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National Marine Sanctuary Foundation at a glanceAlso receives grants: funding profile →

· Public charity

National Marine Sanctuary Foundation

The NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY FOUNDATION is a leading voice for u.s.

$6.0M
Granted FY2024still arriving
61
Grants FY2024still arriving
25
States reached
$719k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2024.

Environment$15MAnimals$3.9MScience & Tech$3.1MEducation$2.6MArts & Culture$765kFood & Nutrition$536kCommunity Improvement$484kYouth Development$270kOther$0
02FY2024 · 61 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 61 grants below total $5,641,465, the rows itemized in this filing. The $6,014,467 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $373,002 is giving the schedule does not break out (grants under the $5,000 itemization floor, grants to individuals, grants on other schedules). Every figure below describes the itemized rows only.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k13 grants · $94k
  • $10k–50k22 grants · $558k
  • $50k–250k20 grants · $2.5M
  • $250k+6 grants · $2.5M
$40,000
Median grant
25
States reached
$15M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
MOTE MARINE LABORATORY$719,437
MISSISSIPPI AQUARIUM$507,498
LEHIGH UNIVERSITY$440,544
UNIVERSITY OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS$275,125
TEMPLE UNIVERSITY$274,005
THE FLORIDA AQUARIUM INC$264,000
GULF OF MAINE RESEARCH INSTITUTE$242,752
AUDUBON NATURE INSTITUTE$232,000
MOODY GARDENS$200,000
UNIVERSITY OF GUAM MARINE LABORATORY$185,494
HI DEPARTMENT OF LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES$183,604
JOHNSTON APPLIED MARINE SCIENCE$154,262
UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII$146,149
UNIVERSITY CORPORATION AT MONTEREY BAY$141,693
SUSTAINABLE OCEANS & REEFS$132,708
02The need
03

Does the money reach high-need areas?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.

show:

Its human-services grants (FY17–24, $468k) land where the poverty rate runs at 12%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 42% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants spread fairly evenly across need levels.

area typical 10%KEAUKAHA-PANA'EWA COMMUNITY ALLIANCE: $135k → 15%KEAUKAHA-PANA'EWA COMMUNITY ALLIANCE: $61k → 15%PAEPAE O HE'EIA: $232k → 9%PAEPAE O HE'EIA: $40k → 9%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount
How this is measured
Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty line in the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP.

Which US states its grants reach

AK
ME
WA
MN
IL
WI
MI
NY
MA
OR
SD
OH
PA
CT
RI
CA
UT
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
AZ
NM
KS
TN
NC
SC
DC
HI
LA
MS
AL
GA
TX
FL
How this is measured
US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are delivered. Need from public data (U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA), shown as context about the area, never attributed to the funder’s giving.
04

Where the work is directed

The same grants placed two ways: where each recipient sits, and where its stated purpose sends the money.

About 11% of National Marine Sanctuary Foundation’s grant dollars are earmarked for a different county than the recipient’s own address.

National Marine Sanctuary Foundationlessmore of its giving
Placed by recipient address · 6.1% directed abroad (not shown)
How this is measured
Recipient view: each grant at its grantee’s ZIP, mapped to a county. Directed view: each grant at the county its stated purpose names, falling back to the recipient’s county when the purpose names no place; US grants only. A county shows only if it carries the top 95% of that view’s dollars. Purposes are read from the funder’s own 990 grant descriptions.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

81%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$21M · 75 repeat orgs$5.1M to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +48% since the first grant, against +39% for those funded once.

75 repeat relationships: 29 still active in FY2024, 46 since wound down; 31 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

75
111

Total granted

$21M
$4.0M

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+48%
+39%

Still filing today

79%
59%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 80% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $1.1M went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
EnvironmentEducationAnimalsArts & CultureScience & TechPhilanthropyOther
How this is measured
First-time means a grantee’s first year in the filing window; renewed means funded in an earlier year too. The renewed share climbs naturally as a portfolio matures, so the signal is a year that bucks it (a wave of new grantees). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as new. Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • MOTE MARINE LABORATORY INC
    4× · 2021–2024 · $2.9M · revenue +89%
  • TC
    THE CORAL RESTORATION FOUNDATION INC
    4× · 2021–2024 · $2.1M · revenue +31%
  • GO
    GULF OF MAINE RESEARCH INSTITUTE
    8× · 2017–2024 · $2.1M · revenue +102%

Funded once

  • GC
    GUAM CORAL REEF INITIATIVE
    one grant, 2023 · $226k
  • CO
    City of Key West
    one grant, 2017 · $220k
  • CO
    COMMONWEALTH OF NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS
    one grant, 2023 · $191k
How this is measured

Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Its field

Closest unfunded matches

The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
The Coral Reef and Marine Science Foundation Inc C/O James Bildner
—
2
Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute
—
3
Ocean Research and Educational
Science & Tech
4
Schmidt Ocean Institute
Science & Tech
5
Ocean Alliance Project

Protecting and promoting the marine biodiversity of Hawai'i through coral restoration, ecological monitoring, regenerative tourism, and cultural integration

Science & Tech
6
Pacific Marine Research

The organization's mission is to promote respect and appreciation for Puget Sound by teaching principles of environmental stewardship and inspire observation of and involvement with Puget Sound. Through its Marine Science Afloat program,…

—
7
Marine Biological Laboratory

The Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) is a world-renowned center for biological discovery and training that is notably affiliated with more than 60 Nobel Prize winners. Research is conducted by full-time faculty as well as hundreds of the…

Science & Tech
8
Galapagos Whale Shark Project
—
9
Marine Conservation Science Institute
Philanthropy
10
Maui Ocean Center Marine Institute

To inspire lifelong environmental stewardship and to ensure the survival of coral reefs and sea turtles in hawaii through science-based conservation efforts, education and outreach.

Environment
11
California Academy of Sciences

The academy is a renowned scientific and educational institution with a mission to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration. based in san francisco's golden gate park, it is home to a world-class aquarium,…

Arts & Culture
12
Reef Environmental Education Foundation

Reef environmental education foundation (reef) was established as a nonprofit organization in 1990. reef conserves marine environments worldwide. our mission is to protect biodiversity and ocean life by actively engaging and inspiring the…

Recreation & Sports
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Save the Bay Inc; the most unlike its peers is Resilience Education Training and Innovation Center Limited. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
05the grantee network

146 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2026.

Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.

How this is measured

Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2026, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 146 of the 220 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

6
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
38
Early backer (in before they grew)
144/146
Grantees still filing
122/146
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

MOTE MARINE LABORATORY INC: $2,881,771 · OtherMOTE MARINE LABORATORY INCUNIVERSITY OF HAWAII SYSTEM: $714,312 · OtherUNIVERSITY OF HAWAII SYSTEMTHE UNIVERSITY OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS: $549,455 · OtherTHE NATURE CONSERVANCY: $451,641 · OtherMOODY GARDENS INC: $423,875 · OtherLYZA JOHNSTON DBA JOHNSTON APPLIED MARINE SCIENCES: $392,258 · OtherTHE UNIVERSITY OF GUAM: $379,401 · OtherSeafood Nutrition Partnership: $410,000 · Other+92 more: $4,934,499 · Other+92 moreTHE CORAL RESTORATION FOUNDATION INC: $2,078,196 · EnvironmentTHE CORAL RESTORATION FOU…OCEAN EXPLORATION TRUST INC: $1,527,758 · EnvironmentOCEAN EXPLORATION TRUST I…REEF RENEWAL USA INC: $505,271 · EnvironmentREEF RENEWAL USA INCThe Ocean Foundation: $361,467 · EnvironmentThe Ocean FoundationCENTER FOR COASTAL STUDIES INC: $252,097 · EnvironmentNATIONAL PARK TRUST INC: $223,400 · Environment+27 more: $1,147,037 · Environment+27 moreGULF OF MAINE RESEARCH INSTITUTE: $2,064,860 · AnimalsGULF OF MAINE RESEAR…MISSISSIPPI AQUARIUM: $780,998 · AnimalsMISSISSIPPI AQUARIUMAudubon Nature Institute Inc: $521,100 · AnimalsAudubon Nature Insti…The Florida Aquarium Inc: $350,633 · AnimalsThe Florida Aquarium…SEA RESEARCH FOUNDATION INC: $276,344 · AnimalsSEA RESEARCH FOUNDAT…+17 more: $799,987 · Animals+17 moreLEHIGH UNIVERSITY: $686,205 · EducationLEHIGH UNIVE…Temple University - Of The Commonwealth System of Higher Education: $583,565 · EducationTemple Unive…WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION INC: $383,719 · EducationWEST VIRGINI…DUKE UNIVERSITY: $229,251 · EducationDUKE UNIVERS…COUNCIL FOR NATIVE HAWAIIAN ADVANCEMENT: $169,576 · EducationCOUNCIL FOR …UNIVERSITY CORPORATION AT MONTEREY BAY: $141,693 · Education+20 more: $785,803 · Education+20 morePHILLIP AND PATRICIA FROST MUSEUM OF SCIENCE INC: $152,424 · Arts & CultureSMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION: $87,154 · Arts & CultureBISHOP MUSEUM: $75,000 · Arts & CultureMUSEUM FOUNDATION OF PACIFIC GROVE INC: $61,105 · Arts & CultureMPT FOUNDATION INC: $50,000 · Arts & CultureOREGON MUSEUM OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY: $46,266 · Arts & CultureBOXERWOOD EDUCATION ASSOCIATION: $42,940 · Arts & CultureTHE MARINERS' MUSEUM: $33,000 · Arts & CultureWISCONSIN MARITIME MUSEUM INC: $31,000 · Arts & Culture+6 more: $98,950 · Arts & CultureKAKOO OIWI: $572,335 · Community ImprovementThe Pew Charitable Trusts: $340,000 · PhilanthropyFRIENDS OF THUNDER BAY NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY: $110,735 · PhilanthropyTHE MARION INSTITUTE INC: $35,000 · Philanthropy
Other$11,137,212Environment$6,095,226Animals$4,793,922Education$2,979,812Arts & Culture$677,839Community Improvement$572,335Philanthropy$485,735

Showing the 200 largest grantees by grant value.

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetMOTE MARINE LABORATORY INC: $2,881,771 over 4y, 1.9% of budgetTHE CORAL RESTORATION FOUNDATION INC: $2,078,196 over 4y, 17% of budgetGULF OF MAINE RESEARCH INSTITUTE: $2,064,860 over 8y, 4.3% of budgetOCEAN EXPLORATION TRUST INC: $1,527,758 over 4y, 8.2% of budgetMISSISSIPPI AQUARIUM: $780,998 over 2y, 5.8% of budgetLEHIGH UNIVERSITY: $686,205 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetTemple University - Of The Commonwealth System of Higher Education: $583,565 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetKAKOO OIWI: $572,335 over 3y, 33% of budgetTHE UNIVERSITY OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS: $549,455 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetAudubon Nature Institute Inc: $521,100 over 3y, 0.6% of budgetREEF RENEWAL USA INC: $505,271 over 2y, 40% of budgetTHE NATURE CONSERVANCY: $451,641 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetMOODY GARDENS INC: $423,875 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetSeafood Nutrition Partnership: $410,000 over 6y, 39% of budgetWEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION INC: $383,719 over 4y, 0.2% of budgetThe Ocean Foundation: $361,467 over 8y, 1.8% of budgetThe Florida Aquarium Inc: $350,633 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetThe Pew Charitable Trusts: $340,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetSEA RESEARCH FOUNDATION INC: $276,344 over 7y, 0.2% of budgetPAEPAE O HE'EIA: $271,887 over 2y, 24% of budgetCENTER FOR COASTAL STUDIES INC: $252,097 over 4y, 5.0% of budgetDUKE UNIVERSITY: $229,251 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetNATIONAL PARK TRUST INC: $223,400 over 2y, 2.7% of budgetKEAUKAHA PANAEWA COMMUNITY ALLIANCE: $195,673 over 2y, 64% of budgetSECORE INTERNATIONAL INC: $173,935 over 2y, 5.0% of budgetCOUNCIL FOR NATIVE HAWAIIAN ADVANCEMENT: $169,576 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetPHILLIP AND PATRICIA FROST MUSEUM OF SCIENCE INC: $152,424 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetUNIVERSITY CORPORATION AT MONTEREY BAY: $141,693 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetFRIENDS OF THUNDER BAY NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY: $110,735 over 4y, 15% of budgetREGIONAL SCIENCE CONSORTIUM AT PRESQUE I: $100,000 over 1y, 15% of budgetKUPU: $94,898 over 3y, 0.6% of budgetCALIFORNIA MARINE SANCTUARY FOUNDATION: $91,700 over 3y, 2.7% of budgetWINGATE UNIVERSITY: $90,085 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetSMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION: $87,154 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetWOODS HOLE OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTION: $82,859 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetGULF AND CARIBBEAN FISHERIES INSTITUTE: $80,379 over 1y, 7.2% of budgetGREATER FARALLONES ASSOCIATION: $79,214 over 3y, 3.0% of budgetCENTER FOR CULTURAL & TECHNICAL INTERCHANGE BTWN EAST & WEST INC: $76,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetBOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA: $75,955 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetBISHOP MUSEUM: $75,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetOCEAN DISCOVERY INSTITUTE: $75,000 over 2y, 1.9% of budgetUniversity of Georgia Research Foundation Inc: $74,683 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATION: $74,105 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetSHEDD AQUARIUM SOCIETY: $65,537 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetCAL POLY CORPORATION: $63,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetMUSEUM FOUNDATION OF PACIFIC GROVE INC: $61,105 over 2y, 4.5% of budgetHEALTHY AQUATICS MARINE INSTITUTE OF FLORIDA INC: $60,360 over 1y, 5.7% of budgetTHE MARINE MAMMAL CENTER: $59,250 over 3y, 0.3% of budget
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding

A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

  • Who funds MOTE MARINE LABORATORY INC ↗
  • Who funds THE CORAL RESTORATION FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds GULF OF MAINE RESEARCH INSTITUTE ↗
  • Who funds OCEAN EXPLORATION TRUST INC ↗
  • Who funds MISSISSIPPI AQUARIUM ↗
  • Who funds LEHIGH UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds Temple University - Of The Commonwealth System of Higher Education ↗
  • Who funds KAKOO OIWI ↗
  • Who funds THE UNIVERSITY OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS ↗
  • Who funds Audubon Nature Institute Inc ↗
  • Who funds REEF RENEWAL USA INC ↗
  • Who funds THE NATURE CONSERVANCY ↗
  • Who funds MOODY GARDENS INC ↗
  • Who funds Seafood Nutrition Partnership ↗
  • Who funds WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds The Ocean Foundation ↗
  • Who funds The Florida Aquarium Inc ↗
  • Who funds The Pew Charitable Trusts ↗
  • Who funds SEA RESEARCH FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds PAEPAE O HE'EIA ↗
  • Who funds CENTER FOR COASTAL STUDIES INC ↗
  • Who funds DUKE UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds NATIONAL PARK TRUST INC ↗
  • Who funds KEAUKAHA PANAEWA COMMUNITY ALLIANCE ↗
  • Who funds SECORE INTERNATIONAL INC ↗
  • Who funds COUNCIL FOR NATIVE HAWAIIAN ADVANCEMENT ↗
  • Who funds PHILLIP AND PATRICIA FROST MUSEUM OF SCIENCE INC ↗
  • Who funds UNIVERSITY CORPORATION AT MONTEREY BAY ↗

Co-funders

Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

National Fish and Wil…The Nature ConservancyThe Schmidt Family Fo…Resources Legacy FundPatagoniaorgAmerican Association …The Keith Campbell Fo…Trustees of the Estat…North American Associ…Council for Native Ha…University of MiamiFish & Wildlife Found…
National Fish and Wildlife FoundationDC48.3× affinity38 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: National Fish and Wildlife Foundation · The Nature Conservancy · The Schmidt Family Foundation · Resources Legacy Fund · Patagoniaorg · American Association of Zoological Parks and Aquariums Inc · The Keith Campbell Foundation for the Environment Inc · Trustees of the Estate of Bernice Pauahi Bishop Dba Kamehameha Schools · North American Association for Environmental Educa · Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement · University of Miami · Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida I

How this is measured
Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. Overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization National Marine Sanctuary Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from National Marine Sanctuary Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 70%5%19%42%75%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 8%
  • Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution: 63% of income from government
  • National Park Trust Inc: 51% of income from government
  • Edadvance: 41% of income from government
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology: 35% of income from government
  • University of Delaware: 30% of income from government
  • Chesapeake Conservancy Inc: 27% of income from government
  • Center for Coastal Studies Inc: 26% of income from government
  • Salem Sound 2000 Inc: 20% of income from government
  • Mystic River Watershed Association Inc: 18% of income from government
  • The Coral Restoration Foundation Inc: 16% of income from government
  • New England Aquarium Corporation: 12% of income from government
  • Sea Research Foundation Inc: 8% of income from government
  • Living Classrooms Foundation: 7% of income from government
  • Ocean Exploration Trust Inc: 5% of income from government
  • University of Miami: 5% of income from government
  • Solve: 5% of income from government
  • Oregon Museum of Science and Industry: 4% of income from government
  • Mote Marine Laboratory Inc: 4% of income from government
  • Whale and Dolphin Conservationinc: 3% of income from government
  • Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science Inc: 1% of income from government
  • The Marion Institute Inc: 1% of income from government
  • National Aquarium Inc: 1% of income from government
  • The Florida Aquarium Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
7get no government money at all
30report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
2rely on government for over half their income
typical government reliance, FY20–25
How this is measured
Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that a grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first, a floor rather than a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12 to 24 months.

On method. Every financial figure here is read from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 220 grantees we resolved, each linked to its source. Grantee outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III), read as association with funding, never as caused by it. Low-confidence name matches are suppressed rather than guessed. How we build these →

How this is measured
Each figure carries one of six labels. Filed is what the funder reported on its return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears.

Generated from the IRS Form 990 e-file return for fiscal year 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on National Marine Sanctuary’s filings →

More from the funding graph

The unnamed billions
grants reported with no recipient in the public record
The regranting layer
51% of grant dollars land in the regranting layer
The DAF merry-go-round
$9.7B circulates between donor-advised funds
The endowment market
who holds foundation money, and what just moved
The camps
funders cluster by geography, not ideology
By state
where grant money is based, and what stays home