NFWF/EPA Five Star and Urban Waters Restoration Grants

Small grants ($20,000-$50,000) for community-based wetland, stream, and urban water restoration with strong community engagement and education components. Ideal for grassroots groups doing on-the-ground restoration paired with outreach.

The Five Star and Urban Waters Restoration Grant program, run by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation in partnership with EPA and corporate funders, awards small grants for community-based restoration of wetlands, streams, urban waterways, and forest buffers. Awards typically range from $20,000 to $50,000 — small enough that the application is approachable for an all-volunteer group, large enough to actually accomplish meaningful work.The program's defining characteristic is the requirement that projects integrate at least five funding partners (the 'Five Star' name) and engage local volunteers and youth through hands-on environmental education and stewardship activities. This makes it a natural fit for a watershed group partnering with a school, a municipality, a faith-based organization, and a local business on a stream cleanup, riparian planting, or wetland restoration project.The Urban Waters track specifically prioritizes projects in underserved urban communities and is a strong fit for SW PA towns where post-industrial waterfronts overlap with environmental justice concerns. Annual cycle, typically with a winter or early spring deadline.