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Our Impact

Colcom Foundation’s funding interests include:

Funding Interest

Carrying Capacity

Colcom Foundation supports national projects acknowledging the impact of human population growth on the environment. Learn More →

Family Planning

Population Media Center utilizes entertainment-education and mass media to prevent unplanned and unwanted births to reduce birth rates globally.

Immigration

According to Pew Research Center, immigration accounts for 88 percent of US population growth. NumbersUSA, Federation for American Immigration Reform, and Center for Immigration Studies seek to advance a public conversation on sustainable immigration policy. By reducing current immigration levels, the US can stabilize and gradually decrease its population, thereby shrinking its ecological footprint. Colcom Foundation supports stabilizing and beginning to gradually shrink the US population by 2040.

The notion of ever more old people needing ever more young people, who will in turn grow old and need even more young people, and so on ad infinitum, is an obvious ecological Ponzi scheme.

David Attenborough

Clean water degradation correlates strongly to urban development, resource extraction, infrastructure development, as well as suburban development and large-scale farming operations. As population numbers increase these impacts also increase.

Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds

Funding Interest

Local Environment

Colcom Foundation supports environmental and conservation projects in southwestern Pennsylvania. Southwestern Pennsylvania includes the following counties: Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Bedford, Blair, Butler, Cambria, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Somerset, Washington, and Westmoreland.

Conservation

Hollow Oak Land Trust protects and connects greenspace with an emphasis in the Pittsburgh Airport Corridor. Hollow Oak has nine conservation areas totaling over 700 acres in Moon, Kennedy, Franklin Park, North Fayette, Hopewell, Kilbuck, Ben Avon, Emsworth, and Chippewa. 

The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy’s Revolving Fund for Local Land Trusts provides grants in the form of rapid response short-term, zero interest loans to land trusts and other nonprofits seeking to preserve open space and conserve high priority properties.

WeConservePA helps organizations and individuals to effectively and efficiently conserve land, protect and restore waterways, implement sustainable practices, and connect people to the outdoors.

Westmoreland Land Trust conserves and stewards land in Westmoreland County of special ecological, cultural, or recreational value, for public benefit.

Education and Media

Rail Pollution Protection Pittsburgh (RP3) is a group of Pittsburgh residents committed to addressing the risk and negative impacts of rail proliferation where it conflicts with urban health, sustainability, and personal well-being.

Grassroots

The Environmental Integrity Project is a nonpartisan, nonprofit watchdog organization that advocates for effective enforcement of environmental laws.

Protect PT is a grassroots community-based nonprofit dedicated to protecting Allegheny and Westmoreland Counties residents’ safety, security, and quality of life from the harmful environmental impacts of fossil fuel activity.

Legal

Fair Shake Environmental Legal Services is a nonprofit law firm that provides sliding-scale services to individuals negatively impacted by regional environmental issues such as fracking.

Research

The National Aviary is home to more than 500 birds representing more than 150 species from around the world.

Stewardship

Tree Pittsburgh restores and protects the urban forest through tree planting and care, education, advocacy, and land conservation.

The Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds invests in efforts to protect, preserve, and restore Pennsylvania’s water resources and watersheds.

Trails

The September 11th National Memorial Trail Alliance is connecting the Flight 93 National Memorial to the Great Allegheny Passage.

Waste Diversion

Pennsylvania Resources Council protects local resources for future generations through environmental education, recycling, anti-litter campaigns, and more.

Youth

The Student Conservation Association offers year-round conservation opportunities to young people in Pittsburgh.

Funding Interest

Local Community

Colcom Foundation supports projects that enrich and improve quality of life in southwestern Pennsylvania.

Arts and Culture

Carnegie Museum of Natural History’s We Are Nature: Living in the Anthropocene exhibition explored the unprecedented impact humans are having on the Earth.

Community and Economic Development

Scenic Pittsburgh protects, enhances, and promotes the scenic beauty – both natural and built – of southwestern Pennsylvania.

Grounded improves the social, economic, and environmental health of communities by building capacity to reclaim vacant and underutilized land.

Education

Touchstone Center for Crafts’ Summer Internship Program enables emerging artists, graduate, and undergraduate students to learn studio management and operations while refining their artistic skills and working with some of the nation’s best artists.

Community Kitchen Pittsburgh uses food as the foundation to change lives and strengthen communities, providing culinary training and career paths to individuals who experience barriers to employment.

Health and Human Services

Guardian Angels Medical Service Dogs paired service dogs with Pittsburgh veterans.

Compassion & Choices improves care, expands options, and empowers individuals to map their end-of-life journey through medical aid in dying.

Leisure and Recreation

The Walled Garden Fountain in Mellon Park was restored by Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy.

Public Safety

The American Red Cross Southwestern Pennsylvania chapter provides disaster relief to local residents.