Virginia Environmental Endowment
Richmond, VA · EIN 54-1041973. Reported 124 grants totalling $8,961,481 to 71 organizations across tax years 2021-2024, on Form 990 Schedule I.
Does this grantmaker accept applications?
Its tax return does not say, and we will not guess. Private foundations file Form 990-PF, which asks outright whether they fund only organizations they select themselves -- 78% say yes, and that one answer is what lets the rest of this site tell you which foundations are worth approaching. Grantmaking charities like this one file a regular Form 990 instead, and the IRS never puts the question to them. Anyone claiming to know the answer from the filing is inventing it.
Three things in the filing do bear on it:
- What kind of organization it is. For Virginia Environmental Endowment, by its IRS classification it raises and distributes funds for environment (NTEE C12).
- How spread out its giving is. 71 distinct organizations, with 18% of the dollars going to the largest single recipient. That is genuinely spread out -- the mark of a funder making many independent decisions rather than underwriting one institution.
- How much its list changes. 44% of one year's grantees are funded again the next, across 3 year-to-year transitions. That is below the 57% median for grantmaking charities, and well below the 67% private foundations manage. A list that turns over this much is one a newcomer can realistically join.
How big are its grants?
The median reported grant is $25,000. Half of what it reported fell between $20,000 and $40,000; the smallest was $6,778 and the largest $1,152,830. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong organization.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Recipients are grouped by the EIN the filer reported, not by name, so an organization that was typed differently in two years appears once rather than twice.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chesapeake Bay Foundation Inc | Annapolis, MD | $1,569,132 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| James River Association | Richmond, VA | $1,488,991 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Trout Unlimited Inc | Arlington, VA | $950,795 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Sustainable Chesapeake | Richmond, VA | $643,749 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Wetlands Watch Inc | Norfolk, VA | $295,706 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| West Virginia Rivers Coalition Inc | Charleston, WV | $215,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| New River Land Trust | Blacksburg, VA | $204,944 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| The Mountain Lake Conservancy Inc | Pembroke, VA | $202,914 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Conservation Legacy | Durango, CO | $192,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Virginia Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts Educa | Mechanicsvlle, VA | $184,378 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Southern Environmental Law Center | Charlottesville, VA | $170,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Watershed Watch in Kentucky | Lexington, KY | $150,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Virginia Conservation Network | Richmond, VA | $140,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Western Virginia Water Authority | Roanoke, VA | $136,725 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Rivanna Conservation Alliance | Charlottesville, VA | $130,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Land Savers United | Roanoke, VA | $121,796 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Capital Region Land Conservancy Inc | Richmond, VA | $110,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Virginia United Land Trusts | Richmond, VA | $90,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Roanoke College | Salem, VA | $88,601 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Shenandoah National Park Trust | Charlottesvle, VA | $85,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Nature Forward | Chevy Chase, MD | $80,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| New River Conservancy | W Jefferson, NC | $76,261 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Blue Sky Fund | Richmond, VA | $75,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Land Trust Alliance Incorporated | Washington, DC | $75,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Rector & Visitors of the University of Virginia | Charlottesvle, VA | $69,739 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Roanoke Valley-Alleghany Regional Commission | Roanoke, VA | $68,600 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Piedmont Environmental Council | Warrenton, VA | $67,050 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Potomac Conservancy Inc | Bethesda, MD | $67,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Virginia Institute of Marine Science | Williamsburg, VA | $60,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Alliance for the Shenandoah Valley | New Market, VA | $57,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| William & Mary Law School Foundation | Williamsburg, VA | $55,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Potomac Riverkeeper Inc | Washington, DC | $53,300 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Bay Journal Media Inc | Mayo, MD | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Kiwanis Foundation of Roanoke | Roanoke, VA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Nature Forward Inc | Chevy Chase, MD | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Waterkeepers Chesapeake Inc | Silver Spring, MD | $47,500 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Northern Virginia Conservation Trust | Annandale, VA | $45,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Mariners Museum | Newport News, VA | $42,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Appalachian Conservation Corps | Harrisonburg, VA | $42,400 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Friends of the Lower Appomattox River Inc | Petersburg, VA | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Virginia Academy of Science | Richmond, VA | $36,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| National Parks Conservation Association | Washington, DC | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Nature Conservancy | Arlington, VA | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Ridge to Reefs Inc | Eldersburg, MD | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| University of Virginia School of Architecture | Charlottesvle, VA | $29,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Virginia Tech College of Natural Resources and Environment | Blacksburg, VA | $27,870 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Friends of the Rappahannock Inc | Fredericksbrg, VA | $26,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Calleva Inc | Poolesville, MD | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Elizabeth River Project | Norfolk, VA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Science Museum of Virginia Foundation Incorporated | Richmond, VA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Valley Conservation Council Inc | Harrisonburg, VA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Marine Science Consortium Inc | Wallops Is, VA | $24,125 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Upper Tennessee River Roundtable | Abingdon, VA | $22,569 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Virginia Association for Environmental Education | Herndon, VA | $21,500 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Western Virginia Water Authority | Roanoke, VA | $20,816 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| 500 Year Forest Foundation | Lynchburg, VA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Defensores De La Cuenca | Hyattsville, MD | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Land Trust of Virginia Inc | Middleburg, VA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Northern Neck Land Conservancy Inc | Warsaw, VA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Blue Ridge Discovery Center Inc | Troutdale, VA | $17,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Roanoke College | Salem, VA | $16,020 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay Inc | Annapolis, MD | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Foundation of the Flora of Virginia Project Inc | Richmond, VA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Indigenous Conservation Council | Alexandria, VA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Community Climate Collaborative Inc | Charlottesvle, VA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Dan River Basin Association | Eden, NC | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Ever Green Team | Blackstone, VA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| National Wildlife Federation | Reston, VA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The University of Virginias College at Wise Foundation Inc | Wise, VA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Commonwealth of Virginia | Lexington, VA | $7,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Vmi - Environment Virginia Symposium | Lexington, VA | $7,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
33 of 71 (46%) received money in more than one year over the 4 years we hold. Remember the $5,000 floor: an organization funded every year at $3,000 shows up here as never funded at all.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose column of its filings, largest first. This is the closest thing to a statement of what it funds, in its own words.
- Chesapeake Bay Foundation
BUFFER RESTORATION IN THE UPPER JAMES RIVER WATERSHEDPHASE 2 - James River Association
RIPARIAN AND LIVING SHORELINE IMPLEMENTATION IN THE MIDDLE AND LOWER JAMES RIVER REGION. - Trout Unlimited
IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF THE ENVIRONMENT - Sustainable Chesapeake
MAKING MANURE INJECTION THE NEW NORMAL IN THE JAMES RIVER BASIN - Wetlands Watch
BUILDING LAND CONSERVATION AND FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT CAPACITY IN WESTERN VIRGINIA - West Virginia Rivers Coalition
WATER POLICY IN WEST VIRGINIA: MAINTAINING INDEPENDENT AND SCIENCE BASED VOICE TO PROTECT WATER RESOURCES
What kind of organizations it funds
By each recipient's own IRS classification, for the 55 of 71 recipients we could match to a registered organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses -- Schedule I reports the recipient's EIN, so this is a lookup rather than a name match.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants reported | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 29 | $2,228,111 | $27,500 |
| 2022 | 32 | $2,721,047 | $25,000 |
| 2023 | 26 | $1,431,445 | $25,000 |
| 2024 | 37 | $2,580,878 | $25,000 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- Form 990 arrives about a year after the year it covers, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a grantmaker winding down.
Where its money goes
69% of its giving went to organizations in Virginia. Community foundations and federated funds are usually the most geographically bounded funders there are -- being outside the footprint is normally disqualifying in a way that a weak programme fit is not.
Down to the city
Find more funders like Virginia Environmental Endowment
We read newly filed IRS returns and email you the grantmakers whose giving matches your state and cause, as they are published. Free.
No spam, unsubscribe in one click. We never sell or share your address.
Funders that support the same organizations
These grantmakers and private foundations gave to organizations this one also funded. Shared grantees are the strongest signal available that two funders have overlapping priorities -- and a funder already backing your peers is a far warmer prospect than one that merely lists your cause.
How to approach this grantmaker
- Look for a published programme first. Unlike most private foundations, organizations of this kind often do run open, deadlined grant cycles with written guidelines. Its own website is the authority on that; this page is the authority on who it has actually paid.
- Check you are its size. The median reported grant is $25,000 -- and because grants under $5,000 need not be reported, it very likely writes smaller cheques than this page can see.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving concentrates in Virginia.
- Read the recipient list for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer and a cheap one to get.
Related guides
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from Virginia Environmental Endowment's own Form 990 Schedule I filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2021-2024). Nothing here is scraped, inferred or estimated.
On its most recent return it told the IRS it made grants to 37 section 501(c)(3) organizations and 0 other organizations. That is the filer's own count for one year; the totals above cover every year we hold.
Address of record on the latest return: Po Box 790, Richmond, VA, 23218.
EIN 54-1041973 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
Is something here wrong about your organization? Email hello@funderscope.com and we will correct it.