Lyda Hill Philanthropies
/OVERVIEW: Lyda Hill Philanthropies is the funding vehicle for the successful entrepreneur and granddaughter of an oil tycoon who supports early stage bio-medical research, environment, ocean preservation, alternative energy, science and math education, and cancer research in Texas and Colorado.
IP TAKE: Hill’s grants are large in size but few in number. As such, it tends to back larger scientific and medical research organizations. In addition to the current foundation priorities, there are several other causes that are important to the founder. As a breast cancer survivor, she has contributed generously to cancer research in the past. This is not an accessible funder and it maintains a strict regional focus. However, it might be worthwhile to contact them to learn more about how they choose who to fund.
PROFILE: Established in 2013, the Lyda Hill Philanthropies is the funding vehicle of Lyda Hill, who describes herself as a “serial entrepreneur” and comes from a long line of successful business leaders in Texas. She is a Dallas native and the granddaughter of oilman and conservative Republican political activist, H.L. Hunt. The foundation is “committed to investing in organizations that make game-changing advances in nature and science, empower nonprofit organizations, and support important advances in our local communities.” Its four main program areas are Science, Nature, Community and Empowering Nonprofits.
Grants for Science Research, STEM Education and Diseases
Lyda Hill Philanthropies’ Science funding supports four main areas of grantmaking: research, education, direct services, and systemic change. Hill’s research grants go to innovative projects with the potential to advance scientific discovery, especially in biomedical fields such as cancer research. It seeks to fund projects that “encourage collaboration, take calculated risks and seek to solve big problems,” prioritizing early-stage research and early career scientists. Its science education grants aim to enhance science teaching and improve science literacy by supporting organizations that are “committed to creating a workforce for the future by inspiring students to pursue careers in science.” Direct services grants support “organizations that provide critical direct services in our community.” Systemic change supports advocacy for policy change at the national and international level in the fields the foundation works in. Past grantees in science funding include the MD Anderson Moon Shots Program and UT Southwestern Medical Center’s Genetic Mutations Database Project. Visit its Program Highlights in Science page for a more complete list.
Early stage bio-medical research and alternative energy are also primary interest areas. Hill founded a women’s breast cancer care center, funded a venture capital fund for biomedical products and therapies, and supports science and math education programs for institutions that she is personally affiliated with.
Grants for Environmental Conservation
Lyda Hills Philanthropies Nature program advocates for “systemic changes in protecting and managing our environmental resources” and funds “research projects making meaningful change ‘on the ground.’” Its Environmental Stewardship/Education grants fund projects that “drive public awareness and appreciation for our natural world and resources,” as well as those that “educate and advocate for sustainable conservation of our most precious natural resources and spaces.” It also funds large scale preservation initiatives, such as Garden of the Gods visitor center in Colorado and the Nature Conservancy’s debt-for-conservation swap with the Seychelles islands, and research and special projects relating to park conservation and community well-being.
Over the years, Hill has been a big supporter of natural resources and the environment. She has given millions of dollars to the Nature Conservatory for marine conservation efforts. She has also teamed up with Pew Charitable Trusts and other funders to preserve ocean habitats.
Other Grantmaking Opportunities
In addition to its thematic program areas, Lyda Hill Philanthropies also awards grants for Empowering Nonprofits to help “strengthen their ability to deliver on their missions in an effective, high-impact manner.” It supports collaboration projects that forge connections between “organizations in the community that would better deliver on their mission and better serve the community with the help of one or more partners,” and critical infrastructure projects that provide or fund “technology, physical infrastructure, people or other critical needs that will provide leverage to the agencies, and other items that tend to be underfunded.” Grantees include American Red Cross, Better Together Fund and the Global Coalition to End Wildlife Trafficking Online.
Important Grant Details:
Grants generally range from $25,000 to $100,000, but the foundation may award grants in the millions of dollars. The funder does not have an online database to review past grantees. Grantmaking primarily centers around Texas and Colorado, where Lyda has lived in the past.
The Lyda Hill Foundation does not accept unsolicited grant requests. Nonprofits that are pre-approved to apply for a grant may fill out an application form online. Nonprofits can reach out to the staff at 214-922-1100 with general questions.
PEOPLE:
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