Great news! Bird City Wisconsin will again award small grants to Bird City communities in 2021.

In 2020, the first year of our grant program, we awarded grants to projects to six Bird City communities: Bayfield, Fond du Lac, Madison, Ozaukee County, Sheboygan, and Wausau.

The 2021 program aims to capitalize on the momentum gained in 2020 by once again providing a helping hand to Bird City communities that need a modest funding boost to launch or complete a project that benefits birds. Grants will be awarded in three categories:

• Creating and protecting bird habitat
• Educating residents about interactions between birds and people
• Protecting birds by reducing such threats as window collisions and outdoor cats

We’ll award grants totaling $500 in each of these three categories. More than one grant may be awarded in each category, and if multiple grants are awarded, the total amount awarded in that category will be $500. The grants are intended to support work that will be performed in 2021. Grants will be awarded only to Bird City communities that have completed their renewal for 2021.

How to apply: Submit a Word document no more than two pages or 500 words long containing the following:

• Title and category: Provide the title of your project and its category (Habitat Creation and Protection, Education, or Bird Protection).
• Description: Tell us how the project will create and protect habitat, educate your residents, or protect birds, and estimate its total cost.
• Expected impact: For a habitat project, tell us the size of the habit to be created or protected, its type and location, its ecological significance, and the birds and other wildlife that will benefit. For an education project, describe your target audience and the number of people you expect to educate. For a bird-protection project, tell us the nature of the threat, its scope, and the birds at risk.
• Project timeframe: Give the dates in 2021 on which your project will begin and end.
• Leaders: Provide names, titles, and contact information for your project’s leader or leaders.
• Funding: Finally, list other sources of funding, if any.

Apply by email: Submit your application as an attachment to an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Please use the following subject line: “Grant Application: [Insert Bird City Community name]”

Application deadline: Tuesday, March 31, 2021. Applications received after that date will not be considered.

Members of the Bird City board of directors will evaluate applications and award grants based on the urgency of the project, its potential impact, a community’s ability to complete it, the need for funding, and the number of applications received. We’ll announce the winners in May 2021.

Report: Grantees agree to submit, no later than Nov. 1, 2021, a Word document no more than two pages or 500 words long describing the completed project and comparing actual results to what was described in the application, along with three publishable photos taken during the project.

Questions? Write to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. We look forward to hearing from you.

Read more:

Bird City Grant Helps Install Nest Boxes in Ozaukee County

Bird City Grant Helps Restore Prairie along Starkweather Creek in Madison

Bird City Grant Enhances Access to Big Ravine Preserve in Bayfield

Bird City Awards Grants to Six Communities