Grants Database
Democracy Fund collaborates with our grantees, donors, and other partners to strengthen and expand the movement for an inclusive, multiracial democracy. We are proud to have supported more than 400 organizations doing this work.
- New York University
- $250,000.00
- Project
- Public Square
- 2018
The Membership Puzzle Project is a research and field lab designed to help journalism in America rebuild its social contract with communities through membership and reader revenue strategies.
Project:
Membership Puzzle Project Year TwoFoundation Center Topic:
Media/Journalism Education and TrainingGrant Length:
May 2018 to Oct 2019Strategy:
Investigative Journalism- New York University
- $151,800.00
- Project
- Governance
- 2018
This grant will support a project of GovLab, a program within the Tandon School of Engineering at New York University, to develop a handbook for congressional offices with techniques for increasing citizen voice in the policymaking process and improving constituent engagement through new technologies. The grant also will allow GovLab to pilot projects with several congressional offices for using open source software to test some of the techniques outlined in the handbook.
Project:
GovLab Congressional CrowdLaw ProjectFoundation Center Topic:
Government/Legislative Branch PerformanceGrant Length:
Oct 2018 to Jan 2020Strategy:
Empowering Congress- University System of New Hampshire
- $40,000.00
- Project
- Governance
- 2018
The New Hampshire Listens program at the University of New Hampshire’s Carsey School of Public Policy will partner with the Beeck Center for Social Impact & Innovation at Georgetown University to design and execute a demonstration project of a digital version of a congressional committee hearing.
Project:
Digital field hearingFoundation Center Topic:
Government/Legislative Branch PerformanceGrant Length:
Jul 2018 to Aug 2019Strategy:
Empowering Congress- Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism CUNY Foundation, Inc.
- $111,000.00
- Project
- Public Square
- 2018
The Center for Community and Ethnic Media (CCEM) will undergo a strategic planning process and support new leadership as it develops into a national hub for ethnic media. CCEM will add depth and national scope to its efforts with news and information outlets serving ethnic, minority and immigrant communities.
Project:
Center for Community and Ethnic MediaFoundation Center Topic:
Media/JournalismGrant Length:
Jun 2018 to May 2019Strategy:
Engaged Journalism- URI Foundation & Alumni Engagement
- $99,961.00
- Project
- Elections and Voting
- 2018
The purpose of this grant is to implement the election line allocation tools created by the Voting Technology Project, as recommended by the Rhode Island Board of Elections Task Force.
Project:
RI VOTES ProjectFoundation Center Topic:
Campaigns, Elections, and VotingGrant Length:
Apr 2018 to May 2019Strategy:
Voter-Centric Election Administration- National Press Photographers Foundation Inc
- $10,000.00
- General Operating Support
- Public Square
- 2018
The National Press Photographers Foundation work as educators and advocates for the rights of visual journalists and freedom of the press. The grant is to support NPPF’s legal advocacy on behalf of journalists and their work to educate journalists about their rights and their safety.
Project:
Supporting the National Press Photographers FoundationFoundation Center Topic:
Media/Media Access and Policy, MediaGrant Length:
May 2018 to Apr 2019Strategy:
Press Freedom- POPVOX LegiDash Fund
- $100,000.00
- Project
- Governance
- 2018
The POPVOX LegiDash Fund, a project of the Tides Foundation, will develop a communications and legislative resources dashboard for use by congressional staff. The free product, called LegiDash, will provide staff with an improved constituent communications portal they can use to view and respond to messages delivered to Congress by POPVOX, increasing the efficiency of that process.
Project:
POPVOX LegiDash FundFoundation Center Topic:
Government/Legislative Branch PerformanceGrant Length:
Jun 2018 to May 2019Strategy:
Empowering Congress- Lawfare Institute
- $25,000.00
- Project
- General and Field Building
- 2018
This project grant will support capacity building at the Lawfare Institute. Lawfare facilitates research and robust analysis of national security issues, and its experts also use FOIA to uncover information that will help foster objective, public, and transparent discussions around government decision-making. This capacity building grant will support Lawfare’s work to build its influence by improving its ability to produce high-quality audio and video content.
Project:
Capacity Building for Videos and PodcastsFoundation Center Topic:
Government/Civil Liberties and Rule of LawGrant Length:
Nov 2018 to Jun 2019Strategy:
General- National Immigration Law Center
- $200,000.00
- Project
- Just and Inclusive Society
- 2018
The purpose of this grant is to support litigation and legal services around issues pertaining to vulnerable communities – specifically MASA and immigrant communities.
Project:
Support Immigration Litigation and Legal ServicesFoundation Center Topic:
Other, Media/Media Access and Policy, Government/Civil Liberties and Rule of Law, Civic Participation/Naturalization and Immigrant Civic IntegrationGrant Length:
Dec 2018 to Nov 2019Strategy:
General- National Issues Forum Institute
- $200,000.00
- Project
- Governance
- 2018
This grant will support National Issues Forum Institute (NIFI) and its partner –the Institute for Democratic Engagement and Accountability (IDEA) at The Ohio State University — in developing and promoting a new, deliberative town hall meeting module for use by congressional offices online. NIFI will develop materials for the modules and coordinate with IDEA and other partners to produce and distribute modules and monitor project progress.
Project:
Connecting to CongressFoundation Center Topic:
Government/Legislative Branch Performance, Civic Participation/Public ParticipationGrant Length:
Dec 2018 to Nov 2019Strategy:
Empowering Congress- iCivics Inc.
- $100,000.00
- Project
- Governance
- 2018
This grant will support iCivics’ strategic planning efforts to coordinate a network of presidential library foundations and the National Archives Foundation to work collaboratively to establish a common set of measurement tools, support opportunities to develop joint civics programming, and explore a national communications strategy to promote and enhance civic education.
Project:
Planning Grant for Civic Education NetworkFoundation Center Topic:
Civic Participation/Public Participation, Civic Participation/Civic Education and LeadershipGrant Length:
Oct 2018 to Mar 2019Strategy:
Constructive Politics- Oficina Legal Del Pueblo Unido Inc., dba Texas Civil Rights Project
- $20,000.00
- Project
- General and Field Building
- 2018
The purpose of this grant is to provide capacity building support to the Grantee as they engage in executive coaching and management training.
Project:
TCRP Capacity-Building SupportFoundation Center Topic:
Campaigns, Elections, and Voting/Voter Education, Registration, and TurnoutGrant Length:
Nov 2018 to May 2019Strategy:
General- Proteus Fund Inc.
- $400,000.00
- Project
- Just and Inclusive Society
- 2018
To provide support for the Security & Rights Collaborative (SRC), a Proteus Fund initiative. SRC’s primary grantmaking focus is to support a diverse field of organizations working to address anti-Muslim bigotry, xenophobia, and more, by building capacity of Muslim, Arab and South Asian (MASA) community based and grassroots organizations.
Project:
Security and Rights CollaborativeFoundation Center Topic:
OtherGrant Length:
Sep 2018 to Aug 2019Strategy:
General- Field Foundation of Illinois Inc.
- $200,000.00
- Project
- Public Square
- 2018
To support efforts to create a healthy local news ecosystem via a grant program that supports community-based journalism and media organizations in Chicago, with a focus on community-based journalism organizations led by people of color.
Project:
Chicago Local News Field FundFoundation Center Topic:
Media, Media/Journalism, Media/Journalism Education and TrainingGrant Length:
Dec 2018 to Nov 2019Strategy:
Ecosystem News- ReThink Media, Inc.
- $100,000.00
- Project
- Just and Inclusive Society
- 2018
The purpose of this grant to provide project support to Rehink Media Inc.’s Security and Rights team to address anti-Muslim bigotry through strategic communications, rapid response messaging, and spokesperson training.
Project:
Rapid response communications support for MASA communitiesFoundation Center Topic:
OtherGrant Length:
Sep 2018 to Aug 2019Strategy:
General- Fair Elections Center
- $75,000.00
- Project
- Elections and Voting
- 2018
This grant will provide support for growth and visibility of the website workelections.com, which is a site designed to collect and centralize poll worker information and applications from several jurisdictions, making it easier for local election officials and potential poll workers to connect and fill Election Day positions.
Project:
Poll Worker RecruitmentFoundation Center Topic:
Campaigns, Elections, and Voting/Election AdministrationGrant Length:
Aug 2018 to Dec 2018Strategy:
Voter-Centric Election Administration- iCivics Inc.
- $75,000.00
- Project
- Governance
- 2018
The purpose of this grant is to support planning between centers for the study of Congress, the presidential libraries and iCivics, and will result in a shared strategic plan that will facilitate collaboration and collective impact among these organizations, with the goal of increased civic awareness, especially with regard to Congress.
Project:
iCivics Planning GrantFoundation Center Topic:
Civic Participation/Public Participation, Civic Participation/Civic Education and LeadershipGrant Length:
Oct 2018 to Mar 2019Strategy:
Constructive Politics- Local Independent Online News Publishers Inc.
- $25,000.00
- Project
- Public Square
- 2018
The purpose of this grant is to provide capacity building support to LION (Local Independent Online News Publishers), a fiscally sponsored project of Poynter Institute for Media Studies, Inc., for strategic planning and board training.
Project:
Capacity Building GrantFoundation Center Topic:
Media/Journalism Education and TrainingGrant Length:
Oct 2018 to Apr 2019Strategy:
Ecosystem News- iCivics Inc.
- $75,000.00
- Project
- Governance
- 2018
The purpose of this grant is to support development of a joint strategic plan between iCivics and the centers for the study of Congress, led by the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate. The strategic plan will include documentation of planning activities, a summary of the assessment of required program enhancements, and an outline of next steps required for program scaling.
Project:
Network Building for Centers for the Study of CongressFoundation Center Topic:
Civic Participation/Public Participation, Civic Participation/Civic Education and LeadershipGrant Length:
Oct 2018 to Mar 2019Strategy:
Constructive Politics- Georgetown University
- $25,000.00
- Project
- Governance
- 2018
To support Georgetown University’s Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life in hosting a gathering of Catholic leaders from around the country to discuss the problem of polarization within the Catholic Church in the United States, and the ways in which Catholics can contribute to our national political culture in a way that decreases hyper partisanship and polarization.