Emergent Fund Grant

The Emergent Fund Grant, established in 2016, supports BIPOC-led social justice movements through rapid response funding. It addresses urgent community needs by providing low-barrier grants to organizations facing crises such as family separation and systemic oppression. The fund prioritizes initiatives that foster Black liberation, multiracial solidarity, and empower communities to build transformative power. By investing in innovative strategies, the Emergent Fund aims to challenge oppressive structures and advance social justice, ensuring that impacted communities are at the forefront of their own advocacy.

What is Emergent Fund?
Founded in 2016, Emergent Fund is a national rapid response fund created to explicitly support Black, Indigenous and People of Color-led (BIPOC) social justice movements. From family separation, to Muslim bans to continued violence against Black communities, Emergent Fund grantees are BIPOC organizers and directly impacted communities responding to the biggest crises of our time by boldly fighting to build the world we all deserve.
As a rapid response fund, we play a unique role in the funding eco-system; often filling a gap by providing low barrier funding in a little as a week to organizers when they need it most.
Fiercely fundraising for and moving as quickly as possible our rapid response, low barrier, no strings attached grantsKeeping Black liberation core to our organizing and philanthropic praxisDeepening multiracial solidarity practices to show up for Black and Indigenous leadershipPositioning our folks to win and build real power that transforms our tangible living conditions so that we can thriveRaising to the moment with affirmative outreach, from Minneapolis to Mauna KeaUsing rapid response grants to invest in emergent strategy not just emergencies
What kind of projects does Emergent Fund support?
We support work where rapid response meets emergent movement strategy. This includes...
Evolving approaches or tactics that help communities organize in the face of urgent and rapidly changing conditions, or resisting new or amplified threats in ways that build power and move a proactive agenda towards collective liberationLeveraging "organizable moments" to advance social and economic justice and directly disrupt and challenge hostile oppressive structuresRapid response initiatives grounded in sound power analysis and propose meaningful investments in movement infrastructure
Our grantees often lead at the following intersections:
New solutions responding to rapidly changing conditions in the current political environmentVisionary and Power Building organizing that seeks transformational systemic changes rooted in social and economic justice.Develops community power through organizing and/or leadership development (including through new tools), direct action, and/or cultural workLeadership from impacted communitiesIntersectional Analysis: Engages multiple identities and multi-racial alliance building as core to theory of changeEndorsed: Recommended by a member of the Nominations NetworkRight size of need: The level of Emergent Fund support is appropriate to the workProposals can be ideas, collaborations, campaigns, or organizations, whether or not they are fully formed; don't worry about your notes being perfect or comprehensive.

Eligibility

*Organizations must have 501c3 or 501c4 tax status, or a fiscal sponsor in order to be eligible and to receive grants.Given the current political climate and urgency of need, we are currently focusing our resources on the US.Former grantees are always welcome to reapply.However, please note that we generally don't have the capacity to regrant multiple times unless the organizing environment or the organizing tactic has demonstratively shifted.

Ineligibility

Emergent Fund and Emergent Action Fund will ultimately be unable to issue grants if the applicant does not have a currently active 501c3, 501c4, or fiscal sponsor.Proposals without an urgent, rapid response, and/or organizing strategy component are not a strong fit for Emergent Fund.Work that does not align with our social justice values or is not grounded in a vision for collective liberation does not meet our criteria for funding.Emergent Fund Rapid Response Grants Are Not Designed for…
Government or State Agencies, UniversitiesCharity, Direct Services/Community Programming without an organizing foundation
Broad General Operating Support or Budget Shortfalls (including back-to-back, repeated proposals)
Religious institutions and affiliated programs
International work or work based outside of the United States and U.S. Occupied Territories
For-profit Business, Social Enterprise, Start-Up Costs, Capital-Raising campaigns
Individuals (activists, consultants)
Work or entities that promote or collude with systems of oppression and harm, that lack sound power analysis or understanding of collective liberation

Emergent Fund is unlikely to grant to organizations not led by the community most impacted by the proposed work.For example, organizations that "support" people of color but are not led by people of color are not a fit for Emergent Fund. Emergent Fund is not designed to support general start-up business or non-profit costs and does not consider most social entrepreneurship projects to fall in the vein of rapid response emergent community organizing.The Emergent Fund is unable to provide funding outside of the United States or US Territories at this time. Emergent Fund is not designed to support organizations who reapply each month to support year-around programming or general operating costs.