Rapid Response Grants

Colorado Plateau Foundation’s rapid response grants support Native-led organizations responding to critical and urgent needs and unforeseen opportunities in the Colorado Plateau region. The grants provide up to $10,000, can be applied for at any time, and are separate from CPF’s annual grant cycle.

Applicants for Rapid Response Grants must meet the following criteria:

1. You are a Native-led organization in-service to tribal nations on the Colorado Plateau working in any of the CPF priority areas: protection of water, protection of sacred places and threatened landscapes, preservation of Native languages, and food security through sustainable community-based agriculture
2. You are a Native-controlled organization (majority of the governing board and staff are Native)
3. You are a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, a tribal government with IRS 7871 status, or an organization with a 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor.
4. You are in good standing with grant reports if you are a past CPF grant recipient.
5. The organization faces an unforeseen circumstance that is an urgent need. 

Past Awarded Examples

Emergency Safety Equipment 

1. The completion of an audit following the loss of critical staff.
2. Travel stipend for a consultant to inventory cultural places, resources, and practices that fall within the scope of the Presidential Proclamations’ definition of “objects” under the Antiquities Act from the five Tribes’ value set and worldview.

The following activities and costs are not eligible for Rapid Response grants:

1. Fundraising events
2. Individuals (we support organizations only)
3. Non-Native majority-led organizations
4. Businesses
5. Existing staff salaries 
6. Expenses or activities that have already occurred 
7. Land acquisition, or research 
8. Education programs or scholarships 
9. Capital campaigns 
10. Literary or film projects 
11. Fees to attend conferences.

How to Apply

Eligible applicants must apply through the CPF Foundant portal. You will provide the amount of funds requested and the intended use. The CPF Program Officer will email the decision to the applicant’s primary contact within 10-12 business days of submission. All grant recipients must share grant outcomes with the CPF Program Officer within six months after receipt of funds.

For questions regarding Rapid Response grants, please email mnuvayestewa@coloradoplateaufoundation.org

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