Conservation in downstate Illinois has been a central part of our mission since the early 1990s when members of the Lumpkin family first started to plan their philanthropy together.  Historically, most of our grants have supported clean water in areas south of Highway 80.  In recent years, our grants have increasingly gone to encouraging the localization of our food system.  As a founder of the Fresh Taste Initiative and an active participant in the Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Funders Group, our involvement has been deeper in this area than other grant-making areas.

The Foundation has made a long-term commitment to conservation in Downstate Illinois and hopes its efforts will produce a lasting impact.

We accept applications from organizations working to improve environmental health in downstate Illinois through the Lumpkin Family Fund. Requests will be evaluated on whether they accomplish one or more of the following:     

• Support the creativity of nonprofit organizations by seeding new projects and encouraging experimentation and innovation;
• Support organizations demonstrating outstanding leadership in their field or community;
• Promote the effectiveness of organizations and the nonprofit sector by supporting planning, learning and the professional development of staff and board leaders; 
• Facilitate collaboration across traditional organization or sector boundaries for community benefit; and,
• Develop public understanding of issues and promote philanthropic support necessary to address issues of community importance.

Example of past grantee that fit current guidelines:
Lakeland College, $94,000, to purchase wind turbines for use in a new alternative energy curriculum.

Special Areas of Interests:
Although we will accept applications from any conservation organization working toward a healthy environment in downstate Illinois, we have a preference for those projects that address water quality and the impact of agricultural production on the water and land.  We will also consider applications that support healthy food production and consumption in East Central Illinois.   Click here to see a map of Central Illinois.

Although this interest grew out of The Foundation's evolving understanding of the importance of land use to the health of our ecology, the focus of the Local Food Program is economic and enterprise development.

We are particularly interested in projects and organizations that:

• Assist producers and processors of food to start or expand businesses through technical or business assistance, skill development or help with finance or land acquisition;
• Encourage consumption of and demand for local, healthy food;
• Encourage collaboration and connections between organizations, people and communities working in support of the local food system and,
• Support increased understanding of the food system and development of public policies and public and private support for a diversified food system.

Program Development and Learning:
As part of its development, The Foundation has conducted a great deal of learning, some of which we hope will be helpful to our colleagues.  As a participant in the Chicago-based funders collaborative known as the Fresh Taste Initiative, we commissioned the report, Feeding Ourselves: Strategic Steps Toward a More Diversified Illinois Food System in 2004 to provide us with a context for our work.

Between July and December 2007, we commissioned a team led by the Delta Institute of Chicago to research the opportunities available to The Foundation to have an impact on issues related to food specifically in our main grant-making region. Can The Foundation have an impact on economic development or play a role in encouraging healthier eating? Find out by reviewing the full report.

Program Timetable

• Organizations may submit applications for The Lumpkin Family Fund as seen in our calendar.

Bruce Karmazin
Bruce@lumpkinfoundation.org
217-234-5915