Packard Foundation Ocean Initiative

Enriched impact-investor · Found: 2026-04-20 20:25

Protecting and restoring ocean habitats, ensuring fair and sustainable fisheries, ending illegal fishing, and harnessing the power of the ocean to slow climate change. Focus areas: marine conservation (US, Indonesia, Chile), ending illegal fishing, offshore wind. Primarily invite-only grants; no current open RFPs.

Source: https://www.packard.org/what-we-fund/ocean/

Funding Details

Funder

David and Lucile Packard Foundation

Funding Goal

Protect and restore ocean habitats, ensure fair and sustainable fisheries, end illegal fishing, support responsible offshore wind energy in California, and conserve marine areas rich in biodiversity in the U.S., Indonesia, and Chile. Work focuses on three key areas: (1) conserving ocean areas rich in marine life with a people-centered approach; (2) ending illegal fishing, improving seafood worker conditions and human rights; (3) advancing responsible floating offshore wind in California as a climate solution.

Funding Amount

$480 million committed for ocean conservation (announced April 2024). Individual grant sizes not published; foundation works primarily through long-term partnerships.

Deadline

Rolling basis (Rolling)

How to Apply

No open RFPs at time of assessment. The foundation funds primarily through invitation and long-term partnerships. Unsolicited proposals are rarely funded (<1% of grants). Potential applicants can check https://www.packard.org/grantees/funding-opportunties/ for any open RFPs and may register via the Grantee Portal at packard.fluxx.io.

Target Region

United States (California), Indonesia, Chile; global fisheries governance

Contact

Contact form at https://www.packard.org/contact/

Last Checked

2026-04-20 22:36

Application Checklist

Eligibility

• Must be a tax-exempt charitable organization (U.S.) or recognized international equivalent

Project Scope

• Geographic focus: U.S. (California), Indonesia, Chile — projects outside these areas less likely to fit
• Work must address marine conservation, fisheries sustainability, or ocean-climate nexus
• Indigenous-led and community-centered approaches are prioritized

Constraints

• Less than 1% of grants from unsolicited proposals — primarily invitation-based
• No open RFPs at time of review — monitor foundation website for future calls

Summary

The David and Lucile Packard Foundation Ocean Initiative is one of the most significant private philanthropic programs for ocean conservation globally, having committed $480 million as of April 2024. The initiative is rooted in the premise that a healthy ocean is essential for life on Earth — producing oxygen, regulating climate, and supporting billions of people's livelihoods and food security. Thematically, the program focuses on three interconnected issue areas. First, marine area conservation prioritizes protecting and restoring ocean habitats rich in biodiversity, with a strong emphasis on Indigenous-led and community-based conservation approaches. Second, fisheries sustainability work seeks to end illegal fishing (IUU fishing), improve conditions and human rights for seafood workers and small-scale fishers, and promote responsible fisheries management frameworks. Third, the initiative supports responsible floating offshore wind energy in California as a model for clean energy transition that can reduce climate impacts on ocean systems. Geographically, the initiative targets three primary focus regions: the United States (with a particular emphasis on California and Indigenous coastal territories), Indonesia (Coral Triangle and surrounding seas), and Chile. Fisheries and human rights work extends to additional international contexts. The program takes a 'people and nature' framing, emphasizing coastal communities, Indigenous peoples, and small-scale fishers as both key beneficiaries and central actors in conservation. Eligible activities include conservation science, policy advocacy, community-based resource management, legal and rights-based approaches to fisheries, Indigenous-led marine stewardship, and responsible renewable energy siting and permitting. The program funds NGOs, research institutions, Indigenous organizations, and advocacy groups. The foundation primarily works through long-term grantee partnerships, with only about 15% of grants going to first-time grantees and fewer than 1% coming from unsolicited proposals. No open RFPs were available at the time of assessment. The program is not an open grant scheme and applicants should monitor the foundation's funding opportunities page for any open calls.

Historical Context

The foundation made its first ocean grant in 1968. In April 2024, Packard announced $480 million to advance ocean conservation. The Ocean Initiative is a long-standing, major strategic priority for the foundation.

Why it was added

discovered from funder #216: David & Lucile Packard Foundation – Ocean

Sources

• https://www.packard.org/what-we-fund/ocean/
• https://www.packard.org/grantees/funding-opportunties/

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