The Neighbourhood Ecosystem Fund aims to inspire, encourage, and enable communities to explore and develop ambitious ecosystem restoration projects locally. It also seeks to raise awareness about the importance of local ecosystem restoration and address barriers faced by community-led efforts.

“[The Fund’s main aim is to] support grassroot community groups who may find it difficult to access funding for ecosystem restoration.”

The Fund provides direct project funding to support the development stages of ecosystem restoration (eg. feasibility, evidence gathering, project planning and strategy development). Additionally, each project receives up to £1,500 to be spent on fundraising support to enable its future development and growth.

To be eligible, applicants must:

be a not for profit community-led organisation based in a specific place in Scotland
have an income of less than £200,000 in the last year
have its own bank account

The Neighbourhood Ecosystem Fund is a multi-investor programme supported by the Carman Family Foundation and other partners, and is managed by Inspiring Scotland. Applications can be submitted to the Fund at any time through the Inspiring Scotland two stage application process.

For further information, including previously funded projects, eligibility criteria, and how to apply, please visit the dedicated Neighbourhood Ecosystem Fund page (linked for your convenience).