Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg Foundation
/OVERVIEW: The Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg Foundation supports programs that encourage local communities to address the depletion of natural resources and wildlife habitats.
IP TAKE: This funder dedicates a good portion of its grantmaking to the interior west region of the United States. Although it primarily funds big game conservation of iconic animals, the foundation also funds conservation efforts that support wildlife habitats and big game proliferation. This funder’s grants generally take the form of seed money, continuing support, and matching or challenge support. It also tends to support established, large organizations.
PROFILE: Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg established their foundation in 1987 during a trip to Africa. The Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg Foundation (LCAOF) is “a private body devoted to the conservation of nature and amelioration of human distress.” Fashion designer Claiborne and husband Ortenberg created their foundation in 1987 during their first trip to Africa, after they were both deeply affected by their first encounter with elephants. Since then it has grown to take on different global regions, focusing on animals ranging from the tiger to the grizzly. But the elephant remains the heart of the program. The foundation’s grantmaking supports groups that address species extinction, habitat destruction, and resource depletion.
Grants for Environmental Conservation, Animal Welfare and Wildlife
The foundation divides its animal and wildlife grantmaking by geographic region. The Asia program supports efforts to save endangered tigers. The foundation’s Sub-Saharan Africa grants support “some of the most iconic megafauna on the planet,” including savannah elephants, critically endangered black rhinos, lion prides, and migratory wildebeest. Central and South America grants focus on programs working to save the endangered jaguar. The foundation also supports efforts in Madagascar to build “strong governance and management of protected areas, community development, effective environmental law enforcement, and ecological resilience.” In the United States, it supports the Transboundary Rockies region where wildlife is put at risk by the loss of habitat and connectivity, and increased potential for human-wildlife conflict. The foundation seeks ways to mobilize local communities toward relieving human pressures on animals and the environment, with a focus on projects that address species extinction, habitat destruction and fragmentation, and resource depletion and waste.
Panthera, the African Conservation Fund, the Audubon Society, Defenders of Wildlife, and The Nature Conservancy are past grantees. However, the foundation also supports new projects and organizations. Grants range from a few thousand into the hundreds of thousands. Grant seekers can explore a list of the foundation's recent grantees here.
Important Grant Details:
The board of directors is composed of many renowned conservationists, biologists and authors who are considered pioneers in their fields. The Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg Foundation does not accept unsolicited applications, but it may be contacted at lcaof@lcaof.org.
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