The Maryland Environmental Trust, in partnership with the Maryland Department of Transportation, Maryland Department of Agriculture, and the Chesapeake Bay Trust, is now accepting applications for this year’s Keep Maryland Beautiful Grants program. The deadline to apply is December 1, 2026. About $349,000 is available for this year’s grant round.
The Keep Maryland Beautiful Grants program awards annual grants to help volunteer groups, nonprofit organizations, communities, and local land trusts in Maryland support environmental education projects, community stewardship, and the protection of natural resources in urban and rural areas. This year’s grants include:
- Community stewardship grants for volunteer groups, nonprofits, local governments, and schools;
- Assistance, leadership, and capacity building grants for Maryland’s land trusts; and
- Grants for nonprofits to implement forestry projects on agricultural land.
Funding for the Keep Maryland Beautiful Grants is provided by the Maryland Environmental Trust, a unit of the Department of Natural Resources; the Department of Transportation; and the Department of Agriculture. Awards will be announced in March 2027.
“Thanks to our partners, this grant program’s funding expanded significantly this year,” said Maryland Environmental Trust Director John Turgeon. “The Trust and our funding partners recognize the huge need to support local communities, non-profits, and others promoting environmental stewardship of our neighborhoods and open spaces.”
Keep Maryland Beautiful was assigned to Maryland Environmental Trust at the Trust’s creation by the state legislature in 1967. The nonprofit Chesapeake Bay Trust administers the program’s grant application and award process.
The following grants are available:
- Community Stewardship Grants of up to $5,000 are awarded to schools, nonprofits, and other community organizations whose missions are centered upon directly engaging community members (especially children and young adults) in environmental education and stewardship. These grants also support organizations that demonstrate active engagement as defenders of the environment by developing innovative solutions to local environmental problems. The total available for Community Stewardship Grants is $54,074.
- Land Trust Assistance Grants of up to $10,000 are awarded to Maryland land trusts to increase capacity, support programming and innovation, and foster stronger, better-connected land trusts that protect and steward Maryland’s treasured landscapes. and natural resources. The total available for Land Trust Assistance Grants is $60,000.
- Aileen Hughes Grant of up to $5,000 is awarded to an individual representing a Maryland land trust for outstanding leadership, partnership, and innovation in a conservation project or organization development. A total $5,000 is available for Aileen Hughes Grants.
- Tree Planting on Agricultural Land Grants of up to $50,000 are awarded to nonprofits to implement reforestation or afforestation projects on qualifying agricultural land to support Maryland’s efforts in planting and maintaining 5 million trees by 2031. About $230,000 is available for Tree Planting on Agricultural Land Grants.
Last year’s awards included 20 grants totaling $205,134 for projects in nine Maryland counties and Baltimore City. The list of the 2026 award recipients is available online.
