Find Funding

Non-Profit and Foundation Funding

Two good places to start your search are:

The MSU Library Research Guide on Grants and Related Resources, and
Candid (formerly the Foundation Center), which you should enter from the above research guide to be automatically logged into.

Candid is a national nonprofit service organization recognized as the nation’s leading authority on organized philanthropy, and their online database should be your first stop in searching for funding. For MSU employees on campus, it will automatically allow you to connect. If you are an off-campus MSU employee, it will ask your for your NET ID and password.

Below are some training resources on how to use the Foundation Directory Online (FDO):

• FDO: Search by Phrase (YouTube video; 2:00)
• FDO: Advanced Search & Filters (YouTube video; 7:24)
• FDO: Navigating Search Results (YouTube video; 5:55)
• FDO: Field Definitions (.pdf)
• FDO: Grantmaker Profile (YouTube video; 6:16)

List of Michigan-based foundations - www.michiganfoundations.org/directory.

Federal Funding

The central website for federal grant funding is https://www.grants.gov/.

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has major funding areas in food security, climate variability and change, water, sustainable bioenergy, childhood obesity protection, and food safety. Check out www.nifa.usda.gov.

USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) has the following sources:

Agricultural and Food Research Initiative (AFRI)
Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR)
Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS)
USDA Rural Development - www.rd.usda.gov

Selected other Federal grant-making agencies:

U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) - www.commerce.gov
U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) - www.defense.gov
U.S. Department of Education (ED) - www.ed.gov
U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) - www.energy.gov
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) - www.hhs.gov
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) - www.hud.gov

State of Michigan Funding

Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) - www.michigan.gov/mdard

MDARD Grant Programs:

Value Added & Regional Food Systems Grants
Rural Development Fund Grants
Specialty Crop Block Grants
Food Safety Education Fund Grants
Strategic Growth Initiative Grants
Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) - www.michiganbusiness.org/
Smart Zone Program
Other community projects

Selected Other State Grant-Making Agencies:

Michigan Department of Labor & Economic Opportunity - www.michigan.gov/leo
Michigan Arts and Cultural Council - www.michiganbusiness.org/industries/macc/
Michigan Department of Education - www.michigan.gov/mde
Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, & Energy - www.michigan.gov/egle
Michigan Department of Health and Human Services - www.michigan.gov/mdhhs
- Open RFPs are published in the Electronic Grants Administration & Management System - (EGrAMS)
Michigan Department of Natural Resources - www.michigan.gov/dnr
Michigan Department of Transportation - www.michigan.gov/mdot