MERRILLVILLE, Ind. — Northern Indiana Public Service Company LLC (NIPSCO) and the NiSource Charitable Foundation have announced that 25 local nonprofit organizations have been chosen to receive a 2026 Environmental Action Grant. This annual program supports local environmental restoration and education projects and programs by providing a grant of up to $5,000 to each recipient.
The organizations were chosen through a competitive process during which nonprofits submitted applications for specific community-based environmental projects that were reviewed and scored by a selection committee. In the program’s 11-year history in Indiana, NIPSCO has awarded more than $ $824,000 to support nearly 200 projects.
“This is an exciting and forward-thinking opportunity for us to back innovative ideas that will bring about positive and lasting environmental change,” said Rick Calinski, Director of Public Affairs and Economic Development at NIPSCO. “Also, we do not view these grants as one-time awards, but as the start of ongoing partnerships with each and every selected organization.”
The 2026 Environmental Action Grant recipients are:
• Monarch Joint Venture, Monarch Pollinator Projects across Northern Indiana, $25,000
o Karwick Park in Michigan City adjacent to right-of-way in LaPorte County
o Anthony Wayne Scouting Reservation in Steuben County
o Willow Slough Fish and Wildlife Area in Newton County
o Hobart Marsh right-of-way in Lake County
• ACRES Land Trust, Summer Internship Program, $5,000
• Blind Social Center, Oak Savannah Beautification Project in Gary, $5,000
• Cultivate Culinary School and Catering, Prairie Installation and Habitat Creation, $5,000
• Delta Institute, Restoration at Hobart Legacy Nature Preserve, $5,000
• Elkhart Parks Department, Goose Cohabitation Program, $5,000
• Giving Gardens of Indiana, Summer Nature Camp, $3,000
• Indiana Audubon Society, Northwest Indiana Barn Owl Conservation Expansion, $5,000
• Indiana Dunes Environmental Learning Center, Community Stewardship Days, $5,000
• Indiana University Foundation, Kokomo Creek Restoration & Monarch Habitat Corridor, $5,000
• Izaak Walton League of America, Invasive Species Education Events in Porter County, $3,070
• Jasper County Soil & Water, Woodland Invasive Plant Suppression Program, $5,000
• Jasper County Trails, Kankakee River Project, $5,000
• Kosciusko County Soil & Water Conservation District, Agriculture Filter Strip Program, $5,000
• Little River Wetlands Project, Invasive Species Removal at Eagle Marsh, $5,000
• LC Nature Park, Land Stewardship Equipment, $5,000
• Newton County Soil & Water Conservation District, Brook Rain Garden Project, $3,600
• Ogden Dunes Home Association, Coastal Dune Habitat Restoration, $5,000
• Save the Dunes, Barker Woods Nature Play Trailhead, $5,000
• Shirley Heinze Land Trust, Milkweed Gardens Micro-Farm Partnership, $5,000
• South Bend Venues, Parks & Arts, Monarch Garden at Pinhook Park, $1,500
• Southwest Montessori Academy, Bricks and Branches Natural Resource Mgmt Plan, $2,500
• The Wetlands Initiative, Prescribed Burn at Black Oak Savanna, $5,000
• Trees Indiana, Monarch Life Cycle Signage, $2,525
• Valparaiso University (Lutheran Univ. Assn.), Trail Guides for Indiana Dunes National Park, $5,000
“True community engagement means investing in meaningful projects that benefit us most where we live and work,” said Reggie Fields, Executive Director of the NiSource Charitable Foundation.
“We are proud to collaborate with these outstanding nonprofit organizations and help them fulfill their missions through these vital environmental projects.”
NiSource Inc., the parent company of the NIPSCO and Columbia Gas brands, serves customers in Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana. The Foundation expanded the program this year to include those other states and will distribute a total of $250,000 in Environmental Action Grants.