Ideas

Grants Database

Democracy Fund champions the leaders and organizations who defend democracy and challenge it to be more open and just. We are proud to have supported more than 200 organizations doing this work.

  • 131 & Counting
  • $15,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Governance
  • 2021

To support 131 & Counting’s work to increase the number of women in Congress and public policy positions through educational and social forums that build a bipartisan network of women leaders.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Civic Participation, Government

Grant Length:

July 2021 to June 2022

Strategy:

Constructive Politics
  • 2020 Census Project
  • $750,000.00
  • Project
  • President's Office
  • 2018

To support the 2020 Census Project, a fiscally sponsored project of the New Venture Fund. The 2020 Census Project’s Democracy Funders Collaborative Joint aims to ensure that the 2020 Census is implemented effectively, and produces a robust count of the population of the U.S.

Project:

2020 CENSUS PROJECT

Foundation Center Topic:

Other

Grant Length:

June 2018 to November 2019

Strategy:

General
  • 2020 Census Project
  • $500,000.00
  • Project
  • President's Office
  • 2019

To support the 2020 Census Project, a fiscally sponsored project of the New Venture Fund. This grant will support the efforts of the 2020 Census Project’s Democracy Funders Collaborative joint fund on the Census, which aims to ensure that the 2020 Census is implemented effectively, produces a robust, accurate count of the population of the United States, and supports efforts to ensure […]

Project:

2020 Census Project Renewal

Foundation Center Topic:

Civic Participation/Public Participation

Grant Length:

December 2019 to December 2020

Strategy:

General
  • Accelerate Change, Inc.
  • $250,000.00
  • Project
  • Elections and Voting
  • 2022

Civic Revolution aims to transform democracy to be more responsive and representative of all communities through a coalition of digital media organizations dedicated to catalyzing civic engagement for diverse audiences.

Project:

Civic Revolution

Foundation Center Topic:

Civic Participation, Media/Journalism

Grant Length:

September 2022 to August 2023

Strategy:

General
  • Accountable.US
  • $225,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Governance
  • 2021

General operating support

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Civic Participation/Civic Education and Leadership, Government/Executive Branch Performance

Grant Length:

October 2021 to September 2023

Strategy:

Oversight and Accountability
  • Action Center on Race and the Economy Institute
  • $200,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Public Square
  • 2022

ACRE Institute was founded in 2017, when policies were implemented that disproportionately benefited financial institutions, while harming Black and Brown communities. ACRE Institute’s leadership brings deep experience researching, organizing, and campaigning around Wall Street accountability issues following the 2008 financial crisis.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Media/Media Access and Policy

Grant Length:

July 2022 to June 2023

Strategy:

Digital Democracy
  • Adhikaar for Human Rights and Social Justice
  • $200,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Just and Inclusive Society
  • 2021

Adhikaar for Human Rights and Social Justice is an immigrant women-of-color-led grassroots organization based in Woodside, New York. Founded in 2005, they are the country’s only worker and social justice center dedicated to serving and mobilizing the Nepali-speaking community — an underserved, under-resourced, and undercounted community.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Civic Participation/Naturalization and Immigrant Civic Integration, Other

Grant Length:

November 2021 to April 2023

Strategy:

General
  • Advancement Project
  • $175,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Elections and Voting
  • 2020

Advancement Project is a next generation, multi-racial, policy, communications, and legal action group committed to civil rights and racial justice . They use innovative tools and strategies to strengthen social movements, achieve policy change and support local movements to ensure impacted communities are at the forefront of change.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Campaigns, Elections, and Voting, Campaigns, Elections, and Voting/Voter Education, Registration, and Turnout

Grant Length:

September 2020 to December 2021

Strategy:

General
  • African American Federal Executives Association Incorporated
  • $50,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Governance
  • 2022

The African American Federal Executives Association (AAFEA) is the leading non-profit organization dedicated to preparing and supporting African Americans for advancement into and within the senior ranks of the United States Government.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Government

Grant Length:

November 2022 to October 2023

Strategy:

Representative Leadership
  • Algorithmic Justice League
  • $175,000.00
  • Project
  • Public Square
  • 2021

Algorithmic Justice League, a fiscally sponsored project of New Venture Fund, conducts and publicizes research investigating algorithmic bias in high visibility commercial and public sector AI systems.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Media/Media Access and Policy

Grant Length:

October 2021 to March 2023

Strategy:

Digital Democracy
  • Alternative Newsweekly Foundation
  • $35,000.00
  • Project
  • President's Office
  • 2020

The Alternative Newsweekly Foundation, the National Newspaper Publishers Association, National Association of Hispanic Publishers and others are collaborating on a “Marshall Plan” for community media. Their goal is digital transformation and long term sustainability of critical community publishers, especially those led by people of color and serving diverse communities in the U.S.

Project:

Marshall Plan for Community Media Planning

Foundation Center Topic:

Media/Media Access and Policy

Grant Length:

November 2020 to October 2022

Strategy:

General
  • American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy
  • $100,000.00
  • Project
  • Governance
  • 2020

Scholars from the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) and American Enterprise Institute (AEI) are conducting a joint project to find solutions to the many continuity of government challenges that our institutions face, some emerging from our current pandemic and others more universal.

Project:

Continuity of Government Commission

Foundation Center Topic:

Government, Government/Executive Branch Performance, Government/Judicial Selection and Performance, Government/Legislative Branch Performance

Grant Length:

November 2020 to October 2022

Strategy:

Empowering Congress
  • American Immigration Council
  • $75,000.00
  • Project
  • Just and Inclusive Society
  • 2022

This grant supports the merger of American Immigration Council and Partnership for a New American Economy into a unified American Immigration Council. By combining their organizations, a far larger portion of the budget can be dedicated to programmatic work serving immigrants.

Project:

AIC Merger Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Civic Participation/Naturalization and Immigrant Civic Integration

Grant Length:

April 2022 to June 2022

Strategy:

General
  • American Journalism Project
  • $2,000,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Public Square
  • 2021

The American Journalism Project makes transformative investments in civic news organizations, building a new public service media that is governed by, sustained by, and looks like the public it serves.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Media/Journalism

Grant Length:

October 2021 to November 2023

Strategy:

General
  • American Journalism Project
  • $2,000,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Public Square
  • 2019

This general operating grant to The American Journalism Project will support the organization’s mission to make transformative investments in Civic News Organizations, building a new public service media that is governed by, sustained by and looks like the public it serves.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Media/Journalism

Grant Length:

November 2019 to October 2021

Strategy:

Investigative Journalism
  • American Journalism Project
  • $200,000.00
  • Project
  • President's Office
  • 2018

To support the American Journalism Project, a fiscally sponsored project of the Institute for Nonprofit News, in their efforts to develop a $50 million fund to accelerate the growth of the nonprofit journalism sector.

Project:

AJP Operating Funds

Foundation Center Topic:

Media/Journalism

Grant Length:

December 2018 to November 2019

Strategy:

Investigative Journalism
  • American Library Association
  • $50,000.00
  • Project
  • Public Square
  • 2017

Media Literacy @ Your Library is a one-year adult media literacy program in five public libraries serving diverse communities. With the American Library Association (ALA), they will create online learning sessions, resources, and a workshop to train public librarians on developing programs to teach patrons to be informed media consumers.

Project:

Prototype Fund: Media Literacy at Your Library

Foundation Center Topic:

Media/Journalism Education and Training

Grant Length:

July 2017 to June 2018

Strategy:

Press Freedom
  • American Oversight, Inc.
  • $250,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Governance
  • 2022

American Oversight is a nonpartisan, nonprofit watchdog that uses public records requests backed by litigation to fight corruption, drive accountability, and defend democracy. We believe transparency is a critical tool to promote integrity in government and to protect justice, truth, and the rule of law.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Government/Open Government and Transparency

Grant Length:

September 2022 to August 2023

Strategy:

Oversight and Accountability
  • American Oversight, Inc.
  • $450,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Governance
  • 2020

American Oversight is building a centralized hub for oversight of the government’s response to the public and economic crisis created by COVID-19. Using information detailed in FOIA requests, news articles, public reports, Inspectors General reports, and congressional investigations, they will support oversight and investigative activities of the watchdog community.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Government/Open Government and Transparency

Grant Length:

July 2020 to June 2022

Strategy:

Oversight and Accountability
  • American Political Science Association
  • $145,000.00
  • Project
  • Governance
  • 2019

The American Political Science Association (APSA) will host a public service fellow from May 1, 2019 – October 31, 2020 to conduct research in service of the U.S. Congress. With this fellowship, APSA enhances public understanding of policymaking and improves the quality of scholarship, teaching and reporting on American national politics.

Project:

APSA Public Service Fellow

Foundation Center Topic:

Government/Legislative Branch Performance

Grant Length:

May 2019 to January 2023

Strategy:

Empowering Congress