Parks and Parkways Tree Planting Grant

The Department of Parks & Parkways, through a one-time allocation from City Council, is providing funding to assist nonprofit partners in Orleans Parish in planting trees on public property in the City of New Orleans. This award will provide support for nonprofit partners to aid Parks & Parkways in their citywide tree planting projects and will help the City reach its goal of restoring and expanding New Orleans urban forest with 40,000 new trees planted by 2030.

How to Apply for Funding 

$225,000 is available for this round of funding. The average grant size is $20,000; grants may be larger or smaller.

Tax-exempt nonprofit organizations located in Orleans Parish are eligible to apply.

Applicants should submit their completed proposal (including supporting material) via the Foundation’s online portal.  

If your organization has already created a profile, simply log in with the same information and you will be able to apply to the Parks and Parkways Tree Planting Grant.  If not, setting up a profile is a very easy process.  Creating a profile will allow you to track the status of your grants from the Foundation’s various programs in the future as we bring more programs online.

Our technology partner, Foundant, has created a brief tutorial for applicants that may be viewed here.

If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to email grants@nocsf.org.

Specific Guidelines

Awarded funds may be used for tree planting, supplies, and planting related expenses. Awards may not be used for general operating support, fundraising, or lobbying activities.

Applications will be reviewed by a committee of stakeholders lead by the Foundation.

Priority will be given to organizations that demonstrate one or more of the following: 

• Strong leadership at the staff and board level
• Good fiscal management
• Track record of success planting trees
• Organizational capacity
• Commitment to equity for communities and populations in high need
• Thoughtful involvement of community members as leaders and advisors
• Key contributions to the health and vibrancy of the communities they serve

Grantmaking Schedule

Grant requests must be received by 11:59 pm on the deadline date. The deadline and notification dates are:

Application deadline:
September 20, 2024

Notification date:
October 2024

Reporting Requirements

If a grant is awarded, the grantee is required to submit interim and final programmatic and financial reports outlining the use of grant funds. Awarded funds must be expended by 2025.

If a grant is awarded, grant recipients must register for and utilize the Department of Parks & Parkways developed Tree Collector Application to ensure all planted trees are captured in the department’s tree inventory. Additional details will be provided upon awarding of the grant.