The Shared Earth Foundation
Chestertown, MD · EIN 52-2151843. Reported 185 grants totalling $13.4M to 77 recipients across tax years 2021-2024. This foundation did not tell the IRS it funds only preselected organizations.
Does this foundation accept applications?
Yes -- on its own tax return. Form 990-PF asks every private foundation whether it makes grants only to organizations it selects itself. Of the 91,758 foundations in our data that made a grant and answered, 78% said yes -- and applying to those is wasted effort. The Shared Earth Foundation did not check that box on its most recent filing, which puts it in the minority that is at least open to being approached.
How big are its grants?
The median grant is $50,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $30,000 and $80,000; the smallest was $4,000 and the largest $600,000. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong foundation.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Recipients are grouped by name and state as they were written on the returns, so an organization entered under two different names appears twice. Years funded is the number of separate tax years in which that name received money.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Defenders of Wildlife | Washington, DC | $1,200,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Leap | San Leandro, CA | $868,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Upstream Alliance | Annapolis, MD | $740,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute | Front Royal, VA | $665,800 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Environmental Film Festival | Washington, DC | $625,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| National Geographic Society | Washington, DC | $600,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Bay Journal Media | Seven Valleys, PA | $440,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Bhutan Foundation | Washington, DC | $410,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Snow Leopard Conservancy | Sonoma, CA | $375,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Abraham Foundation | New York, NY | $315,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Sultana Education Foundation | Chestertown, MD | $300,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Lion Guardians | Washington, DC | $296,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Animal Legal Defense Fund | Cotati, CA | $275,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Environmental Integrity Project | Washington, DC | $250,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Game Changers Foundation | Laguna Niguel, CA | $225,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Washington College | Chestertown, MD | $224,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum | St Michaels, MD | $200,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Chesapeake Conservancy | Annapolis, MD | $200,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Entertainment 2 Affect Change | Los Angeles, CA | $200,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Wildaid | San Francisco, CA | $185,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Woodland Park Zoo | Seattle, WA | $184,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Women Make Movies | New York, NY | $175,025 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Wildlands Network | Seattle, WA | $175,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Bat Conservation International | Austin, TX | $160,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Northern Jaguar Project | Tucson, AZ | $155,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Chesapeake Legal Alliance | Annapolis, MD | $150,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Clean Water Fund | Washington, DC | $150,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| National Wildlife Federation | Merrifield, VA | $150,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Nature Conservancy | Bethesda, MD | $150,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine | Washington, DC | $150,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Western Environmental Law Center | Eugene, OR | $150,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Orang Utan Republik Foundation | Santa Monica, CA | $125,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Rachel's Network | Washington, DC | $125,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Savannah Science Museum | Savannah, GA | $125,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Smithsonian National Zoological Park | Washington, DC | $125,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Small Wildcat Conservation | Corrales, NM | $120,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Alliance for International Reforestation | Atlanta, GA | $120,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Lewis & Clark College Center for Animal Law | Portland, OR | $120,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Wildlife Conservation Society | Bronx, NY | $120,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Elephant Care International | Hohenwald, TN | $105,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Mongabay | Menlo Park, CA | $100,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| National Gallery of Art | Hyattsville, MD | $100,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Old Growth Forest Network | Easton, MD | $100,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Street Sense Media | Washington, DC | $100,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| The Ops Foundation | Omaha, NE | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Last Animal Foundation | Santa Fe Springs, CA | $95,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Environmental Investigation Agency | Washington, DC | $90,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Tricycle Foundation | New York, NY | $90,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Eastern Shore Land Conservancy | Easton, MD | $80,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Spiritual Paths Foundation | Santa Barbara, CA | $80,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Insight Meditation Society | Barre, MA | $78,600 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Fractured Atlas | Hartsdale, NY | $75,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| International Rhino Foundation | Fort Worth, TX | $70,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| World Parrot Trust | Lake Alfred, FL | $70,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| United Conservationists | Malibu, CA | $60,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Akashinga | Philadelphia, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Chesapeake Film Festival | Easton, MD | $50,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| International Anti-Poaching Foundation (akashinga) | Philadephia, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| League of Conservation Voters Education Fund | Washington, DC | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| National Aquarium in Baltimore | Baltimore, MD | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| National Gallery of Art | Washington, DC | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Speak Out for Animals | King City, OR | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Random Good Foundation | Stuart, FL | $45,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Wildlife Conservation Society | San Francisco, CA | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Rewilding Institute | Albuquerque, NM | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| American Bird Conservancy | The Plains, VA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Earth Island Institute - Project Coyote | Berkeley, CA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| La Tierra Del Jaguar | Tucson, AZ | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Maiden Voyage Productions | Half Moon Bay, CA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Smithsonian Environmental Research Institute | Washington, DC | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Wild Entrust International | Sammamish, WA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Wildlife Conservation Network | San Francisco, CA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Caretta Research Project | Savannah, GA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Kent Cultural Alliance | Chestertown, MD | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Chestertown River Arts | Chestertown, MD | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Alight | Minneapolis, MN | $12,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Pride of Baltimore | Baltimore, MD | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
51 of 77 (66%) received money in more than one year over the 4 years we hold.
Measured the way we measure every foundation -- what share of one year's grantees are funded again the next -- this one retains 69%, across 3 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is about typical. This measures how often it paid the same organizations again. It says nothing about whether it would consider a new one.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose field of its filings. This is the closest thing to a statement of what this foundation cares about, in its own words.
- Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute
TO SUPPORT SCBI'S WORK WITH VETERINARIANS CARING FOR ELEPHANTS IN LAOS; TO SUPPORT RESEARCH TO INSTILL NATURAL ANTI-PREDATOR TOXICITY TO CAPTIVE-BORN DART FROGS, TO PROTECT THEM WHEN RELEASED INTO THE WILD. - Defenders of Wildlife
TO PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR THE WILDLIFE DEFENSE AND RESTORATION ACT; PROTECTING WILDLIFE NOW AND PREPARING TO REVERSE DAMAGE DONE TO THEM AND THEIR HABITATS. SUPPORT FOR THE RED WOLF RECOVERY PROGRAM IN NORTH CAROLINA. - Environmental Film Festival
SUPPORT FOR THE 2022 ENVIRONMENTAL FILM FESTIVAL IN THE NATION'S CAPITAL, AS WELL AS FOR THE ANNUAL AWARD FOR ENVIRONMENTAL ADVOCACY. - Sultana Education Foundation
TO SUPPORT THE ORGANIZATIONS MISSION IN EDUCATING STUDENTS ABOUT THE CHESAPEAKE BAY. - Bhutan Foundation
SUPPORTING THE FOUNDATION'S CONSERVATION, GOVERNANCE, CULTURAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS ON THE GROUND IN THE HIMALAYAN KINGDOM - Leap
STAFF SUPPORT AND SUPPORT FOR FRESHWATER FOR THE FUTURE, CATALOGING ALL FISH IN SABAH'S WATERS AND WORKING TO IMPROVE WATER QUALITY THROUGHOUT THE STATE.
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 128 grants where we could match the recipient to a registered organization. The categories are the IRS's. The match, made from the name and address on the return, is ours.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 49 | $4,255,625 | $50,000 |
| 2022 | 42 | $2,943,000 | $50,000 |
| 2023 | 46 | $2,945,800 | $50,000 |
| 2024 | 48 | $3,290,000 | $47,500 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- filings arrive about a year late, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a foundation winding down.
Where its money goes
32% of its giving went to organizations in District of Columbia. If your organization is based elsewhere, look in the recipient list for grants to your area before writing.
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Funders that support the same organizations
These funders gave to organizations this one also funded -- some private foundations, some community foundations and other grantmaking charities. Shared grantees are a sign of overlapping priorities and nothing more: they do not show that any of these funders would consider a new organization. Each page says what its filings show.
How to approach this foundation
- Check you are its size. The median grant is $50,000. A request many times that size asks for something it has rarely or never given.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving is concentrated in District of Columbia.
- Read the recipient list above for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer, and a cheap one to get.
- Look up the current filing before writing. The 990-PF names the foundation's officers and, where one exists, its application procedure. We link it below.
Related guides
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from The Shared Earth Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2021-2024). Grant figures are from its returns. Matching recipients to registered organizations, their IRS classifications, the retention rate and the funders that support the same organizations are our own calculations, described in how we build this.
Address of record on the latest return: 113 Hoffman Lane, Chestertown, MD, 21620. This is the address the foundation gave the IRS; many small foundations file through an accountant or a bank trust department, so it may not be where post to a programme officer should go.
EIN 52-2151843 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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