The Pollinator Fund at People, Food and Land Foundation nurtures the spirit of connection and growth. It invests in access – helping young people, educators, and emerging practitioners take their first steps into regenerative learning, land stewardship, and enterprise development.

Through microgrants, scholarships, and internships, the Pollinator Fund expands opportunities that might otherwise be out of reach – enabling students to participate in programs like FFA, 4H, permaculture training, field-based research, and summer camps that deepen understanding of soil, water, food, and the living systems that sustain us.

The Fund supports education in action:

1. School gardens and habitat restoration projects
2. Permaculture and agroecology courses
3. Youth-led reforestation and water conservation efforts
4. Innovative research and entrepreneurial projects
5. Community initiatives that strengthen local food and bioresource systems

Many of the brightest ideas for a thriving planet begin with curiosity – a teacher’s encouragement, a summer spent outdoors, a class project that sparks imagination. The Pollinator Fund turns that curiosity into experience, and experience into confidence – empowering students and community members to believe in their own capacity to create change.

Each project, scholarship, and internship plants the seeds of leadership, self-belief, and hands-on experience that prepare the next generation of land stewards, designers, and regenerative entrepreneurs.

Like the pollinators that weave life across ecosystems, this fund helps ideas travel – spreading knowledge, inspiration, and opportunity. Every award builds momentum, feeding into PFL’s broader programs such as the Mycelium Bridge and Marigold Funds, where regenerative infrastructure and enterprise scale the systems those first projects begin.

By investing in the Pollinator Fund, donors help open doors – to education, to possibility, and to a future where care for land and community go hand in hand.

The Pollinator Fund transforms philanthropic capital into visible, measurable impact – turning donations into sustainable livings systems of regeneration. It offers microgrants  for early-stage community and youth-led projects.

1. Accessible funding. Many regenerative ideas stall because groups lack 501(c)(3) status or administrative infrastructure. The Pollinator Fund bridges that gap by channeling donor support through People Food & Land’s fiscal sponsorship program.
2. Rapid activation. Funds are deployed quickly to launch visible, local projects that educate and restore — not bogged down by bureaucratic grant cycles.
3. Compounding impact. Each project builds community capacity and ecological literacy, creating momentum for future initiatives that may later qualify for PFL’s larger programs such as the Mycelium or Marigold Funds.

For donors, contributions are fully tax-deductible and can be made via appreciated stock, crypto, or DAFs — providing a tax-efficient, transparent, and tangible way to give.

• Creates visible, community-scale examples of renewal that feed into statewide and national circular bioeconomy efforts and inspire further action
• Educates the next generation of environmental stewards
• Demonstrates transparent, reportable outcomes to donors and advisors
• Feeds into larger, systemic programs (Mycelium / Marigold) for long-term resilience