Indigenous Communities Fund

United Way of King County's Indigenous Communities Fund honors and invests in King County's Indigenous communities through participatory grantmaking. The fund was launched in 2020 to address the critical gap in philanthropic funding for Native-led nonprofits, which receive only 0.23% of philanthropic funds despite serving communities with the greatest basic needs.

Geographic Scope: King County, Washington (Seattle area)

Core Values:

• Redistribution: Returning philanthropic resources to Indigenous communities
• Representation: Ensuring Indigenous people have decision-making power
• Reparations: Acknowledging historical inequities and taking accountable action

Funding Mechanism: United Way has committed three rounds of $1 million each to local, Native-led organizations:

• Round 1: $1 million for COVID-19 relief (restricted to food and housing) distributed to four organizations in the National Coalition to End Urban Indian Homelessness
• Round 2: $1 million with no restrictions to 12-member Seattle Urban Native Nonprofits (SUNN) collective
• Round 3: $1 million distributed directly to 9 SUNN member agencies and to SUNN collectively to disperse to other Native organizations and support youth, elders, LGBTQIA+, and health/wellness initiatives

Key Features:

• Participatory grantmaking through Seattle Urban Native Nonprofits (SUNN)
• Minimal reporting requirements
• Autonomy for organizations to disperse revenue where needed most
• Community-led decision making

Eligibility:

• Native-led nonprofits
• Organizations serving King County's Indigenous communities
• Member organizations of SUNN or nominated by SUNN

Contact Information:

• Marlo Klein
• Email: mklein@uwkc.org
• United Way of King County
• 720 Second Ave, Seattle, WA 98104
• Phone: 206.461.3700

Application Process

Applications are processed through Seattle Urban Native Nonprofits (SUNN), a 12-member collective of Native-led organizations that has decision-making authority over fund distribution.

Process:

• Participatory grantmaking model with community leadership
• Decisions made by SUNN collective members
• Direct distribution to SUNN member agencies
• SUNN empowered to disperse funds to other Native organizations

Requirements:

• Minimal reporting requirements
• Organization must be Native-led
• Serve King County's Indigenous communities

For specific application details, contact Marlo Klein at mklein@uwkc.org