The Environmental Education Grants Program provides funds to support a wide range of environmental education projects including meaningful, hands-on programs for students, teacher training workshops, and community conservation projects for adults.
Donor Name: Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
State: Pennsylvania
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 10/14/2025
Size of the Grant: $10,000 to $100,000
Grant Duration: 1 Year
Details:
The Environmental Education Grants Program, established by the Environmental Education Act of 1993, mandates that five percent of all pollution fines and penalties collected annually by the Department of Environmental Protection be set aside for environmental education. Since its inception the Environmental Education Grants Program has provided more than $14 million to support environmental education throughout Pennsylvania.
Funding Priorities
Projects must address one or more program priorities: Land Use, Air Quality, Water, Climate Change, and/or Environmental Justice.
- Land Use
- Land use project will expand audience understanding of environmental contamination, remediation, and brownfields re-development to make informed decisions that protect human health, leverage relationships with local governments and businesses, and effectively engage the community in acting.
- Air Quality
- Air quality projects will expand audience understanding of air pollution, the Air Quality Index (AQI), and potential threats to human health to identify when and what actions should be taken in the event of unhealthy air quality.
- Water
- Water quality projects will expand audience understanding of water sheds to identify and address non-point source and point source water pollution. Projects may emphasize subjects such as stormwater management, soil and water conservation, groundwater, agricultural nutrient management, abandoned mine drainage/reclamation, private water wells, road treatment, water quality monitoring, riparian buffers, and cold-water habitats.
- Climate Change
- Climate change projects will expand audience understanding of the human behavior/climate change relationship, identify and adopt practical solutions to develop resiliency against extreme weather, pests, disease, agricultural disruptions, groundwater changes, and other climate change influenced threats to human and environmental health.
- Environmental Justice
- Programs funded under this priority should be designed to meaningfully engage people of all demographics who live, work, recreate, or attend school within Environmental Justice areas. Strong proposals will demonstrate an understanding of local needs, include community input in project design, and, where possible, partner with trusted local organizations or leaders.
Funding Information
DEP EE Grants Program Award Tracks are structurally designed to encourage capacity and sustainability growth and development. The three (3) award tracks are available for projects:
- Seed Grant (up to $5,000) may be awarded for local (school, county, partnering municipality, or other defined area) environmental education projects.
- Grow Grant ($5,001 – $30,000) may be awarded for implementation of large-scale environmental education projects, such as school district-wide projects, multiple community or county collaborations, countywide, regional, or statewide projects.
- Impact Grant ($30,001 – $65,000) may be awarded as a first-time project or for previously awarded DEP EE Grants project(s) for capacity and sustainability development. These projects should allow for broad-scale audience engagement at three (3) different levels: county, regional, and state.
Grant Period
July 1, 2026 – June 30, 2027.
Eligibility Criteria
- Public schools and school districts (PreK-12), including intermediate units and charter schools
- Incorporated private schools (under limited circumstances, private religious schools may be exempted from the incorporation requirement)
- Incorporated conservation and education organizations and institutions
- Universities and colleges
- County conservation districts
- Incorporated nonprofit organizations
- Businesses (must be registered to do business in PA).
For more information, visit Department of Environmental Protection.
