BAND Foundation
At a glance
This funder does not accept unsolicited applications. The foundation chooses the organisations it funds itself.
Key takeaways
- BAND Foundation funds nature conservation and epilepsy care in the United States and internationally, so fit matters: conservation work on high-value landscapes, threatened and overlooked biodiversity, constituency-building for nature, and biodiversity journalism, alongside epilepsy work on SUDEP prevention and education in the United States and closing the epilepsy treatment gap in low-resource settings, especially Africa.
- A realistic request would sit in the typical $50,000 to $260,000 range, with a median grant of $100,000; the one $1,000,000 grant went to Maliasili Initiatives, a regranting organisation it funds every year, so that is not a useful benchmark for a first ask.
- BAND accepts proposals by invitation only and does not accept unsolicited requests, so a cold application is not the way in; focus instead on building visibility and relationships that might lead to an invitation.
- The pattern of giving is relationship-led rather than open-call: 91% of its grant dollars went to organisations it had also funded in the previous two filings, so new grantees share a smaller part of the funding pool, though this does not mean a new relationship cannot start.
- There is no stated exclusion beyond the invitation-only process itself, so beyond ensuring your work matches its conservation or epilepsy themes and respecting that unsolicited approaches will not be considered, there is no further reason given to rule yourself out.
Overview
BAND Foundation is a US private foundation based in Wilmington, DE.
What they fund
Profile derived from the foundation's IRS Form 990-PF filings (TY2024, TY2023, TY2022) and its website, with every statement checked against those sources. Sources read on 7 October 2026.
Priority Areas
BAND supports nature conservation and epilepsy care in the United States and internationally. Its nature-conservation work backs targeted landscape- and species-level initiatives, including conserving high-value natural landscapes, protecting threatened and overlooked biodiversity, and building a stronger constituency for nature. It also supports biodiversity-focused journalism to reconnect people with nature. In epilepsy care, it supports cutting-edge research, with emphasis on SUDEP prevention and education in the United States, and works to address the treatment gap in low-resource settings, especially Africa. It invests in targeted initiatives showing how epilepsy care can be integrated into public health systems, alongside advocates advancing awareness and education. Its approach seeks visionary leaders, provides early-stage, patient and risk-tolerant funding, focuses on outcomes and flexibility, and aims to make accessing and reporting on funding administratively unburdensome.
Themes
- High-Value Natural Landscapes
- Threatened and Overlooked Biodiversity
- Strong Constituency for Nature
- SUDEP Prevention
- Global Epilepsy
Geographic Focus
Priority: United States; internationally.
How to apply
BAND accepts proposals by invitation only.
Application success factors
- Repeat giving: In its TY2024 filing, 91% of its grant dollars to organisations went to organisations it had also funded in its TY2022 or TY2023 filing.
- Grant size: Across its TY2022, TY2023 and TY2024 filings, half of its 148 grants to organisations were $100,000 or less.
What the foundation says:
- It seeks visionary leaders focused on outsized results, with passion, integrity, deep substantive knowledge, effective communication skills and an ability to drive change.
- It provides early-stage, patient and risk-tolerant funding to visionary people, institutions and ideas.
- It strives to make access to and reporting on its funding efficient and administratively unburdensome.
- It watches for moments when the right people and circumstances align to enable change, and tries to capitalize on them.
- It prioritizes outcomes over outputs, remains flexible and focuses on investments that pave the way for other funders to participate.
- After making a grant, it becomes vested in the project's success and seeks to connect grantees with donors and decisionmakers and amplify their work.
Where grants go
From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2022–2024.
Grant dollars by state
6 other states: 20%
Outside the US or with no state on the filing: 15%
- The largest single recipient received 10% of grant dollars to organisations.
- In tax year 2024, 91% of grant dollars went to organisations BAND Foundation had funded in earlier filings.
- 3% of grant dollars went directly to organisations outside the US (Ireland, United Kingdom).
- 35% of grant dollars went to intermediaries that regrant to other organisations.
Grants
How much do they typically give?
Share of 49 grants in tax year 2024 by size
Median $133k (tax year 2024)
The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:
- Maliasili Initiatives · Maliasili Conservation Fund$500,0002024 tax year
- Guardian Org Foundation · Age of Extinction$350,0002024 tax year
- Austin Peay State University Foundation · Southeastern Grasslands Institute$350,0002024 tax year
- Wildlife Conservation Network · Lion Recovery Fund$300,0002024 tax year
- Wyldlife Fund · Pooled Migration Fund$300,0002024 tax year
- Vox Media · Expenditure Responsibility Grant$285,2832024 tax year
- Wildlife Conservation Network · Pangolin Crisis Fund$250,0002024 tax year
- Bat Conservation International · Agave Restoration Initiative$250,0002024 tax year
Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.
Officers and directors
- Clark Mitchell — Director, Secretary
- Nicholas P Lapham — Treasurer, Director, President
- Gardiner O Lapham — Director
- Burks B Lapham — Chair, Director
From the latest Form 990-PF filing
3 years of tax filings
| Year | Total expenses | Grants paid | Assets | Filing document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 tax year | $7,639,128 | $7,136,669 | $123,361,486 | Filing for 2022 tax year |
| 2023 tax year | $7,663,169 | $6,732,856 | $147,342,418 | Filing for 2023 tax year |
| 2024 tax year | $7,995,500 | $7,220,536 | $160,889,396 | Filing for 2024 tax year |
Figures from the foundation’s IRS Form 990-PF filings. Assets are at fair market value at year end. The document icon links to each year’s filing on ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer.
Sources
Registers and filings
Other sources
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At a glance
Applying to BAND Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
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Contact
- Wilmington, DE
- bandfdn.org
Applying to BAND Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- Wilmington, DE
- bandfdn.org