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WHALE TAIL® Grant

Grantor:
Coastal Commission
Portal ID:
151083
Status:
Closed
Open Date:
10/10/25 10:00
Opportunity Type:
  • Grant
Last Updated:
 | 
Categories:

Details

Purpose:

WHALE TAIL® Grants help people connect to the California coast and its watersheds through experiential education, stewardship, and outdoor experiences. WHALE TAIL® Grants focus on engaging communities that face barriers accessing marine education and stewardship opportunities, and can engage participants of any age anywhere in California.

Description:

Projects must engage communities in California and include education about coastal and marine environments. This may include classroom-based programs, field trips, climate change education and stewardship, coastal habitat restoration or shoreline cleanup programs with community involvement, community or participatory science, cultural and ancestral practice preservation, workforce development, and much more. We strongly encourage projects engaging communities that face barriers accessing coastal and marine education and stewardship. We also look for applicant organizations based in and composed of the communities they are engaging. We strive for a broad geographic distribution of projects across California. 

Interested parties complete and submit a full application by the deadline. Grants up to $50,000 may be awarded. We anticipate $2,000,000 will be distributed with approximately half dedicated through a tribal set-aside to projects led by California Native American tribes, tribally-led entities, and organizations engaging California Native American tribal communities. At least 25% of projects funded outside of the tribal set-aside will be small grants up to $25,000. Proposals are due December 15, 2025.

Eligibility Requirements

Eligible Applicants:

  • Nonprofit
  • Public Agency
  • Tribal Government

Eligible applicants are non-profit 501(c)(3) organizations, projects of a non-profit fiscal sponsor, public schools or districts, government entities, Federally Recognized Tribes and other California Native American Tribes as defined by Governor’s Executive Order B-10-11.

Eligible Geographies:

Grant projects can take place anywhere in California and must engage audiences within California, with a priority for communities that face barriers accessing coastal and marine education and stewardship.

Important Dates

The date (and time, where applicable) by which all applications must be submitted to the grantmaker. Time listed as “00:00” equates to midnight.
The date on which the grantor expects to announce the recipient(s) of the grant.
April 2026
The length of time during which the grant money must be utilized.
Up to approx. 2 yrs

Funding Details

The total projected dollar amount of the grant.
$2,000,000
A single grant opportunity may represent one or many awards. Some grantors may know in advance the exact number of awards to be given. Others may indicate a range. Some may wish to and wait until the application period closes before determining how many awards to offer; in this case, a value of “Dependent” will display.
Dependent
Grant opportunities representing multiple awards may offer awards in the same amount or in varied amounts. Some may wish to wait until the application period closes before determining per-award amounts; in this case, a value of “Dependent” will display.
$1 – $50,000
Certain grants require that the recipient(s) provide a letter of intent.
No
Certain grants require that the recipient(s) be able to fully or partially match the grant award amount with another funding source.
No
The funding source allocated to fund the grant. It may be either State or Federal (or a combination of both), and be tied to a specific piece of legislation, a proposition, or a bond number.
  • State

Funding Source Notes:

FY25-26 WHALE TAIL® Competitive Grants will be funded through a partnership with the California Ocean Protection Council with funding from California Climate Investments.

The WHALE TAIL® Grants Program is supported by purchases of WHALE TAIL® License Plates and donations to the Protect Our Coast and Oceans Fund on the State Tax Form.

The manner in which the grant funding will be delivered to the awardee. Funding methods include reimbursements (where the recipient spends out-of-pocket and is reimbursed by the grantor) and advances (where the recipient spends received grant funds directly).
  • Advances & Reimbursement(s)

Funding Method Notes:

WHALE TAIL® Grants are generally reimbursement grants. Projects of non-profits and tribes may request an advance of up to 25% of the total grant amount. Please read the WHALE TAIL® Grant guidelines for advance payment requirements.

How to Apply

State agencies/departments recommend you read the full grant guidelines before applying.

Resources

For questions about this grant, contact:
Jessica Lie, 1-415-604-5665, Jessica.Lie@coastal.ca.gov

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