APPLYING FOR A GRANT

The foundation received close to 20,000 requests for funding in 2000. About half came via regular mail, the other half via email. Regrettably, the foundation is able to provide funding to only a relatively small number of qualified organizations.

Although the size of the foundation’s endowment has grown significantly in recent years, to approximately $21.1 billion at the end of 2000, these assets pale in comparison to the size of the challenges we aim to tackle.

The foundation seeks to be strategic with its resources, favoring preventive approaches and collaborative endeavors with government, philanthropic, and not-for-profit partners when possible. Grantmaking is guided by the principle that in order to achieve lasting, large-scale change, philanthropic efforts must incorporate strategies to encourage effective public investment and to leverage private sector market potential. Priority is given to investments that serve as a catalyst to quicken the pace of progress, and to efforts whose net effect is to augment, not supplant, government funding streams.

The foundation will consider letters of inquiry from tax-exempt, charitable organizations whose requests fall within the program guidelines summarized on our Web site. Please review the detailed program guidelines for each giving area before submitting a request. The foundation neither encourages nor generally considers unsolicited proposals. In keeping with its charter, the foundation cannot accept proposals that benefit specific individuals or that serve exclusively religious purposes.