The Chesapeake Bay Trust (Trust) is excited to announce that the application for the Capacity Building Initiative Award Program is now open! 


Background & Purpose: The Capacity Building Grant Program seeks to support the capacity of organizations working at the intersection of natural resource and community well-being. “Organizational capacity” is defined as activities that strengthen an organization to help it better fulfill its mission. Organizations that are strong and healthy are more effective in carrying out their missions and are more consistent and sustainable partners.

Funding for the Capacity Building Initiative is provided by members of the Chesapeake Bay Funders Network (CBFN), specifically the Agua Fund, Chesapeake Bay Trust, Prince Charitable Trust, and The Campbell Foundation. Additional support is also provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Chesapeake Bay Program and the Philip Merrill Foundation.

What does this program fund?

Capacity-building projects should address challenges to improve an organization or local government’s long-term effectiveness. Applicants can focus on building their own internal capacity or building capacity for other organizations or local governments. Examples include:

• Contractual support for organizational effectiveness assessments.
• Support for conducting enterprise risk management, including scenario planning.
• Strategic plan development or refinement.
• Fundraising plan development.
• Technology or database assistance.
• Operational process improvements.
• Staff training.
• Board development.
• Shared technical assistance models. This category covers both technical assistance providers offering services to multiple nonprofits / local governments, or groups of organizations jointly seeking support for shared needs.
• Collaboration and mergers.

While general operating support is outside the scope of this Capacity Building grant program, funding is eligible for staff time directly dedicated to the execution of an awarded project. A comprehensive list of eligible project types is provided in Appendix B of the RFP.

Who can apply? Requests are encouraged from nonprofit organizations and tribal or local governments that:

  • Provide services within the Chesapeake watershed, including the DC, DE, MD, NY, PA, VA, and WV portions of the watershed, and the Maryland Coastal Bays and Youghiogheny watersheds in Maryland.
  • Have a water and/or natural resource focus within their work aligned with the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement goals.

Nonprofits must also:

  • Have between 1 and 50 staff members.
  • Employ at least one full-time staff member (35+ hours per week) or have a dedicated volunteer contributing 35+ hours per week.
  • Have an active Board of Directors.

For all eligibility requirements, refer to our website and Request for Proposals here

How much can be awarded? Funding requests will generally not exceed $40,000 for non-profits and $150,000 for local governments. Requests may exceed these levels with additional justification.

How much is available in the program? Up to $1.6 million is anticipated for this funding round.  The final amount is contingent on federal funding availability.

Application Process: The Chesapeake Bay Trust’s grant applications are all submitted through our online system. To apply visit our website here. The deadline for this program is Thursday, July 17th, 2025 at 5pm EST.

For technical assistance contact the program manager Amber Cameron at (410) 974-2941 x 124 or acameron@cbtrust.org