Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies
/OVERVIEW: Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies is a major funder that makes grants in seven programming areas: animal welfare, arts & cultures, disaster relief, the environment, legacy and opportunity (this includes grantmaking in the Upper Midwest and Southern California), quality of life, and teachers & students (supporting rural and Native American college students, as well as teachers and teacher retention).
IP TAKE: Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies (MACP), with $8 billion in assets as of 2023, is one of the largest charitable organizations in the U.S. It has a unique structure, comprised of two distinct foundations: the Anne Ray Foundation, which funds a small number of nonprofits selected by Margaret A. Cargill during her lifetime, and the Margaret A. Cargill Foundation, which works with both new and existing grantee partners and is an evolving, dynamic grantmaker. MACP is devoted to its seven programming areas, which it calls domains, and defines its grantmaking as guided by “highly defined interest areas and geographies.” This funder is transparent about its financials, with annual reports and 990s on its website, yet less transparent about grantmaking—MACP lists recent grantee partners, but doesn’t attach dollar amounts. This funder tends to work with larger, established organizations, though some smaller organizations are supported as well. MACP believes that the best way to exact lasting change within its issue areas is “by investing in long-term relationships with key grantees, strengthening [its] combined abilities to make a meaningful difference in the world.”
All told, MACP is not a particularly approachable funder. Grants are by invitation only, and staff email addresses are not available online. Some previous grantees and applicants have reported that the organization is “opaque,” “bureaucratic,” and “outdated” when it comes to its grantmaking process, while others say that they received “unexpected grants without applying.” Still, this funder may be a legitimate longshot for nonprofits working within MACP’s clearly-defined areas of interest and geographies. For interested grant seekers, networking will be key, along with a sober analysis of whether one’s nonprofit truly fits within MACP’s approach and issue areas.
PROFILE: Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies (MACP) is an umbrella organization that includes the Margaret A. Cargill Foundation and the Anne Ray Foundation. Margaret Anne Cargill was the granddaughter of W.W. Cargill, the founder of the Midwest agricultural giant, and one of the eight heirs to the Cargill fortune. The MACF, originally called the Akaloa Foundation, was created out of Cargill’s estate after her death in 2006, and its mission is to “provide meaningful assistance and support to society, the arts and the environment.” The MACF's grantmaking strategy is divided into seven domains: Arts and Culture, Disaster Relief and Recovery, Environment, Animal Welfare, Quality of Life, Teachers & Students and Legacy and Opportunity.
Grants for Arts & Culture
MACP funds the arts through its Arts and Culture domain, which supports "folk arts, Native American art, music, tactile art, and artistically significant crafts that foster human creativity." Within the scope of this program, the foundation offers two subprograms: native arts and cultures, and folk arts and cultures.
Native arts and cultures funding supports organizations in the Upper Midwest, Montana, Idaho, the Pacific Northwest and the Southwest. While the foundation prioritizes these areas, it also funds organizations beyond them. Cargill supports work that strengthens networks of Native artists and their communities.
The folk arts and cultures program funds projects that foster a “deep understanding, wide practice, and broad recognition of Scandinavian folk arts and culture.”
Grants are generally restricted to organizations located in the Upper Midwest and those serving the Appalachian folk culture of the Southeast.
Past arts grantees include organizations like North House Folk School in Minnesota and First People’s Fund in South Dakota. Cargill is also expanding its arts giving into music education, with a “small portfolio of grants” focused around British Columbia and select U.S. regions.
Grants for Environment
Cargill offers climate change and conservation opportunities through its Environment program. The program supports community-based solutions focused on the "conservation of natural resources and protection of natural habitats."
The foundation’s marine conservation grants prioritize the Alaskan and British Columbia coasts, Micronesia and the Sunda-Banda Seascape in Indonesia; however, it funds projects around the globe.
Cargill’s climate change and environmental grants support international and community-based approaches to combat ecosystem degradation and climate change on coastal, river, tropical forest and grassland communities.
Its animal and wildlife grants prioritize the wellbeing of domestic animals, rehabilitation of injured wild animals for eventual release, and programs to increase compassion toward animals.
Grants for Marine Conservation
The foundation primarily conducts its marine-related grantmaking through two subprograms, Coastal Ecosystems and Freshwater Ecosystems.
The Coastal program addresses coral reefs, mangroves and coastal wetlands. The foundation's work in this area seeks to develop strategies that sustain "themselves in harmony with their environment, particularly in the face of rising sea levels and other climate change impacts."
Similarly, the Freshwater program supports "important river basins and the development of sustainable strategies for the communities who depend on these ecosystems to thrive."
Past marine conservation grantees include the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and the Lake Ponchartrain Basin Foundation.
Past marine conservation grantees include the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and the Lake Ponchartrain Basin Foundation.
Grants for Climate Change and the Environment
Cargill’s climate change and environmental conservation grantmaking primarily happens via its Tropical Forests and Grasslands programs.
Grants for tropical forests help communities “develop symbiotic strategies to sustain themselves and their vital forest ecosystems.”
Grasslands grants support “grassland-dependent communities with community-based conservation programs and sustainable strategies to preserve these vanishing ecosystems.”
Past grantees include Climate and Land Use Alliance, Alliance for Conservation Evidence and Sustainability, and the Center for Marine Conservation in Bali, Indonesia.
Past grantees include Climate and Land Use Alliance, Alliance for Conservation Evidence and Sustainability, and the Center for Marine Conservation in Bali, Indonesia.
Grants for Animals and Wildlife
MACP’s Animal Welfare funds efforts to boost the wellbeing of domestic animals and injured wild animals and to increase empathy toward animals among children and adults. The Animal Welfare program features three subprograms:
The Companion Animals subprogram helps local shelters with community outreach programs, spay/neuter programs, and sheltering homeless animals.
The Empathy and Compassion to Animals program works through accredited zoos and aquariums and awards grants to organizations that “[foster] strong connections between humans and other animals, focusing on children and teens.
The Wildlife Rehabilitation subprogram supports groups helping sick, orphaned and injured wild animals recover with the goal of releasing them back into the wild. This subprogram also funds habitat restoration projects.
Past grantees include National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Wildlife Conservation Society and Animal Shelter of the Wood River Valley.
Past grantees include National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Wildlife Conservation Society, and Animal Shelter of the Wood River Valley.
Grants for Work and Opportunity
Cargill’s Quality of Life grantmaking supports “evidence-based interventions that address the needs of vulnerable individuals and families in key transitional stages of life.” One component of this centers around Family Stability, which “help[s] vulnerable families achieve greater stability, build supports and increase self-sufficiency.” The MACP favors grants that focus on community-based programs, which support underserved or low-attention areas and causes, rather than policy initiatives or endowments.
Cargill also conducts some grantmaking for economic opportunity through its Legacy and Opportunity program grants, which “provide flexible funding for opportunities aligned with MACP's values and philosophy and support for specific geographies” important to Margaret Cargill, including the Upper Midwest and Southern California.
Past grantees include College Possible, American Indian College Fund and the Jeremiah Program.
Grants for Youth and Education
MACF’s conducts education grantmaking through its Teachers & Students domain. Grants for teachers seek to fund programs and organizations that “support recruitment, training, and retention of qualified people for the teaching profession.”
Cargill’s Postsecondary Success subprogram aims to improve outcomes for rural and Native American youth by “increasing institutional commitment to student success and investing in interventions across key moments of the student experience.” This program prioritizes Wisconsin and Alaska.
Past grantees include Alaska State Council on the Arts, Juneau School District, and School District of Menomonie.
Cargill also makes grants for Youth Camping and Swimming through its Quality of Life domain. These grants aim to improve quality and access to overnight camps, especially for “youth that have been historically excluded from these experiences.” It also supports swimming lessons for all youth to “enhance awareness and education regarding water safety and drowning prevention.”
Grants for Public Health
Cargill also makes grants that prioritize support for “life’s journey at vulnerable stages for children, young adults, families and older adults.” Consequently, its Aging subprogram in its Quality of Life domain enables “older adults in targeted rural communities to live their lives with autonomy and dignity.” These grants seek to “engage older adults and their caregivers in their own health, promote social engagement, provide access to services and supports, and strengthen the quality of care provided by formal and informal caregivers.”
The foundation’s Youth Camping & Swimming program seeks to “support camps, swimming and other enrichment experiences that provide positive, affirming and safe exposure to nature and build character and community for all youth.”
MACF has also established a limited fund to address the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic within local communities. Past public health grantees include Pathfinder International, Empire Health Foundation, Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, Save the Children Federation and Helen Bader Foundation.
Grants for Humanitarian and Disaster Relief
The MACP takes a long view of its Disaster Relief and Recovery efforts and thus focuses on preparing communities for future catastrophes through preparedness, and relief and recovery efforts. Cargill’s related grantmaking emphasizes building resilience among vulnerable populations in areas of the world with a history of experiencing recurring disasters. Past grantees include Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Feeding America, and Legal Services Corporation.
Important Grant Details:
Grants range from $100,000 to over $3 million. Grant seekers may review the foundation’s past grantees or consult its tax filings for more information on its grantmaking habits. The foundation's approach to grantmaking emphasizes strengthening the "effectiveness and capacity of [its] key grantee partners by investing in their leadership, management and operational capabilities."
Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies does not accept unsolicited requests for funding.
The Anne Ray Foundation provides ongoing funding to a select groups of organizations chosen before Cargill’s death.
The Margaret A. Cargill Foundation conducts grantmaking proactively based on the foundation’s interpretation of Margaret Cargill’s giving legacy.
Grant seekers may contact the foundation at info@macphil.org for more information. Media inquiries may be directed to Communications Director Leeane Huber at lhuber@macphil.org.
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