Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections
This grant helps cultural institutions preserve their collections for the future through sustainable practices, disaster preparedness, and energy efficiency.
Funder: National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)
Due Dates: January 9, 2026 (Estimated Application Due Date)
Funding Amounts: Up to $50,000 for Planning; up to $100,000 for Implementation Level I; up to $350,000 for Implementation Level II; additional funds available for non-contiguous states/jurisdictions.
Summary: Supports cultural institutions in preserving humanities collections through environmentally sustainable preventive care, disaster preparedness, and energy efficiency.
Key Information: Funding supports planning and implementation projects with performance periods up to 2-3 years; no cost sharing required; eligible applicants include government entities, nonprofits, and higher education institutions.
Description
The Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections program by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) assists cultural institutions in addressing the complex challenge of preserving large and diverse humanities collections for future generations. The grant focuses on environmentally sustainable preventive care strategies that mitigate deterioration, extend the useful life of collections, reduce energy consumption, and enhance institutional resilience against disasters such as theft, fire, floods, and climate-related risks.
Eligible institutions include libraries, archives, museums, and historical organizations. The program encourages projects that manage environmental factors affecting collections (temperature, humidity, pollutants, light), provide protective storage solutions, and implement sustainable methods to reduce reliance on fossil fuels.
There are three funding levels:
- Planning: Up to $50,000 to develop and assess sustainable preventive care strategies.
- Implementation Level I: Up to $100,000 for projects addressing specific, discrete preservation challenges identified through assessments.
- Implementation Level II: Up to $350,000 for projects addressing large or multifaceted preservation challenges, often involving multidisciplinary professional teams.
Additional funds are available for organizations in non-contiguous states or jurisdictions (e.g., Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico) to cover increased travel and shipping costs.
The period of performance is up to two years for Planning and Implementation Level I projects, and up to three years for Implementation Level II projects.
Examples of Funded Projects
- Installation of energy-efficient HVAC systems to improve collection environments.
- Construction of specialized archives and paper conservation suites.
- Creating sustainable preservation environments tailored to specific collections.
