Lottery Environment and Heritage

DIA-administered fund, run through the Lottery Grants Board, for projects protecting, conserving or promoting natural, cultural and physical heritage. Live and taking applications, contrary to an earlier assumption that it had closed and folded into the general Lottery Fund.

Closes

DIA's own page shows current eligibility and application steps with no closure notice. It isn't on the DIA funding-dates calendar as a separate line, so ring DIA (0800 824 824) to confirm the current round before relying on this.

Who can apply

Community groups, hapū and iwi (as a legal entity, or via a fundholder) with plans, reports or one-off projects that protect, conserve or promote New Zealand’s natural, cultural or physical heritage. Most projects need at least a third of costs already secured as partnership funding.

Amount

Small projects: grants under $250,000. Large projects: $250,000 or more. An extra $8 million was allocated across 2024–27 for projects protecting and enhancing environmental wellbeing.

Funding route

Grant

Applicants

Marae & hapū, Iwi & Māori organisations, Community groups, Organisations & providers

Before you apply

This record previously said the fund closed on 1 July 2026 and was folded into the restructured Lottery Fund, reasoning from the wider lottery restructure rather than this page directly. A direct re-check of communitymatters.govt.nz/lottery-environment-and-heritage on 16 September 2026 found it fully live — current eligibility, partnership-funding rules, application steps, and the $8 million 2024–27 boost — with no closure banner, and Heritage New Zealand's own funding page still describes it in the present tense as active. That contradicts the earlier closed framing, so this record now follows the direct read rather than the inference. It's possible both this fund and the general Lottery Fund are running in parallel, or that DIA simply hasn't retired the page yet — worth a follow-up to check whether an application here and one to the general Lottery Fund would be treated as duplicates. The general Lottery Fund is listed separately here; Round 2 of that fund runs 2–29 September 2026, four rounds a year. One change that carries over regardless: organisations that are not legal entities need a fundholder to apply. First-time applicants should ring a Community Advisor on 0800 824 824 before applying.

Official source →

Checked 16 September 2026

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Details change without notice. Check the funder's own page before you apply. Tōku Waka does not administer, assess or award this funding.