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Knobloch Family Foundation

Annual Giving
$26.1M
000

Knobloch Family Foundation

Quick Stats

  • Annual Giving: $26,107,328 (2023)
  • Total Assets: $167.8 million (2023)
  • Average Grant Size: $215,763
  • Number of Grants: 120 awards (2023)
  • Geographic Focus: Texas, Georgia, Wyoming, and the Western United States
  • Application Process: Invitation only

Contact Details

Website: https://www.knoblochfamilyfoundation.org/

Address: Fairfield, CT

Note: The foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals. Funding opportunities are extended by invitation only.

Overview

The Knobloch Family Foundation was established in 1997 by Carl W. Knobloch Jr., a Yale graduate and businessman passionate about environmental conservation. Operating as a spend-down foundation, it has grown to hold $167.8 million in assets and distributed $26.1 million in grants during 2023. The foundation's mission is to understand and sustain the natural world, inspired by Theodore Roosevelt's conservation principle: "The nation behaves well if it treats the natural resources as assets, which it must turn over to the next generation increased and not impaired in value." The foundation works collaboratively with a network of conservation partners across strategic program areas focused on science-based conservation, conservation economics, conservation finance, and ensuring the durability of conservation protections.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

The foundation operates through four strategic program areas:

  • Science-Based Conservation: Investing in research that informs effective conservation strategies, with current focus on migratory bird populations, gopher tortoises in Georgia, and big-game migrations in the West.

  • Conservation Economics: Supporting research and application of natural capital valuation to help decision makers account for the full range of values that nature provides to society.

  • Conservation Finance: Partnering to finance critical conservation opportunities, incentivize land stewardship, and support ballot initiatives for conservation funding in Texas, Georgia, and Wyoming.

  • Tools for Durable Conservation: Strengthening conservation easements to safeguard their integrity and ensure lands are protected in perpetuity.

Priority Areas

  • Wildlife habitat protection and connectivity (particularly migration corridors)
  • Land conservation and natural resource preservation
  • Conservation science and research
  • Natural capital valuation and conservation economics
  • Conservation easement protection and monitoring
  • Longleaf pine forest restoration (Georgia)
  • Coastal conservation (Texas)
  • Western lands conservation (Wyoming and broader Western U.S.)

Geographic Focus

Primary regions: Texas, Georgia, Wyoming, and the Western United States

Governance and Leadership

Leadership Team:

  • Nicole Korfanta - Executive Director (compensation: $282,249 in 2023)

Board of Directors (all serve without compensation):

  • Carla Knobloch - Director
  • Eleanor Knobloch Ratchford - Director
  • Emily C Knobloch - Director
  • Stevens Sharkey - Director

Founder: Carl W. Knobloch Jr. (1930-2016) was a Connecticut native, Yale graduate (Class of 1951), and Harvard Business School alumnus who led companies in finance, real estate, and energy. He founded West Hill Investors and previously served as chair and CEO of Production Operators Corporation. His conservation legacy includes founding both the Knobloch Family Foundation and the West Hill Foundation for Nature. Under his leadership, the foundation contributed to major conservation projects including wildlife migration corridors in Wyoming, Texas coast conservation, and the acquisition of the Antelope Flats section of Grand Teton National Park. He was also a major benefactor of Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, endowing the deanship and helping fund Kroon Hall.

Application Process & Timeline

How to Apply

The Knobloch Family Foundation does not have a public application process. The foundation only makes contributions to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds. All proposals are by invitation only, working through their established network of conservation partners.

Organizations seeking funding from the foundation will need to be identified and invited by the foundation's leadership based on strategic alignment with their conservation priorities.

Decision Timeline

Not publicly disclosed. Decisions are made by the board in consultation with executive leadership.

Success Rates

Not applicable - invitation-only grantmaking model.

Reapplication Policy

Not applicable - invitation-only grantmaking model.

Application Success Factors

Since the Knobloch Family Foundation operates on an invitation-only basis, traditional application success factors do not apply. However, based on the foundation's stated priorities and funding patterns, organizations most likely to align with their strategic interests share these characteristics:

Strategic Alignment:

  • Work that advances science-based conservation approaches
  • Projects that protect and restore natural ecosystems, particularly in Texas, Georgia, Wyoming, and the Western United States
  • Initiatives involving wildlife habitat connectivity and migration corridors
  • Conservation efforts that incorporate natural capital valuation
  • Projects that ensure the long-term durability of conservation protections

Mission Alignment with Roosevelt's Conservation Philosophy: The foundation is explicitly guided by Theodore Roosevelt's principle about treating natural resources "as assets, which it must turn over to the next generation increased and not impaired in value." Projects that embody this intergenerational stewardship approach align with the foundation's core values.

Geographic Focus: Organizations working on conservation in the foundation's priority regions (Texas, Georgia, Wyoming, and the broader Western U.S.) are more likely to align with their strategic interests.

Collaborative Approach: The foundation describes working "with a network of conservation partners," suggesting they value organizations that can collaborate effectively and contribute to broader conservation goals.

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  • Invitation-only model: This foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals. Do not submit applications unless specifically invited.

  • Spend-down strategy: As a spend-down foundation, the Knobloch Family Foundation is actively distributing assets, making substantial grants averaging over $215,000.

  • Science-driven focus: The foundation prioritizes conservation work that is informed by rigorous scientific research.

  • Geographic concentration: Focus areas are Texas, Georgia, Wyoming, and the Western United States - organizations working outside these regions are unlikely to be funded.

  • Theodore Roosevelt's legacy: The foundation's approach is deeply influenced by Roosevelt's conservation philosophy, emphasizing intergenerational responsibility for natural resources.

  • Four strategic pillars: All grantmaking aligns with science-based conservation, conservation economics, conservation finance, or tools for durable conservation.

  • Network-based approach: The foundation works through established conservation partners rather than conducting open grantmaking cycles.

References

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