Deadline: Ongoing Opportunity

The Waitt Foundation is seeking applications for its Rapid Ocean Conservation (ROC) Grants Program.

ROC Grants provide small grants with a quick turnaround time for solutions to emerging conservation issues and ocean protection. This complements the Waitt Foundation’s existing major grants program and is responsive to conservation opportunities, supports higher-risk ideas at a low financial cost, and engages with small, local NGOs on a global scale.

Themes

Grants will fund projects related to the Waitt Foundation’s mission of supporting sustainable fishing and marine protected areas (MPAs). This includes sub-themes of:

• Scientific Research – Includes natural science or social science projects.
• Policy – Includes opportunistic projects around unique public policy windows, such as preparation of policy analysis and support of experts’ efforts to inform decision makers on upcoming government actions.
• Management – Includes enforcement and infrastructure support.
• Communications – Includes raising public awareness and engaging stakeholders, including advertising by a 501(c)3 group around a public policy moment.

Funding Information

• Proposals for grants up to $20,000 will be reviewed on a monthly rolling basis.
• Project Duration – 6 months

Eligibility Criteria

• As long as you are affiliated with a non-profit public charity (or equivalent in your country of residence), you are eligible to apply for funding.
• They do not provide emergency funding through the ROC Grants program.
• The ROC Grants program only provides grants to applicants that have a public charity status.
• They do not provide grants in support of thesis projects.
• Although your project may have been previously declined, you may resubmit an application for funding at any time.
• They do not provide funding in support of previously approved grants and cannot provide continuous funding for any projects.

Evaluation Criteria

• Funding Urgency – How quickly the project needs to begin for maximum effectiveness.
• Conservation Impact – Magnitude of ecological, socioeconomic, and policy benefit.
• Scale of Impact – Geographic area and likeliness of applicability/replication elsewhere.
• Feasibility of Implementation – Based on socioeconomic and public policy context.
• Organizational Capacity – Adequate human capital size and expertise to execute project.

For more information, visit https://www.waittfoundation.org/roc-grants