Grant and Funding Programs Offered by The David and Lucile Packard Foundation

The David and Lucile Packard Foundation is a private philanthropic foundation that distributes grants and related financial support to nonprofits, researchers, advocates, and collaborative initiatives. Its website shows active grantmaking, a searchable grantee database, a grantee portal, and formal funding opportunities. The foundation also uses mission investing through loans and equity investments to extend the reach of its charitable work.

The foundation’s current work is organized around three major goals: building just societies, protecting and restoring the natural world, and investing in families and communities. These goals are reflected in multiple initiatives, including civil society and leadership, democracy, rights and governance, U.S. racial justice, reproductive health in the U.S. and globally, ocean protection, global climate, California communities, and children and families.

The site also documents institutional commitments to long-standing partners such as Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and Packard Fellowships for Science and Engineering. This mix of broad issue-based grantmaking and enduring institutional support is a defining feature of the foundation’s portfolio.

The foundation emphasizes flexible, long-term support and collaboration with grantee partners. Its 2025 impact report states that it awarded 605 grants totaling $322 million, with a median grant size of $240,000 and meaningful support for multi-year unrestricted funding. The Packard Fellowships program is especially notable for providing early-career scientists and engineers with flexible five-year grants.

The foundation publishes audited financial statements and Form 990-PF disclosures, reinforcing its role as a private grantmaking foundation. It also highlights evaluation and learning practices designed to improve work with grantees and adapt strategy over time.