About Cloudsplitter Foundation
The Cloudsplitter Foundation was originally a family foundation, established as the Keet Family Foundation 501c3 charity in 1986. The foundation was re-domiciled to New York in 1999 and in 2014 we became the Cloudsplitter Foundation. Over our (almost) 40 year history, the foundation has maintained an Adirondack focus, with at least 70% of our grants awarded to Adirondack grantees. We have always maintained close relationships with our communities and have worked to stay connected to the important institutions that make the Adirondacks so great. Through our strategic giving, we have also worked to promote public support and support from other foundations of these partners. We have also always looked upstream, with support that helps support innovative strategies with broad impact and long-term staying power. While our strategy may flex to some degree with the times we are presented, Cloudsplitter stays true to its mission:
The Cloudsplitter Foundation is dedicated to improving the environment, economies, and lives of the people of the Adirondacks through innovative and leveraged philanthropic programs.
Areas of Interest
Environment
Protecting our natural resources through advocacy, land protection, stewardship
Community Building
Supporting cultural, physical, & civic facilities like theaters, community centers, parks, trails, community revitalization
Economic Stability
Supporting Tourism, critical infrastructure like museums & historic sites, recreational facilities
Communications and Data Infrastructure
Broadband everywhere, public radio and television, focused fact-based journalism
Helping our most vulnerable neighbors
Birth-to-Three program, food programs, family resources, aging in place
Activist Philanthropy
- Grants should provide measurable long-term benefits
- Priority grants: financially, socially, politically leveraged
- We want to provide more than just money:
- Local knowledge
- Networking
- Strategy
- We will initiate as well as fund projects, e.g.,
- Birth-to-Three initiative
- Attempt to save St Gabriel’s church
- Improving regional 211 dispatch services
- We love to work in tandem with other grant-makers (e.g., Funders for the Adirondacks Coalition)
Strategic Philanthropy
- Be active in identifying and meeting community and environmental needs
- Identify opportunities to leverage our financial support, like bringing other funders into projects, leveraging public monies (e.g., grants requiring a match) and creating incentives (e.g., last-dollar in grants).
- Bring grantees together when goals are aligned to increase impact, funding
- Use in-depth local knowledge to identify needs and initiate projects
- Help local government with critical projects where philanthropy matters
- Subsidize research when having data can create leverage
- Work towards up-stream and systems level solutions
Grant Making Process
- Simple grant request form with flexible parameters
- Grants options for Projects, Programs and Operational Support during grant rounds
- Grants requests must be in by deadline
- Rapid-Response grants available between grant rounds to meet emergencies
- Grants with greater leverage and long-term impact are valued highly
- Grants predominantly focus impacting the Adirondacks
2024 Financial Results
The Foundation ended 2024 with $44 million in assets and $5.8 million of portfolio earnings, a 16.5% return on assets. We distributed $1.6 million in grants and in 112 $2,000 Childcare Excellence Awards.
Over the past ten years we have granted over $17 million.
Assets in 2024
Portfolio Earnings in 2024
Return on Assets in 2024
Grants since 2014
Distributed in 2024
Grants Awarded in 2024
Legal Filings & Governance
Bylaws
Investment Policy
Tax Filings
View our tax filings by fiscal year.