How We Fund

Eric Bissell

Patagonia supports environmental organisations with bold, direct-action agendas and a commitment to long-term change.

We support innovative work that addresses the root causes of the environmental crisis and seeks to protect both the environment and affected communities. We focus on places where we’ve built connections through outdoor recreation and through our network of retail stores, nationally and internationally.

We believe local battles to protect a specific stand of forest, a stretch of river, an indigenous wild species or a community from a polluting refinery build public support and confront larger, more complex issues like climate change, biodiversity loss and environmental justice.

We encourage work that brings underrepresented communities to the forefront of the environmental movement and defends communities whose health and livelihoods are threatened by environmental exploitation.

We support multipronged campaigns that push for greater environmental protections and force the government to abide by its own laws.

We fund work that:

builds an equitable, inclusive and diverse environmental movement

confronts systemic bias, discrimination and injustice in environmental policy or outdoor spaces

is action-oriented

focuses on root causes

has a clear strategy

identifies specific goals and objectives that can be effectively measured to evaluate success

builds public involvement and civic engagement

takes place within the following countries: Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Czechia, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States.

We do not fund:

organisations that perpetuate systemic biases and discrimination based on ethnicity, race, religion, color, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, age, national origin, ancestry, citizenship or veteran or disability status

organisations without 501(c)(3) status or a comparable fiscal sponsor

trail creation, maintenance or restoration

any dam renovations, human-assisted fish passage infrastructure or hatchery programs

conservation easements or land acquisition

research, unless it is in direct support of a developed plan for specific action to alleviate an environmental problem

projects that are solely focused on environmental education

environmental conferences, event sponsorships or film festivals

endowment funds

political campaigns

green building projects

bike advocacy, unless the project is in direct support of a climate change solution

Patagonia believes that the most direct path to real change is through building grassroots momentum.

Our funding focuses on organisations that have or can create a strong base of support. Because we’re a privately held company, we have the freedom to fund risk-taking, off-the-beaten-track groups, and that’s where we believe our small grants are most effective.

We accept one proposal per group in a given fiscal year (May 1–April 30), with deadlines varying from program to program. Our typical grant size also varies from program to program, but generally ranges between $5,000 USD and $20,000 USD.

If you are interested in Patagonia’s grants program and you would like to share with us some information about your project or campaign, please fill in this survey. If your organisation is deemed eligible for funding, you will then receive an invitation to apply for a grant.

If you have any questions about the grants program more broadly and would like to chat to our grants team, please email grants@patagonia.com.au