Grantmaking at the Buck Foundation
What we fund.
The Buck Foundation is a family foundation with a commitment to peace, social justice and the prevention of climate catastrophe.
New Priority Area — Climate Action: The Buck Foundation supports organizations that are leading climate action advocacy and policy, clean energy production & clean energy workforce (including regenerative agriculture), local and regional climate action plans, and energy efficiency programs.
The Buck Foundation awards grants only to 501(c)(3) organizations and non-governmental agencies. The Buck Foundation will not accept grant requests from individuals, for endowments, or for capital campaigns.
The Buck Foundation awards grants to nonprofit organizations from qualified organizations in Colorado (mainly in the Denver Metro area). Occasionally the board members make small grants to organizations in their home communities.
The average grant size is $10,000 to $20,000.
The Buck Foundation makes both General Operations Support grants and Program Specific grants. General Operating Support provides unrestricted funding to help support and maintain an organization as it pursues its mission. This type of grant is flexible and gives the grantee the ability to use the funds where they are most appropriate.
2025 Grant Partners
Climate Action:
350 Colorado and 350 Montana
BlueGreen Alliance
Colorado Agrivoltaic Learning Center
Conservation Colorado
COSSA Institute
Greenlight America
Cultivando
Denver Food Rescue
GRID Alternatives Colorado
Groundwork Denver
High Country Conservation Center
Lock the Gate (AUS)
Lyra Colorado
Quivira Coalition
The Alliance for Collective Action
Peace & Social Justice:
9to5 Colorado
Coloradans for Immigrant Rights
Asylum Seekers Centre (AUS)
BuildStrong Academy
Housekeys Action Network Denver
Newcomers Fund
RMEOC Drivers Coop
Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network
So All May Eat (SAME Cafe)
Street Fraternity
Street Side Medics (AUS)
Urban Seeds (IN)
Denver Metro Tenants Union
The Buck Foundation’s 2025 grant budget was $640,000 total and the average grant size was $20,000.
2024 Grant Partners
Climate Action:
350 Colorado and 350 Montana
BlueGreen Alliance
COSSA Institute – Rural Climate Ambassador Program
Cultivando
Denver Food Rescue
GRID Alternatives Colorado
High Country Conservation Center
Lock the Gate (AUS)
Quivira Coalition
The Alliance for Collective Action
2024 Homelessness Prevention:
Bayaud Enterprises
Colorado Safe Parking Initiative
Housekeys Action Network Denver
La Puente & Rural Alliance for Dignity
Western Regional Advocacy Project
2024 Youth Opportunity:
Hana Arts
Street Fraternity
Youth Documentary Academy
2024 Community Organizers & Community Resources:
9to5 Colorado
Rocky Mountain Employee Ownership Center (Drivers Co-Op)
So All May Eat Denver
Street Side Medics (AUS)
Urban Seeds (IN)
American Friends Service Committee – Colorado Immigrant Rights Program
House of Welcome (AUS)
The Buck Foundation’s 2024 grant budget was $440,000 total and the average grant size was $10,000 to $20,000.
What We Do Not Fund
- Organizations that discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, except to serve a historically underserved group
- Debt retirement
- Activities, projects, or programs that will have been completed before funding becomes available (no retroactive funding)
- Endowments, or other reserve funds
- Capital campaigns
- Membership or affiliation campaigns, dinners, or special events
- Conferences, symposia, film and video production, and related travel
- Grants that further political doctrine or religious activities
- Grants to individuals
- Scholarships or sponsorships
- Grants to parochial or religious schools or private schools
- Requests from individual schools or departments/programs of universities or colleges
- Requests from foundations/organizations that raise money for individual schools that have not coordinated the request with their central school district/university administration or fundraising arm
- Grants for re-granting purposes
- Multi-year funding requests (Please note: the Buck Foundation, on rare occasions, provides grantees with multi-year grants. However, organizations cannot request such funding)
The Buck Foundation is not currently accepting new Letters of Inquiry
If you want to learn more about the Foundation please contact Erika Church at echurch@thebuckfoundation.org.