August 6-9, 2012 Thinking Big About the Power of Relationships Join us this summer in Syracuse for our upcoming On the Ground!   We are delighted to be working in partnership with The Gifford Foundation for the next in our series of highly regarded learning gatherings for funders and others who are connecting with and resourcing the groups that [...]

The Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) is a federally funded, independent state agency that serves as a leading catalyst for systems change for individuals and families living with developmental disabilities. Through public policy initiatives, advocacy programs and community building, GCDD promotes and creates opportunities to enable persons with disabilities to live, work, play and [...]

The tricky thing about grassroots grantmaking is that it operates in the nebulous gray space of the funding world.  Behind the foundation walls are dollars and cents that add up very neatly, accounts receivable records coming through humming fax machines, and proof of non-profit status reports in piles across cubicle desks.  On the streets ofClevelandCity’s [...]

A couple of weeks ago I had the privilege of attending my first Neighborhood Connections Final Report Party.  What is a Final Report Party, you ask?  Well, at the close of a grantee’s project year they have the option to complete their final report in several different ways.  The first is to write a traditional, [...]

NeighborWorks America creates opportunities for people to improve their lives and strengthen their communities by providing access to homeownership and to safe and affordable rental housing. A public nonprofit, NeighborWorks provides grants to the 237 affordable housing and community development organizations that comprise the nationwide NeighborWorks Network. In the last five years, NeighborWorks organizations have [...]

The Kalamazoo Community Foundation’s grassroots grants are a part of an initiative called BetterTogether/Kalamazoo (BTK). The BTK Initiative was created to empower community members to cultivate social capital and make positive change in the greater Kalamazoo area. The following three components make up the BTK Initiative: Good Neighbor Grants, ChangeMaker Workshops, and Front Porch Grants. [...]

Resident-led grantmaking, with grantmaking committees composed of residents from the neighborhoods that are targeted for capacity building grants, is an emerging trend within the field of grassroots grantmaking.  Currently, a number of organizations within Grassroots Grantmakers’ network of funding organizations utilize this practice.  Other organizations in our network include neighborhood residents on their grantmaking committee [...]

January 17, 2012 Special Guests: Cheryl King Fischer (Executive Director, New England Grassroots Environmental Fund) Tim Little (Executive Director & Co-Founder, Rose Foundation/Northern California Grassroots Environmental Fund) Kelly Purdy (Associate Director, Global Greengrants Fund)   Supporting Materials: The NEGEF Story Lessons from the Grasssroots Capacity Building With Small Groups How We Bring About Change – [...]

HandsOn Network, the volunteer focused arm of Points of Light, committed to providing small grants to resident leaders and volunteers in 2010 through our Neighboring initiative, which continues today. The success of that initiative surpassed the Hands on Network’s expectations as resident leaders in Washington (DC), Louisville (KY), and Macon (GA), created dynamic, critical programming [...]

Better Together Grassroots Grants is a Humboldt County-wide program that is available to grassroots groups to advance their goals for their communities. The program financially supports projects that improve neighborhoods. Funded projects range from neighborhood park revitalization, to making a community meal, to planting flowers in community areas or removing an eyesore. The important part [...]