVE ACTIVE PARTICIPATION of local community members, with a particular appreciation for volunteer and youth engagement and stakeholder contributions
- CONTAIN measurable outcomes within the first 12-18 months
- Include a PLAN for the long term financial and environmental sustainability of the proposed program.
Types of Grant
- Planning (up to $8,000): Planning grant applications must demonstrate commitment to a broad-based, active community process for the design and use of local publicly-owned open spaces.
- Implementation (Up to $35,000): Implementation grant applications must demonstrate clear evidence of local community active participation and support.
Geographical Areas
- Only programs in Colorado, Hawaii, Minnesota, Wyoming, and limited counties in New York, North Carolina, and Texas may apply.
- Eligible counties in New York include: Delaware, Greene, Otsego, Schoharie, Sullivan, and Ulster.
- Eligible counties in North Carolina are located in the Mountains Region: Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Clay, Cherokee, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Swain, Transylvania, Watauga, Wilkes, and Yancey.
- Eligible counties in Texas are located in the Rio Grande River Valley (Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr, and Willacy counties), Deep East Texas (Angelina, Houston, Jasper, Nacogdoches, Newton, Polk, Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, Shelby, Trinity, and Tyler counties), and the Brazos Valley (Brazos, Burleson, Grimes, Leon, Madison, Robertson, and Washington counties)
Eligibility Criteria
- Nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations (organizations with fiscal sponsors are not eligible)
- Local units of Government.
For more information, visit LJMF.
