About Waitt Foundation
Waitt Foundation’s defining pattern is concentrated support for ocean conservation through a small set of repeat partners. The largest recent grant in the file is $7,141,280 to Waitt Institute in 2025, following $6,200,000 in 2024 and $4,000,000 in 2023, all for ocean conservation. That same continuity appears with partners such as Oceans 5, Seasketch, and Bren School of Environmental Science & Management at UCSB, each receiving multiple awards across recent years. The foundation’s giving centers on marine protection, ocean policy, scientific research, and support for protected areas, with the grant record showing sustained backing for organizations that work on large-scale ocean management and conservation strategy. It also funds research and implementation partners that help shape fisheries management, mapping, and conservation planning. Rather than spreading support across many unrelated causes, the foundation repeatedly returns to a narrow set of ocean-focused organizations, including Conservation International Foundation, Oceano Azul Foundation, and Global Fishing Watch, signaling a relationship-based approach to marine conservation grantmaking.
What Waitt Foundation Funds
The Waitt Foundation backs several linked parts of ocean conservation. In marine protection, it gave $718,377 in 2024 to Seasketch and $692,444 in 2025 to Bren School of Environmental Science & Management (UCSB), both tied to ocean conservation work. In policy and advocacy, it awarded $300,000 in 2025 to Oceano Azul Foundation and $200,000 in 2025 to Global Fishing Watch, reflecting support for organizations engaged in ocean governance and fisheries oversight. Scientific research and expedition support also appear in the record: Scripps Institution of Oceanography received $344,708 in 2024, and The University of Queensland received $250,000 in 2025 for ocean conservation. The foundation also supports broader conservation implementation, including $100,000 in 2025 to Sustainable Ocean Alliance.
How Waitt Foundation Gives
Typical awards cluster around a mid-sized but wide-ranging distribution: p25 is $939, median is $19,994, and p75 is $125,000. The recent record also includes several much larger repeat grants, showing a dual pattern of small awards and major commitments. Recipients recur across years, especially Waitt Institute, Oceans 5, Seasketch, Bren School of Environmental Science & Management, Conservation International Foundation, and Global Fishing Watch. The foundation is a regular funder, not a donor-advised fund, and it does not fund individuals or make program-related investments. Its active programs include both unsolicited rapid-response grants and a separate major-grants stream with unpublished application details.
