Strengthening Civil Society and Philanthropy
Where We Work
Our regional offices in China and Eastern Africa are working on this initiative. In addition, we make a limited number of grants through our New York office to U.S.-based organizations and to institutions working on these issues globally.
Grants made by our regional offices generally support organizations based in the countries where those offices are located. Typically, our offices only support organizations based in other countries when they have specific expertise or other particular advantages that cannot be found in the countries where they work.
What We Fund
We focus on efforts to create and preserve a legal framework that permits civil society to flourish. This includes support for:
- Flagship organizations representing the nonprofit sector
- Strategic defense of the sector through litigation and advocacy strategies
- Research and monitoring of legal and regulatory developments impacting the sector
- Capacity building and technical assistance to enhance the ability of nonprofit organizations to function at the highest levels of effectiveness and accountability
Status of Grant Making
While our New York office funds a limited number of existing grantees working in the United States and globally, we are not accepting applications from new organizations at this time.
To Apply for a Grant
Follow these steps:
- Review the Initiative(s) most relevant to your work.
- Read our Grant Application Guide, which describes our grant-making process.
- If you determine that your work aligns with our priorities, submit a Grant Inquiry. (While we welcome submissions, please keep in mind that our funds are limited in relation to the large number of worthwhile inquiries we receive. In a typical year, less than 1 percent of unsolicited inquiries result in a grant.)
Please Note:
It is important that you use our grant inquiry form—and refrain from contacting program officers directly. Given the volume of inquiries we receive, this allows us to log, track and respond quickly to your application.
Fellowships
The vast majority of foundation grants go to organizations. We provide a very limited number of fellowship opportunities for individuals through the Ford Foundation Diversity Fellowships Program, which aims to diversify the faculties of American colleges and universities.
The foundation does not have any other active fellowship opportunities at this time.
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