Environment Special Initiative History The Roy A. Hunt Foundation's interest in the environment is a natural outgrowth of its donors' early interests in botanical subject matter. Most notably, in 1960, Mr. and Mrs. Roy A. Hunt established the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation at Carnegie Mellon University to advance the field of botanical research and to house the unique treasure of botanical literature, art, and archival materials that Mrs. Hunt had collected during her lifetime. As a family foundation, the Hunt Foundation over the years has provided support to a variety of environmental organizations and programs, reflecting the diverse interests and political viewpoints of individual trustees. Support largely has included general operating grants to a range of natural resource conservation efforts, ecosystem restoration programs, animal welfare organizations, and to environmental education. Relatively modest in size, such grants will continue, according to the interests of the individual trustees who sponsor them, in a role separate but complementary to the mission and objectives of the Foundation's new Environment Program. Vision: Living in Harmony We envision a natural environment that is understood and respected as a web of interconnections of which human beings are a part, where people live in harmony within the earth's ecological systems, where biodiversity is preserved as an integral component of economic and technological progress, and where human impact on earth serves to maintain sustainable processes. Mission Within our Environment Program, our mission is to facilitate the protection and conservation of natural resources and healthy ecosystems by supporting sustainable solutions to root causes of environmental damage.  [ Environment 2010–2011 Grants List ] Program Objectives Under the Environment Program, the Foundation will consider grant requests of between $25,000 and $50,000 to support a broad range of programs designed to benefit, conserve, and/or restore natural resources and ecosystems. Requests for projects, initiatives, or programs that are part of a strategic plan that will take the applying organization to a new level of service delivery or that will substantially advance the purpose of the applicant are preferred over requests for support of core programs. Because we believe that environmental considerations should be an integral component of conducting business as well as daily living, a major objective of the Environment Program is to encourage compatibility between economic development and environmental protection. That is, we want to promote strategic activities that create incentives for environmentally responsible decisions in the private sector. Program Priorities Smart Growth and Land Management; Forest Management Recognizing that the economy, environment, and communities are inextricably linked, the Foundation is interested in addressing issues related to sustainable land use and land management. As a subset of land management, the Foundation is also interested in forest management. Thus, for example, strategies to advance sustainable logging or food system production, or efforts to reclaim brownfields, would be of interest to the Foundation. Environmental Education and Research; Strengthening the Environmental Community The Foundation is interested in education programs designed to raise public awareness, promote environmental sustainability, nurture leadership, and strengthen the ethic of stewardship. On a highly selective basis, the Foundation will consider projects designed to evaluate program effectiveness or build capacity in environmental nonprofit organizations. Watersheds; Conservation of Freshwater Ecosystems in North America The Foundation is interested in programs that restore and protect freshwater quality and quantity. Strategies to prevent and mitigate the effects of hazardous industrial, agricultural, or household wastes are of particular interest. Climate and Atmosphere The Foundation's primary interest is in developing and promoting business-friendly approaches and economic levers to stem the factors (for example, consumption and production methods of traditional energy sources) that contribute to atmospheric pollution. This includes creating economic signals and incentives that will encourage private businesses and others to independently take steps toward the elimination of source pollutants. Preferred Proposal Attributes The Hunt Foundation prefers: •  Creative approaches that could be replicated or have the potential for national or significant impact. •  Sustainable strategies or programs that could have broad environmental benefits or lead to systemic change. •  Strategies that use economic levers to achieve program objectives. •  Self-sustaining programs, that is, those that can generate long-term support. •  Nonpartisan policy analysis or research.   Exclusions While the Hunt Foundation's environmental interests are wide-ranging, the Foundation in most cases will not consider proposals for: •  Grants to individuals. •  International programs that have no activity or representation in the United States. •  Endowments.     Applicants should send an initial letter of inquiry as advised under "Applying for a Grant."