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Ngā kaupapa ka tautokona ā-pūtea / What we fund

This fund provides grants for plans, reports and one-off projects that will protect, conserve and promote New Zealand’s natural, cultural and physical heritage.

  • Natural heritage projects promote, protect and/or keep our native plants (flora) and animal life (fauna) safe from harm (including the on-going costs of pest and predator control)
  • Physical heritage projects restore, protect and/or conserve places, structures and large built objects that are important to our history 
  • Cultural heritage projects conserve, protect and/or promote collections and stories that are important to our cultural heritage and identity.

Ngā Hua / Outcomes

Organisations receiving grants are expected to demonstrate how their projects will benefit the community, and contribute to:

  • increasing our access to New Zealand’s cultural heritage; 
  • preserving and protecting New Zealand’s natural environment; or 
  • preserving New Zealand’s history for future generations.

Ngā kaupapa matua / Priorities

Grant decisions are made by the Lottery Environment and Heritage Committee.

Before deciding, the committee looks at how your project will help New Zealand's natural, physical and cultural heritage.

Natural heritage: 

  • Protect and restore habitats and ecosystems for native plants or animals 
  • Protect and conserve native plants or animals that are rare, in danger or at risk in their habitats 
  • Improve public access and information about native plants and animals 

Physical heritage:

  • Restore and protect places, structures or large built objects of significance to our history 
  • Protect and conserve a place, structure or large built object for the future 
  • Improve public access and information about places, structures or large built objects of significance to our history 

Cultural heritage:

  • Protect collections that are at risk of being damaged or lost 
  • Make collections available to the community 
  • Improve public access and information, particularly for young people to learn about and experience our cultural heritage 
  • Conserve and protect moveable cultural property, such as photographs, paintings, furniture and other artefacts

 Important dates for the Lottery Environment and Heritage Fund

The next opening and closing dates for Lottery Environment and Heritage Fund requests and the Committee decision meeting date are listed at the link below:

The Committee prefers requests for projects that show appropriate project and/or conservation planning has happened to support the type of project to be undertaken.
You also need to show your project will meet best practice professional standards for the protecting, preserving, restoring, conserving and/or displaying:

  • our natural world, and the native plants and animals that live in it 
  • places, structures or large built objects of proven heritage significance 
  • collections or moveable cultural property of proven heritage significance.

Lottery Environment and Heritage makes grants for:

  • small projects, where the grant requested is for less than $250,000 
  • large projects, where the grant requested is for $250,000 or more 
  • a one-off project may be: 
    • a discrete stage of a larger, ongoing project; or
    • a single, stand-alone project.
  • the on-going costs of pest and predator control (considered on a case-by-case basis).

Ngā kaupapa kāore e tautokona ā-pūtea / What we don't fund

Lottery grants may not be used for any of the following:

  • repaying or servicing debt
  • refinancing loans, deposits or underwriting projects
  • commercial, political and/or religious objectives, including employment and/or business initiatives, commercial enterprises, political advocacy or projects which seek to change legislation
  • fundraisers and projects which seek to raise funds in or for a specific sector, or are involved with the training or employment of fundraisers
  • projects which seek to redistribute funding to others
  • overseas aid or disaster relief
  • alcohol and drug treatment, education and support services
  • medical expenses, operations, treatments or the purchase of major items of health equipment
  • capital investment or trust funds
  • projects or activities completed (retrospective funding) or items bought before the request.

Lottery Environment and Heritage does not fund:

  • projects to conserve, restore or protect privately or commercially owned land, buildings, structures and/or large built objects
  • projects to plan, develop or create historic gardens
  • routine maintenance that is not part of a larger restoration project
  • individual people, including projects undertaken as part of a university qualification
  • projects to landscape or beautify an area, that do not have a conservation, restoration or educational value
  • operating expenses, such as administration, staffing, or ordinary upkeep and maintenance (on-going costs for Natural Heritage projects such as pest and predator control may be considered on a case-by-case basis)
  • projects to build or restore historic replicas, including copies of vehicles, equipment or buildings
  • projects to install or upgrade services such as kitchens or toilets that are not part of larger construction or restoration projects
  • purchases of bare land
  • recycling schemes or related projects
  • research projects (but requests for applied research that show a clear community benefit may be considered)
  • reunions.

Costs that are out of scope for plans, studies and reports:

  • The following costs will not be funded by the Lottery Environment and Heritage Committee:
    • legal services
    • architectural design (other than preliminary designs to inform a feasibility study)
    • planning approval
    • fundraising campaign plans
    • business plans
    • feasibility studies that have been completed by the funding round closing date.

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