Grantmaking - Women's Foundation California

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What We Do

Grantmaking

The Women’s Foundation California (WFC) has a 40-year track record of work centered on gender, economic, and racial justice. We mobilize both institutional and individual giving to invest in critical issues affecting women, girls, and transgender people, especially those who are from low-income, immigrant, and communities of color.

Our grantmaking is by invitation but we welcome inquiries from prospective partners. Interested organizations are encouraged to contact our Director of Community Investment Huong Nguyen-Yap to schedule a call.

Only
4%...

Grantmaking is particularly prioritized in our gender justice work because nationally only 4% of all philanthropic dollars go specifically to fund issues affecting women and girls – and according to Funders for LTBGQ Issues only 1% of all philanthropic dollars goes towards issues affecting lesbian and transgender women.

We
Invest

We invest in progressive, feminist organizations and efforts along the continuum of power-building, including community organizing, coalition building, policy advocacy, civic participation and voter engagement, and culture change. We look for opportunities that bridge sectors and movements and that are part of broad-based coalitions advancing gender justice by addressing the root causes of injustice. We are excited by organizations that take a creative approach to media and communications to build visibility and support for gender equity and justice.

We
Trust

We employ a trust-based, responsive approach to grantmaking to reduce the administrative burden on grant partners in applying, receiving and reporting on grant funds. We will continually evaluate each grant as well as the whole grantmaking and programs portfolio to understand how our resources are advancing gender equity in the state.

Like the leaders and organizations we invest in, we strive to be nimble and responsive in all that we do while never losing sight of the fact that the arc of change is long.

Community Power Fund

Community Power is how we create racial, economic, and gender justice.

Through our Community Power Fund, we invest in community-based organizations working to address the root causes of inequity and advancing solutions led by women and girls and gender nonconforming people.

We are funding for this moment and for a gender just future. Community power is what fuels our Relief and Resilience and strengthens our Solidarity.

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Culture Change Fund

By focusing on culture change, the Culture Change Fund’s goal is to create broad public support for a new way of thinking that centers gender, racial, and economic justice at the heart of the solution to any systemic problems.

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California Gender Justice Funders Network

The first collaborative of its kind, the California Gender Justice Funders Network is dedicated to turning up the volume on gender by centering women and gender at the heart of the solution to any systemic problem. The California Gender Justice Funders Network advances the national conversation on what gender means and what true gender justice and liberation looks like.

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