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Advancing Human Rights

The State of Global Foundation Grantmaking

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  • Years
    • 2011 - 2015
    • 2017
    • 2016
    • 2015
    • 2014
    • 2013
    • 2012
    • 2011
  • Regions
    • Asia & Pacific
    • Caribbean
    • Eastern Europe, Central Asia, & Russia
    • Global Programs
    • Latin America & Mexico
    • Middle East & North Africa
    • North America
    • Sub-Saharan Africa
    • Western Europe
  • Issues
    • Access to Justice/Equality Before the Law
    • Civic and Political Participation
    • Economic and Labor Rights
    • Education, Religion, and Culture
    • Environmental and Resource Rights
    • Equality Rights and Freedom from Discrimination
    • Expression and Information Rights
    • Freedom from Violence
    • Health and Well-being Rights
    • Human Rights, General
    • Migration and Displacement
    • Sexual and Reproductive Rights
    • Transitional Justice and Peacebuilding
  • Populations
    • Children & Youth
    • Human Rights Defenders
    • Indigenous Peoples
    • LGBTQI
    • Migrants & Refugees
    • People with Disabilities
    • Sex Workers
    • Women & Girls
  • Strategies
    • Advocacy, Systems Reform and Implementation
    • Arts and Culture
    • Capacity-building and Technical Assistance
    • Coalition-building and Collaboration
    • Grassroots Organizing
    • Litigation and Legal Aid
    • Media and Technology
    • Research and Documentation
    • Scholarships and Travel
    • Security and Resilience
  • Bi/Multilateral
Issue

Education, Religion, and Culture, 2011

Supporting the right to participate in the cultural life of a community and engage in community duties essential to free and full development. This category includes the right to education, freedom of belief and religion, and the right to pursue one’s cultural traditions. It incorporates grants to support inclusion, acclimation, and acceptance of diverse communities.

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  • Trends, 2011 - 2015
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  • 2016
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  • 2011
Explore:
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  • Top Foundation Funders
  • Bilateral and Multilateral Funding
  • Regional Focus
  • Population Focus
  • Sample Grants
  • Related Resources

7%
Share of foundation
human rights funding

$123.4 Million out of
$1.7 Billion for all rights
1,305 Grants

Top Foundation Funders

  1. Open Society Foundations $28.7 M
  2. W. K. Kellogg Foundation $17.1 M
  3. Ford Foundation $11.9 M
  4. Anonymous $8.3 M
  5. Public Interest Projects $5.6 M
  6. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation $5.0 M
  7. Mensen met een Missie $2.5 M
  8. The Atlantic Philanthropies $2.2 M
  9. Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund $2.1 M
  10. GE Foundation $1.9 M
  11. American Jewish World Service - Donor Advised Funds $1.9 M
  12. Lumina Foundation $1.8 M
  13. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida Foundation $1.6 M
  14. Proteus Fund $1.6 M
  15. The Gill Foundation $1.5 M
  16. Global Fund for Children $1.2 M
  17. Tides Foundation $1.1 M
  18. The Spencer Foundation $1.1 M
  19. Hivos $976.0 K
  20. The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation $945.0 K
  21. Fund For Global Human Rights $857.7 K
  22. The New York Community Trust $765.0 K
  23. American Jewish World Service $762.0 K
  24. The Charitable Foundation $718.1 K
  25. Surdna Foundation $700.0 K
  26. M = Millions

Bilateral and Multilateral Funding

5%
Share of OECD
human rights funding

$185.1 Million out of
$3.5 Billion for all rights
856 Disbursements

Top Funders

  1. Spain $58.6 M
  2. Canada $27.9 M
  3. United Kingdom $23.4 M
  4. Norway $20.6 M
  5. European Union Institutions $13.3 M
  6. Sweden $11.3 M
  7. Switzerland $6.3 M
  8. Denmark $4.5 M
  9. United States $3.9 M
  10. Ireland $3.4 M
  11. Germany $3.1 M
  12. Finland $2.6 M
  13. International Development Association $1.6 M
  14. Netherlands $1.1 M
  15. Italy $747.8 K
  16. United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) $513.8 K
  17. Inter-American Development Bank - Special Fund $478.9 K
  18. Iceland $472.3 K
  19. France $273.3 K
  20. Korea $226.4 K
  21. OPEC Fund for International Development $216.1 K
  22. Belgium $154.9 K
  23. Luxembourg $154.0 K
  24. United Nations Peacebuilding Fund (UNPBF) $108.0 K
  25. Austria $90.4 K
  26. M = Millions

Key Findings:
2011 Funding

Key Findings

Foundation Funding by Region

Asia & Pacific

$6,841,414 (6%)
180 Grants (14%)

Caribbean

$145,000 (0%)
13 Grants (1%)

Eastern Europe, Central Asia, & Russia

$17,524,103 (14%)
237 Grants (18%)

Global Programs

$4,973,519 (4%)
40 Grants (3%)

Latin America & Mexico

$5,326,255 (4%)
109 Grants (8%)

Middle East & North Africa

$4,739,286 (4%)
40 Grants (3%)

North America

$64,549,183 (52%)
511 Grants (39%)

Sub-Saharan Africa

$16,130,041 (13%)
148 Grants (11%)

Western Europe

$3,878,769 (3%)
34 Grants (3%)

Region totals include both foundation grants directly to recipients based in the region specified and foundation grants to recipients located in other regions to do work benefiting the region specified. Grants may mention more than one region of benefit and therefore be counted in more than one category.

Foundation Funding by Population

  • Economically Disadvantaged

    $58,189,143 (47%)
    484 Grants (37%)

  • Children & Youth

    $57,410,353 (47%)
    609 Grants (47%)

  • Ethnic or Racial Minorities

    $46,519,135 (38%)
    426 Grants (33%)

  • People with Disabilities

    $11,190,463 (9%)
    97 Grants (7%)

  • Women & Girls

    $7,002,657 (6%)
    151 Grants (12%)

  • LGBTQI

    $6,562,087 (5%)
    95 Grants (7%)

  • Migrants & Refugees

    $6,495,186 (5%)
    101 Grants (8%)

  • Indigenous Peoples

    $3,988,959 (3%)
    63 Grants (5%)

  • Crime or Abuse Victims

    $1,512,128 (1%)
    25 Grants (2%)

  • Offenders & Ex-Offenders

    $1,051,714 (1%)
    15 Grants (1%)

  • People with AIDS

    $130,915 (0%)
    11 Grants (1%)

  • Human Rights Defenders

    $27,170 (0%)
    6 Grants (0%)

Population totals include foundation funding that could be identified as meant to benefit a specific group. Grants may serve multiple populations and would therefore be counted in more than one category.

Sample Grants

  • W. K. Kellogg Foundation
    New Mexico Acequia Association (United States)
    To sustain land-based cultural traditions and water rights and improve the well-being of families by supporting a cadre of acequia leaders to advocate on behalf of their respective communities.
  • Ford Foundation
    Universitetet i Oslo Norwegian Centre for Human Rights (Norway)
    To help facilitate and catalyze strategic litigation on economic, social, and cultural rights in national courts using international mechanisms.

Related Resources

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