Bravo Greater Des Moines, the regional arts council that provides funding and support to nonprofit cultural organizations and programs, has awarded over $5.1 million through two grant programs.

Bravo gave $4,908,113 in operating grants to 89 nonprofit arts, culture and heritage organizations to support general operations. According to a news release, this grant cycle marks the largest amount Bravo has awarded and the greatest number of organizations it has supported. To view the full list of grant recipients for 2025, click here.

Six Greater Des Moines communities also received public art grants. These grants go to Bravo’s local government partners to support public art projects. This year’s grants, totaling $200,000, support five public art projects and one comprehensive public art plan. The grants were awarded to the cities of Altoona, Bondurant, Clive, Des Moines, Grimes and Johnston.

Funding for both grant programs comes from Bravo’s partnerships with 17 local governments that contribute a percentage of their hotel/motel tax revenue each year. The partnering governments are Altoona, Ankeny, Bondurant, Carlisle, Clive, Des Moines, Grimes, Indianola, Johnston, Norwalk, Pleasant Hill, Polk City, Polk County, Urbandale, Waukee, West Des Moines, and Windsor Heights.

“This was a dynamic grant cycle and it is exciting to support the breadth of arts, culture and heritage that’s available across Greater Des Moines. Bravo’s is grateful to our local government partners who trust us to make these critical investments in our community,” Sally Dix, president of Bravo Greater Des Moines, said in a prepared statement.