The Two Rivers Giving Circle Fund was established at the Eastern West Virginia Community Foundation in 2007 by a group of like-minded donors who wanted to focus on local conservation and preservation grantmaking in the Eastern Panhandle. Since its inception, the Two Rivers Giving Circle has awarded more than $66,000 in grants and this year will distribute nearly $8,000 to organizations that submit winning proposals by the September 15th deadline.
Grant awards generally range from $500 to $2,500. Committee members will review and consider a wide variety of grant categories including ones that focus on any or all of the following:
- Safeguarding Habitat: Protection of habitat is critical to the preservation of biodiversity. Focus is placed on buffer zones, wildlife areas, watersheds, and functioning ecosystems.
- Children and Nature: Outdoor or environmental programs that address youth activism, knowledge, hands-on activity, and physical movement.
- Saving Panhandle Treasures: Initiatives that provide increased protection of historic, cultural, and pastoral places in the Eastern Panhandle.
- Waste and Recycling: Efforts that catalyze underserved recycling efforts, promote effective household waste treatment and deter non-point source pollution in the region.
- Energy Conservation: Initiatives that promote increased energy conservation and decreased consumption behaviors in our community.
- Growing the Movement: Programs that engage, organize, and empower volunteerism and leadership in the fields of conservation and preservation.
Once proposals have been reviewed, Two Rivers Giving Circle representatives may contact applicants for a phone or face-to-face interview and site visit. Grants winners will be announced by November 30, 2017.
Organizations interested in applying for a Two Rivers Giving Circle grant can download instructions and an application here.
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