Budding Botanist
In early 2022, eighteen high-need schools across the United States will be awarded $1000 in grant funding to support their youth garden programs.
Environmental Sustainability and Biodiversity
The Klorane Botanical Foundation is committed to supporting programs to teach respect for the environment and protect nature through the preservation of plant species and biodiversity. Designed to further their mission, the Budding Botanist Grant will help our youngest citizens learn about plants, explore their world and inspire them to take care of the life they discover in their local ecosystems.
Eligibility
Any public school, charter school, or private school serving students in grades K to 12 in the United States that can demonstrate that at least 40% of their student population would qualify for free or reduced price meals is eligible to apply. Applicants must be planning a new or expanding an existing school garden program designed to teach students about environmental sustainability and the importance of biodiversity. Previous Budding Botanist winners are not eligible.
We prioritize the following when selecting winners…
Beyond a best fit with the Budding Botanist grant focus on environmental sustainability and biodiversity, the selection of winners is prioritized based on demonstrated need and program impact. KidsGardening considers a variety of factors when determining need, including:
- Economic & Demographic Factors: Does the program exist within or engage an under-resourced community? Is program leadership representative of youth participating in the program?
- Program Funding and Support: Does a program have limited access to resources and/or consistent monetary support, including recent grant funding?
- Impact: Will grant funding expand learning opportunities for program participants? Does the intended impact of the program reflect the needs of the community?
How to apply
The deadline for application submission is Friday, October 29, 2021 at 11:59pm PST.
All applications must be submitted online. You can download a copy of the questions to view ahead of time as a Word Doc or PDF file. We strongly advise saving the questions into a Word document and then copying and pasting the answers into the application rather than composing your answers directly into the online form. Many browsers are set to timeout after 30 minutes of inactivity (or sometimes sooner) and so you may lose your work if it takes longer than your browser's setting to complete or save your entry.
Award Notification and Fulfilment
Winners will be announced and contacted by email on Friday, December 10, 2021. A list of winners will also be posted on KidsGardening.org on that date. Awards will be distributed in January 2022.
Grant Recipient Requirements
All funded programs must implement their proposed project by the end of the 2021-2022 school year, including the creation of a short video documenting their project progress. This video, along with information about grant recipients’ garden programs will be shared digitally and through social media. Schools must distribute and collect media release forms from any students featured in videos or photos.
All grant recipients will also be required to complete an impact report, providing a minimum of 5-10 digital images of the garden program (with parental release forms for photos of youth as needed) by June of 2022 to document the impact of the program on your students and community.
*** Three Budding Botanist grant winners may potentially be asked to host a small garden celebration planned with the help of KidsGardening, Klorane, and the Klorane Botanical Foundation in either May or June of 2022. Winners must be open to hosting a small number of guests from local media outlets at these events. They must also distribute and collect media release forms for all participating students and teachers.***
If you do not feel that you will be able to comply with any of these reporting requirements, please do not apply. Recipients who do not complete these requirements will not be eligible to apply for future awards.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are my chances of winning a Budding Botanist Grant?
We typically receive between 150-300 applications each Budding Botanist Grant cycle.
My program has previously been awarded a grant from KidsGardening, am I eligible to apply for and receive a Budding Botanist Grant?
Previous Budding Botanist winners are not eligible to receive another Budding Botanist grant, however programs that have previously been awarded other grants from KidsGardening are welcome to apply and are eligible to be selected. That being said, given the high number of applications we receive for our various grant funding opportunities, it is unlikely you will be awarded multiple KidsGardening grants in a single calendar year or in back to back years.
What makes a good Budding Botanist Grant application?
The Budding Botanist Grant is designed to support programs that teach respect for the environment and protect nature through the preservation of plant species and biodiversity. As such, a competitive application will demonstrate a clear connection between program activities and goals and the grant’s overall objective. Please be as precise and descriptive as possible when outlining how your program seeks to both promote and educate youth about environmental sustainability and biodiversity.
We also encourage you to explore our Grant Writing Tips resource for general advice about crafting a standout grant application.
I’m having difficulty with LimeSurvey, the grant application platform. What do I do?
Check out our LimeSurvey tutorial which has helpful tips for navigating the application process and troubleshooting common issues.
How do I know if I’ve successfully submitted my application?
You will receive a confirmation email from LimeSurvey following the submission of your application. Occasionally these emails end up flagged as Spam, so we recommend checking your Spam box.
How do you select grant winners?
We have a team of grant readers that evaluates applications and supporting materials over the course of about a month. A single application typically goes through three rounds of evaluation before being selected as a winner. In the initial round, a single reader will review an application, using a standardized scoring rubric, judging it on assorted criteria including but not limited to demonstrated need, program sustainability and impact, and clear fit with grant objectives. High quality applicants are then selected to undergo a second round of evaluations. In this phase of the review process, each member of the grant selection committee reads all second round applications before meeting to engage in group deliberation and finalist selection. These finalists are then recommended to grant program sponsors, who review application materials and confirm winner selections.
I didn’t receive an email on Friday, December 10, 2021, the day of the winner announcement. Does this mean my program hasn’t been awarded a grant?
We send a notification email about Budding Botanist Grant selection to the main contact as listed on your application. Emails are sent to both winning programs and those that were not selected for this year’s grant. Because these emails are sent out en masse, this communication is frequently flagged in the main contact’s Spam box. We encourage you to check your Spam box if you do not receive a notification email on the day of the announcement or to visit our website to view a list of the 2022 Budding Botanist Grant winners.
Grant Application Technical Support
If you have any questions that were not addressed in the above Frequently Asked Questions section, please contact KidsGardening Senior Education Specialist Sarah Pounders at [email protected].
Grant Sponsors
Founded in 1994, the Klorane Botanical Foundation is the corporate foundation of Klorane whose parent company is Pierre Fabre Laboratories.
For 25 years, it has been planting the seeds of botanical passion around the world. The Klorane Botanical Foundation has acted unceasingly to share its botanical passion with future generations through three essential missions: PROTECT plant species under threat, EXPLORE the treasures of the plant world to better understand and protect them, and SHARE botanical knowledge with the largest number of people, particularly children.
Through its commitment to various initiatives, including the Great Green Wall, UNESCO GREEN CITIZENS and Botany for Change, the Klorane Botanical Foundation gives back to plants the place they deserve in our lives and in our cities.
For over 50 years, Klorane has been committed to innovating plant-based and sustainable hair and face care products that contribute to a more responsible world for future generations. In an effort to advance this mission, with every Klorane purchase, a portion of sales goes to support the Budding Botanist grant program.
Grant Application Support
Grant writing tips and how to navigate our online grant application platform
More Grant Opportunities
Additional grant opportunities from other organizations
Grant Winners
Meet our amazing grant winners, listed by award
