Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation

02/12/2026

It’s the love of the Lowcountry. The love of the land.

As we announce our 2026 Lowcountry Land Conservation Symposium, we are proud to share this look at the history and origins of land conservation in the region, with personal reflections from Coy Johnston, Charles Lane, and our chair Laura Donnelley.

We ask you to save the date for this year’s symposium: Setting an Ambitious Agenda–The Power of Collaborative Land Conservation. It takes place May 12, 2026 at the Charleston Gaillard Center. Registration and more information will be available in mid-March.

South Carolina’s conservation success has been built over decades through partnerships — bringing together landowners, conservation organizations, public agencies and private-sector leaders to protect the landscapes that define our region. As the state sets ambitious goals to significantly expand protected land over the coming decades, collaboration across sectors and communities will be essential to meeting the challenge.

After all, as Coy tells us, it is about the “we, we, we.”

Thank you to the team .co for their work producing this beautiful video.

01/09/2025

In our 2024 grantmaking, GDDF was proud to support 127 organizations in Chicago and the Lowcountry with nearly $6.2 million in grants. More than 65% of this year’s grants were for multi-year general operating support.

Arnold Randall shares:

“It is more important than ever to champion the power of art, nurture our land, and share the stories that shape our self-understanding. Even as they are doing exciting and important work, many of the organizations we support are facing challenges and uncertainty. At GDDF, we value the deep, steady, and long-term relationships we build with our grantee partners. We remain committed to trust-based practices, our mission areas, and the values of equity and trust that guide our work. We are proud to support these organizations that are doing such important work in their fields and communities.”

12/17/2024

Happy 35th anniversary to the ACE Basin! Learn more about this incredible feat of conservation and the lessons it still holds for us today in this The Post and Courier op-ed from GDDF Executive Director Arnold Randall.

A Ga***rd & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation director celebrates how government, landowners have protected undeveloped land near Ashepoo, Combahee and Edisto rivers

12/10/2024

We’re proud to be part of the Chi-Cal River Fund partnership and are pleased to share that six projects have been selected to receive $2.1 million in grant funding to enhance habitat and greenspace throughout the Chicago-Calumet region.

“Given the increasing climate impacts our region is facing, the work accomplished through this partnership is more vital than ever,” said Arnold Randall, executive director of the Ga***rd and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation. “Together, we can achieve more powerful conservation results for the communities, people, and ecosystems within the Chicago and Calumet watersheds.”

, , , , and will protect and conserve fish and wildlife habitat, reduce stormwater runoff, engage most-impacted communities in restoration activities, and improve access to greenspace.

The Chi-Cal Rivers Fund is a partnership between and the , .s.forestservice , Cleveland-Cliffs, , Crown Family Philanthropies, Ga***rd and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, , and .

Photo: This July, GDDF board and staff visited wetland restoration areas along the West Branch of the Little Calumet River.

10/17/2024

Congratulations to GDDF Executive Director Arnold Randall!

Arnold is the inaugural Gerald W. Adelmann Conservation Leadership Award at the Annual Luncheon. The award celebrates his unwavering dedication to preserving our natural landscapes. Arnold has dedicated his career to preservation, conservation, and championing access to nature for everyone. We were thrilled you joined the Foundation this year and are so grateful for your years of conservation leadership at organizations like the Forest Preserves of Cook County.

Please join us in congratulating Arnold for this well-deserved award!

Photo: Arnold accepting his award from 2024 luncheon co-chair Gloria Castillo.

07/24/2024

GDDF is helping to support 69 organizations in the Chicago region and the Lowcountry with more than $3.9 million in funding in our spring/summer 2024 grant cycle.

Executive Director Arnold Randall shares:

“We are proud to support a vibrant array of organizations that play such a vital role in their communities. Collectively, their work speaks to our humanity: the art that inspires us, the narratives that shape us, and the land that sustains us.”

GDDF is committed to trust-based practices and offering partner-grantees steady, sustained support that recognizes their expertise in their fields and regions.

68% of grants offer multiyear general operating funds

13 new grantee-partners

56 returning grantee-partners

43 in the Artistic Vitality program

12 in the Broadening Narratives program

14 in the Land Conservation program

The Ga***rd and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation (GDDF) is pleased to announce support for 69 groups in its 2024 spring/summer grant cycle.

07/17/2024

How many birds can you spot?

We don’t know the answer, either, because this area is home to “secretive marsh birds.” It is also home to egrets, herons, and more. Oh, and... it’s in Gary, Indiana. Yes, conservation work happens in urban and industrialized areas, too.

GDDF Board and staff had the opportunity to visit the site of an amazing urban conservation project as part of our July Board of Directors meeting. We make time at each meeting for the Board to get out and see the incredible work our grantee partners are doing.

This year’s visits showcased the restoration of wetlands along a 10-mile stretch of the Little Calumet River to improve wildlife habitat and connectivity, flood resiliency, and community greenspace. And those secretive birds? They are a great way of assessing
the impact of the restoration work and the health of marshes and wetlands.

And it isn’t just for the birds. This kind of conservation work is also done with community in mind, from bringing local residents to the table early for conversations and consultations, to working with park districts to make and connect trails, to thinking
about the impact of controlled burns on local air quality.

Thank you to:
Daniel Suarez
Joel Perez-Castaneda
Paul Botts
Craig Zandstra

for taking the time to show us the incredible work your organizations are doing.

And stay tuned for another glimpse of this July’s site visits coming next week!

07/10/2024

Proud to be part of the Chi-Cal Rivers Fund! Check out this amazing grant opportunity from the partnership with National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Proposals due August 22.

Rivers are vitally important for cities!

They offer capacity for managing stormwater 🌊
They are essential for shipping and a strong economy 🚢
They make for fun tourism and recreation 🛶
They provide habitats for many resident and migratory wildlife species 🐦

In the Chicago and Calumet River region, NFWF is offering up to $1.5 million in grant funding to improve these major waterways, reduce stormwater runoff with green infrastructure, enhance fish and wildlife habitat and improve public access to and use of natural areas.

Learn more: https://loom.ly/kAhVzHc

The Chi-Cal Rivers Fund is a partnership between NFWF and BNSF Railway, Cleveland-Cliffs Inc., Crown Family Philanthropies, Ga***rd & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, The Joyce Foundation, Hunter Family Foundation, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service and the Walder Foundation.

📷: Kayakers in Chicago

07/03/2024

Did you miss any of our Getting to Know… series? Be sure to take a look! In each entry, GDDF program staff provide an introduction to the Foundation’s work and insights about each of our program areas. Check out each entry in the series to learn more about what we do and how we do it. Find all the entries at https://gddf.org/news-insights-2/

06/13/2024

Kayaking amongst wildlife on the Chicago River? With Chicago’s striking skyline dead ahead? That’s exactly what GDDF’s Arnold Randall and Rebecca Judd experienced last week with other members of the Chi-Cal Rivers Fund. The Fund is a public-private partnership supporting the health and accessibility of watersheds in the region and we’re proud to be part of it.

The paddling trip was part of a site visit hosted by to showcase the work they and partner organizations including have done along “The Wild Mile.” It’s a stretch of wildlife-focused floating wetland installations along the armored Chicago River.

These wetlands are a great example of green infrastructure and are installed near Goose Island and other industrialized sections of the river. The wetlands are helping to transform the river and increase the health and biodiversity of the ecosystem, as well as provide spots for local communities to see and experience wildlife up close.

GDDF is proud to be part of this collaboration and support this innovative work.

06/05/2024

Did you know that the first opera performed in North America took place in Charleston? Or that some of the earliest jazz was performed by the children of the Jenkins Orphanage Band?

From the Charleston Rennaissance to the Gullah artisans weaving sweetgrass baskets, a history of artistic vitality runs deep in the Lowcountry, and the present and future of the arts in this region is rich and vibrant. Incredible arts organizations are creating in communities throughout the Lowcountry.

Learn more about how GDDF’s Lowcountry Artistic Vitality Program supports these organizations in our Getting to Know... Lowcountry Artistic Vitality.

https://gddf.org/getting-to-know-lowcountry-artistic-vitality/

Photo: the Gibbes museum in Charleston hosted a masquerade opening of the exhibition Something Terrible May Happen: The Works of Aubrey Beardsley and Edward “Ned” I.R. Jennings. Photo credit to of MCG Photography.

06/03/2024

Thrilled to co-host this meet-up from Together SC. Lowcountry nonprofits have the opportunity to hear from partners and connect with those who help your community thrive. Register at the link below for the event on June 7.

https://www.togethersc.org/events/nonprofit-peer-meet-up---lowcountry