Margaret A Cargill Foundation
ActivePhilanthropy & VoluntarismMakes PRIsFunds Individuals
EDEN PRAIRIE, MNWebsite
About Margaret A Cargill Foundation
The Margaret A. Cargill Foundation prioritizes large-scale, long-term investments in community resilience, conservation, and Indigenous-led economic and cultural initiatives, with a strong operational and institutional focus (capacity building, donor-advised funds, and program support). Its portfolio blends international humanitarian and disaster-preparedness work with regional commitments in Minnesota and the Upper Midwest, frequently funding universities, community foundations, and specialty nonprofits that deliver durable systems change. The foundation also supports Native education and cultural programming, nature conservation and biodiversity (including community co-management), and some animal welfare and public health projects.
Focus Areas
Community resilience & disaster preparedness in Central America and other vulnerable regionsIndigenous/Native American education, cultural arts, and economic developmentLandscape-scale conservation and community co-management of forests, marine, and grassland ecosystemsCapacity-building and donor-advised / community foundation support in Minnesota and the Upper MidwestRural aging, rural education, and workforce resilience initiatives
Who They Fund
Indigenous and Native American communities and artists
About Margaret A Cargill Foundation
The Margaret a Cargill Foundation’s recent grants show a strong commitment to donor-advised fund support in Minnesota, alongside large commitments to preparedness, conservation, and Indigenous cultural work. One of its largest grants went to Saint Paul and Minnesota Foundation for support for a donor advised fund at the Minnesota Community Foundation, and another large award supported The Minneapolis Foundation in building the Margaret A. Cargill Foundation donor advised fund there. That pattern points to an institution that uses community foundations as part of its operating approach, while still making direct grants to national and international nonprofits. Beyond Minnesota, the foundation backs organizations working on tropical forest loss, emergency response, wildlife, freshwater ecosystems, and maternal and newborn health. Recent grants also include support for traditional arts across Turtle Island and Native arts and cultures grantmaking, showing a sustained interest in Indigenous-led cultural continuity. The portfolio is broad, but the recurring thread is durable systems support for communities facing environmental, health, or disaster-related pressures.
What Margaret A Cargill Foundation Funds
In conservation, the foundation supported Climateworks Foundation with $5,615,000 for helping communities reduce and reverse tropical forest loss, and gave Conservation International Foundation $2,153,000 for conservation of critical freshwater ecosystems in the Lower Mekong region. In disaster and preparedness work, it awarded Catholic Relief Services $3,000,000 for Prepared and Resilient Communities Project support and Oxfam-america Inc $2,382,000 for strengthening community preparedness, rapid response and recovery in Asia. Its health-related grantmaking includes $2,500,000 to Concern Worldwide US Inc for partnerships for improved maternal and newborn health in coastal Bangladesh, plus $2,000,000 to Management Sciences for Health Inc for supporting healthy mothers and babies in Guatemala. Cultural and Indigenous-focused grants include $2,575,000 to First Peoples Fund for traditional arts across Turtle Island and $2,425,000 to First Nations Development Institute for Native arts and cultures grantmaking.
How Margaret A Cargill Foundation Gives
Typical grants are sizable: the 25th percentile is $25,000, the median is $300,000, and the 75th percentile is $750,000. The recent list also includes multiple multimillion-dollar awards, especially to community foundations and large implementing organizations. Grantmaking appears programmatic and sustained rather than one-off, with repeated awards to the same institutions across 2023, 2024, and 2025. The foundation is classified as a regular funder, makes program-related investments, and funds individuals. Several active programs are invitation-based, and unsolicited applications are not accepted.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$153.6M
Total Assets
$3.3B
Total Revenue
$87.8M
Total Expenses
$190M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $25K and $750K, with a median of $300K.
25th Percentile
$25K
Median
$300K
75th Percentile
$750K
Geographic Reach
National39 states funded
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
Leadership
HEATHER KUKLA
PRESIDENT
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Where Margaret A Cargill Foundation Funds
Top 10 recipient countries by grant volume for Margaret A Cargill Foundation.
| Rank | Country | Grants | Total | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United StatesDomestic | 843 | $463M | 93.3% |
| 2 | United Kingdom |
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