Weyerhaeuser Family Foundation
/OVERVIEW: The Weyerhaeuser Foundation seeks organizations that promote and build sustainable forest communities, help girls and women in least developed countries overcome poverty and violence, and provide direct services for children who have been exposed to adverse childhood experiences.
IP TAKE: This accessible funder emphasizes clearly stated goals and measurable results. Grantees also have the opportunity for multi-year funding, making this giving more crowded and competitive. It has recently restructured and significantly changed its grantmaking approach, so even returning grantseekers will want to examine the foundation’s program pages carefully.
PROFILE: Based in St. Paul, Minnesota, the Weyerhaeuser Family Foundation—not affiliated with the Weyerhaeuser Company Foundation—was created in 1950 by members of the Weyerhaeuser family. It seeks to promote “the welfare of human and natural resources.” The foundation awards both domestic and international grants through its Youth, International, and Sustainable Forest and Communities initiatives.
Grants for Mental Health and Violence Prevention
Weyerhaeuser does not have specific mental health or violence prevention grantmaking programs; however, its Youth Initiative prioritizes support for children who have been subjected to adverse experiences and and works to promote “resilience, stability, and psycho-social health for youth” ages 14 to 21 “who have been traumatized by Adverse Childhood Experiences.” To those ends, the foundation supports groups that help children cope with not only the physical injuries, but also the emotional and mental trauma of separation or divorce, emotional or physical neglect, mother treated violently, substance abuse in the household, mental illness in the household, incarceration of a household member, and/or emotional, physical or sexual abuse.
Another mental health component in the foundation’s Youth Initiative grantmaking is its support for organizations that work with families to prevent future abuse and break the cycle of violence. Violence prevention grants tend to focus on children, women, and families.
Past violence prevention grantees include 180 Turning Lives Around, which received funding for its child and parent domestic violence project and Family Pathways, which received a grant for its program supporting children who witness domestic violence.
Grants for Global Development and Women and Girls
The foundation’s Sustainable Forest and Communities initiative supports organizations and programs that promote economic opportunity, education, and the “physical and psychological well-being of girls, women and their children.” Weyerhaeuser's female centered focus seeks to “advance opportunity, equity, and well-being for women and girls in developing countries by helping them overcome hardship, reach their full potential, and help their families and communities to flourish.” The foundation’s specific priorities in this area include programs and projects that promote conomic opportunity, education and physical and mental health.
Past grantees include the Africa School Assistance Project, which received support for its Kupanda Project for Girls. Global AIDS Interfaith Alliance has also received funding for Weyerhaeuser for its Girls’ Empowerment Though Updated Practices or GETUP! Program.
Grants for Environment and Community Development
The foundation’s Sustainable Forest and Communities initiative supports organizations that promote “[t]he creation of environmentally and economically sustainable forest communities.” Grants are limited to regions where the family’s “business interests originated,” which includes Idaho, Oregon, Washington, northern California, western Montana, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. Areas of interest include sustainable forest management, enterprise-based economic activities, using social and locally based business processes, and forest ecosystem services.
Examples of past grantees include the Pinchot Partnership, which received support for its Forest-wide Huckleberry Restoration. Redwood Forest Foundation Inc. is also a past grantee, which received a grant for its From Forest to Farm program.
Important Grant Details:
The grant size for Weyerhaeuser initiatives currently runs $50,000 or less. The foundation considers requests for multi-year support for up to three years. Grantseekers should look over each individual initiative page to learn more about specific requirements and guidelines for each program. Information about the kinds of organizations the foundation supports is available on its Past Grants webpage.
The foundation accepts unsolicited grant applications. Initial Applications are typically due around March 1 and second stage applications are generally due around August 1, but grantseekers should confirm by researching the site. Deadline dates are subject to change, so grantseekers should keep a close watch on the foundation’s website to stay abreast of any changes.
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