Fund advances restoration opportunities created by Klamath Dam removal 

The Klamath River Fund, a program of Humboldt Area Foundation and Wild Rivers Community Foundation (HAF+WRCF), today announced $1.2 million in grants awarded to 12 organizations working across the Klamath Basin. These grants mark a significant step in the Fund’s 10-year commitment to invest in and amplify community-led climate resilience and restorative justice efforts following the unprecedented removal of four dams on the Klamath River in 2023 and 2024. 

The Klamath River Fund is dedicated to supporting projects and initiatives that demonstrate how river restoration is a vital investment in the region’s future. This includes locally driven restoration projects that make the region more resilient in the face of climate change, collaborations between agricultural and fish dependent communities, and community education. 

“Klamath dam removal was a historic event, the largest of its kind in U.S. history, and it has opened a new chapter for the Klamath River basin,” said Pimm Tripp-Allen, Vice Chair of Programs, Community Partnerships & Tribal Relations at the Foundation. “These initial grants are a reflection of the incredible work being done by communities throughout the basin to heal the land and its people.” 

The Fund’s grantmaking strategy is informed by the principles of trust-based philanthropy and guided by community input to ensure that resources are directed where they are most needed. The grants invest in a wide range of organizations and projects including sustainable agriculture along the Sprague River at the Klamath’s headwaters in Oregon to the first effort to boat the length of the un-dammed Klamath by local Tribal youth.  

Collectively, these grants build off the opportunities afforded by dam removal, support local communities, and show cultural responsiveness and respect for Tribal traditions and practices. According to Tripp-Allen, “The Klamath River Fund seeks to foster collaboration and increase the collective impact of restoration and revitalization efforts throughout the Klamath Basin.” 

The Klamath River Fund is a program of HAF+WRCF, deepening the Foundation’s commitment to a thriving, just, healthy, and equitable region. The Fund’s work aligns with HAF+WRCF’s decade-long goals of racial equity, thriving youth and families, healthy ecosystems and environments, and a just economy.  

Recent Grantees: 

American Rivers – Little Shasta River restoration 

Big Foot Trail Alliance – Youth professional training, mentorship, and field experience 

Favell Museum – Museum exhibit centered around the role of water in the Klamath Basin 

Friends of the Shasta River – Flow study for the Shasta River 

Klamath Drainage District – Interpretive kiosk and waterfowl viewing blind  

Klamath River Renewal Corporation – Trail and recreational access 

Mid Klamath Watershed Council – Youth Programming and community engagement 

Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations – Flows for the Scott and Shasta Rivers 

Paddle Tribal Waters – Youth led descent of the newly undammed Klamath River 

Sustainable Northwest –Communications and storytelling 

Upper Klamath Basin Ag Collaborative – Restoration planning along the Sprague River 

Watershed Training Center – Youth education and habitat restoration 

Prior Grantees include Ridges to Riffles, Scott River Watershed Council, Cal Trout, Klamath-Trinity Joint Unified School District, Hoopa Valley PUD, Save California Salmon, Ridges to Riffles, Family Water Alliance, Karuk Tribe, Modoc Ancestral Run.  

About the Klamath River Fund: 

The Klamath River Fund, a program of Humboldt Area Foundation and Wild Rivers Community Foundation (HAF+WRCF), invests in and amplifies restoration and revitalization efforts in the entire Klamath basin following the Klamath dam removal. The Fund supports community-led climate resilience and restorative justice work over a ten-year period. For more information see Klamath River Fund – Humboldt Area Foundation.