Some quick grant basics to get you up and running: 

• Check who is eligible to apply for the grant. (Often, only qualified entities like non-profits, mutual ditch companies, or governmental entities can apply - but each grant is different)
  • If you are not a qualified entity, have you thought about partnering with an organization that is? 
• Make sure you understand match requirements. Match is how much money you can bring to the project before you receive the grant. There are a few different types of match.
  • In-kind is any work that your organization or partners are doing on the ground, like using your excavator to move rocks. You can use the cost of using the excavator and the volunteer hours of operating the excavator as a match. 
  • In-house is any funding that your group is providing up front, probably from your group's reserves.
  • Sometimes, grant opportunities allow you to leverage other grants as a match, such as using a $3,000 partnership grant for design work as a match for a large federal funding opportunity.