The Wellspring Fund Grant Program

Overview

The Wellspring Fund

At Headwaters, we believe that a community’s collective power is a source of abundance and of transformative change. In the natural world, wellsprings are sources of abundance that start deep in the earth, slowly breaking through rocks and creating new pathways toward growth. The Wellspring Fund is dedicated to nourishing organizations that have deep roots and long horizons.

Wellspring Fund grants provide meaningful support for innovative and impactful ideas that make Minnesota more just. At Headwaters we know that the best ideas - and the ones most likely to move Minnesota closer to justice - come directly from community.

Innovation can show up in many approaches to building power to advance justice. It might be found in organizing models, narrative approaches, lifeways reclamation, coalition structures, campaign strategies, healing practices, and more. We also believe that innovative ideas do not need to be “new” to be transformative; practices that have been part of our communities for generations are powerful sources of change.

At Headwaters, we know that innovative, long-term organizing work needs to be supported by long-term funding partners that organizations can count on. Wellspring grants will provide $90,000 of project-based support per year over four years, for a total of $360,000. The Wellspring Fund’s 4-year grant terms allow us to be in long-term relationship with grantee partners and commit to supporting the long-term visions and strategies of Minnesota’s movements for justice.

Eligibility

_You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website._

* Eligible applicants must: 
* Be legally incorporated entity with 501(c)(3), or have a fiscal sponsor
* Be based in and carry out its work in Minnesota
* Be substantively led by the community that is most directly affected by the issues the organization is working on
* Eligible coalitions must: 
* Be able to provide evidence of their commitment to continued cross-organization collaboration through at least the end of the grant term. 
* Eligible applicants can:
* Be current or past Headwaters grantees
* Be new to Headwaters 
* The Wellspring Fund is seeking proposals from organizations or coalitions that:
* Have leadership (including staff, key volunteers, board) that is reflective of and being developed from the organization’s base;
* Are in partnership with other organizations and actively working to strengthen the larger movement for social change;
* Have an intersectional, cross-issue, collective liberation approach that makes connections between race, class, indigeneity and gender; and
* Embody organizational practices of experimentation, reflection, and evolution. 
* Because this is multi-year project funding, an applicant organization will apply for a project or campaign that:  
* Has a multi-year horizon and a clearly articulated strategic and innovative plan; 
* Is actively working to advance equity and justice by addressing root causes of injustice, including white supremacy, colonialism, and patriarchy; and
* Has been developed by, and is accountable to, the people most directly impacted by the campaign or project’s efforts.
* Special Requirements for Coalitions:
*  The Lead Applicant must:
* Be a legally incorporated entity with 501(c)(3).
* Meet the criteria, eligibility, and requirements outlined in this packet.
* Be an active core member of the coalition.
* Take on specific responsibilities on behalf of the coalition
* The Lead Applicant will:
* If selected for funding, sign the grant agreement on behalf of the coalition.
* Receive grant payments for all 4 years of the grant term.
* Be responsible for completing any required interim and final reports. Overdue reports can impact future funding eligibility of the lead applicant organization individually.

Ineligibility

* The following entities and activities are ineligible for this fund
* Requests from organizations that primarily provide direct services
* Projects of a government agency
* Endowment funds
* Individuals
* Partisan efforts
* Late or incomplete applications