Circle of Blue is a left-of-center journalism nonprofit that researches and publishes stories on water quality and usage in affected communities around the country. The group also writes about issues regarding water-based ecosystems, water quality, government policies and programs, agricultural systems, and energy production. 1
In addition to its publications, Circle of Blue engages in research programs and projects, runs a newsletter and a podcast, and holds public education events. It has received funding via government funding, foundation grants, individual donors, and corporate contributions. 2 In 2024, it received grants totaling more than $5,000 from nonprofits including the Brookby Foundation, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the Wege Foundation. 2
Activities
Ecosystems
In May 2025, Circle of Blue wrote an article alleging the Second Trump administration reducing the Environmental Protection Agency’s budget has negatively impacted the Great Lakes ecosystems. The article further claims the cuts will lead to a decrease in funding towards protecting fish populations in the Great Lakes that will then lead to an increase in invasive species numbers, leading to “communities facing disproportionate environmental harm.” 3
Water Quality
In September 2025, Circle of Blue released an article on its website alleging that increased raids conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to President Trump’s executive order, has blocked farmworkers’ access to clean water within the state of California due to fears of deportation regardless of immigration status. The article also alleges that increased spending on bottled water by farmworkers has led to a financial burden on said workers while preventing them from sharing personal info with advocacy nonprofits working to provide resources due to fear of detainment or deporation. 4
Policies and Programs
In September 2025, Circle of Blue published an article on the impact caused by the Second Trump Administration shutting down the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The article claimed this closure had “no equal in the catalogue of Trump’s America First senselessness” 5 as well as both an “international disaster and a national disgrace.” 5
The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation is a grantmaking foundation that funds environmental programs around the world. It was founded by the industrialist Charles Stewart Mott and holds nearly $4 billion in assets. In 2024, it donated $100,000 to Circle of Blue. 6
The MacArthur Foundation is a grantmaking nonprofit that funds left-of-center projects across the world and maintains assets of about $8 billion. 7 In 2024, it donated $300,000 to Circle of Blue. 8
Circle of Blue is an online magazine that covers water issues around the world and in the Great Lakes basin, as a partner in the Great Lakes News Collaborative (GLNC). The grantee's staff includes experienced and award-winning journalists who produce original, in-depth investigative reporting and multimedia news stories on drinking water, climate impacts and other critical issues threatening the Great Lakes. Circle of Blue's expertise on water policy enhances the GLNC's capacity to explore and explain complex water issues that intersect climate, agriculture, health, energy and politics. The grantee also provides water expertise, leadership and project management services that strengthen the GLNC. With renewed support, Circle of Blue will continue to support the collaborative with in-depth reporting and photojournalism, project management services, cultivation of the next generation of reporters through internships, and heightened public awareness concerning Great Lakes water issues.
Circle of Blue is an online magazine highlighting water issues around the world. The grantee's staff includes experienced and award-winning reporters who cover drinking water, climate impacts and other critical issues threatening the Great Lakes. As a member of the Great Lakes News Collaborative — a partnership across newsrooms and media outlets — the grantee has brought its expertise and content to a variety of stories from water access and insecurity to harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie. With renewed support, the grantee will continue to support and lead the collaborative with in-depth reporting and photojournalism, cultivate the next generation of reporters through internships and heighten public awareness concerning Great Lakes water issues.
To provide timely, trusted reporting about challenges and solutions for WASH services within COVID-19 recovery efforts and financing, followed by a public and expert engagement.
Circle of Blue is an online magazine covering water issues across the globe. A staff of award-winning and veteran reporters cover drinking water, Great Lakes and a range of other water issues and events. With prior Mott support, the grantee has been a founding member of the Great Lakes News Collaborative, a unique union of journalistic talent from four of the Great Lakes region’s most trusted content providers. The grantee helped raise awareness of household water debt and insecurity and the impacts of climate change on immigration within the region, among other stories. With renewed support, the grantee will continue to support and lead the collaborative and guide its team to uncover underreported and vital stories about the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Circle of Blue is an online news publication covering water issues across the globe. The need for this grant is grounded in the challenge of raising awareness to effect changes in policy and action to better protect the Great Lakes and those who depend on them. With this grant, Circle of Blue will integrate storytelling with science and data to better inform the region’s environmental policy and civic action. The project merges compelling journalism with historical and real-time data to engage and inform citizens, media and policymakers as they encounter new threats to Great Lakes water quality and equitable access to safe water for all.
Circle of Blue is a member of the Great Lakes News Collaborative, a partnership among four news outlets covering water issues in the Great Lakes. This grant increase will allow the grantee to serve the collaborative as a resource for its reporters and newsrooms, as well as continue to create and provide original content and share stories with and among partners.
