The goal of the Merck Family Fund’s Sustaining Our Environment program is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to create policies for sustainable production practices. To meet this goal, the Fund provides grants to nonprofit organizations that address one of the following three priority areas: Promoting Energy Efficiency, Conserving Ecologically Valuable Land, and Making Paper Production Sustainable. To promote energy efficiency, the Fund supports state and regional policies in the Northeast and Southeast that provide incentives and subsidies for energy efficiency implementation. To conserve ecologically valuable land, the Fund provides grants for land conservation projects in the Southeast. To make paper production sustainable, the Fund seeks to increase the rates of recycled paper in large paper sectors, reduce sourcing from endangered forests, and maximize clean production. Letters of inquiry may be submitted throughout the year.

The upcoming deadline for invited proposals is February 1, 2012. Visit the Fund’s website.