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Gulf Coast Oil Spill Fund

As we learned with the Valdez oil spill in Alaska in 1989, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill will have both short- and long-term consequences. The spill will have its most direct effects on the Louisiana coastline and its fragile ecosystems. It will impact the livelihoods of fishermen and their families, as well those who depend on the fishing and tourism industries. The environmental effects will linger for many years.

The Greater New Orleans Foundation’s Gulf Coast Oil Spill Fund – your local philanthropic partner

With the Gulf Coast Oil Spill Fund, the Greater New Orleans Foundation will serve as a conduit between the donor community and our nonprofit partners. We will fund philanthropic dollars back into the effected communities on a short and long-term bases.

Short-term: The fund will make emergency grants to nonprofit organizations helping the victims of the oil spill.

Long-term: The fund will help address the long-term economic, environmental, cultural effects of the disaster, and strengthen coastal communities against future environmental catastrophes by investing in solutions.

Fundraising

Click here for information on holding a fund raiser for the Gulf Coast Oil Spill Fund.

A little history

As often happens in a disaster, donors turn to the local community foundation because of its intimate knowledge of the local nonprofit community. The Greater New Orleans Foundation, the largest and oldest philanthropic community foundation in the region, established the Rebuild New Orleans Fund shortly after Hurricane Katrina. National foundations, corporations, families and individuals contributed millions to this fund to help with rebuilding efforts.

The role of philanthropy

The 2005 hurricanes caused $150 billion in damages, yet the federal relief was $45 billion in rebuilding funds, with an additional $25 billion in private insurance claims. Philanthropy helps to fill the gap. Over the past four years, our staff has leveraged close to half a billion dollars for our community.

Contact

If you would like to learn more about the Gulf Coast Oil Spill Fund, please call Josephine Everly at (504)598-4663 or josephine@gnof.org.

Volunteerism

While the greater New Orleans Foundation does not provide volunteer opportunities to assist in the oil spill cleanup, there are oil spill-related opportunities emerging in the New Orleans region. Please visit the HandsOn New Orleans site for information on these opportunities.

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Lemons, Booze, Biking, and More to Aid the Gulf Coast

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Saving the Pelicans

Kim Stanton is a recreational fisherman who has fished off the Louisiana coast for more than twenty years. He and his wife Pam volunteered in the oil spill cleanup effort and have this story to share.
My wife and I drove down to Fort Jackson last Sunday morning to volunteer in the pelican

A Bake Sale for the Gulf

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Keeping Venice on the Map

Q & A with Mike Butler, owner of the Venice Marina and founding member of the Plaquemines Community Foundation, an affiliate of the Greater New Orleans Foundation.

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Impressions of Breton Sound Off the Coast of Louisiana

In 1994, local activist Karin Giger wrote the following impressions about her visit to Breton Sound near the Chandeleur Islands, an area now surrounded by protective booms because of the BP Gulf oil spill.

CARE Provides Support to Plaquemines Parish Residents Affected by Oil Spill

As Southeast Louisiana braces for the long-term effects of the oil spill on our communities, the 12 counselors of the Community CARE Center in Belle Chasse are prepared to provide a wide variety of support services to Plaquemines Parish residents free of charge.

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