7%
Share of foundation
human rights funding
$165.7 Million out of
$2.4 Billion for all rights
2,620 Grants
Top Foundation Funders
- National Endowment for Democracy $25.7 M
- The Freedom Fund - London $10.0 M
- Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation $9.2 M
- Oak Foundation $8.3 M
- Tides Foundation $8.3 M
- American Jewish World Service $7.5 M
- Human Dignity Foundation $7.0 M
- Ford Foundation $7.0 M
- Open Doors International $6.1 M
- Humanity United $6.1 M
- NoVo Foundation $5.3 M
- Fund For Global Human Rights $4.7 M
- Foundation to Promote Open Society $3.8 M
- Foundation for a Just Society $3.4 M
- Freedom House $3.0 M
- The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation $3.0 M
- Cordaid $2.9 M
- The UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women $2.8 M
- Global Greengrants Fund $2.0 M
- The Global Fund for Women $1.9 M
- International Development Research Centre $1.9 M
- The Skoll Foundation $1.9 M
- Mensen met een Missie $1.9 M
- Paul Hamlyn Foundation $1.9 M
- Korea Foundation for Women $1.4 M
- M = Millions
Bilateral and Multilateral Funding
17%
Share of OECD
human rights funding
$641.2 Million out of
$3.7 Billion for all rights
3,162 Disbursements
Top Funders
- Australia $107.3 M
- United Kingdom $85.4 M
- United States $66.0 M
- European Union Institutions $58.8 M
- Canada $43.9 M
- Norway $43.3 M
- Germany $37.2 M
- Denmark $36.4 M
- Sweden $36.0 M
- Finland $33.8 M
- Switzerland $19.2 M
- United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) $18.9 M
- Netherlands $10.7 M
- Italy $7.8 M
- United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) $7.7 M
- Korea $5.9 M
- United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) $4.9 M
- Belgium $3.8 M
- Ireland $2.3 M
- United Nations Peacebuilding Fund (UNPBF) $1.7 M
- Spain $1.7 M
- New Zealand $1.7 M
- International Labour Organisation $1.6 M
- Luxembourg $1.3 M
- France $1.3 M
- M = Millions
Foundation Funding by Issue
Freedom from Violence
$42,188,871 (25%)
488 Grants (19%)Environmental and Resource Rights
$15,006,395 (9%)
577 Grants (22%)Economic and Labor Rights
$13,215,172 (8%)
161 Grants (6%)Civic and Political Participation
$13,049,049 (8%)
172 Grants (7%)Health and Well-being Rights
$11,565,457 (7%)
195 Grants (7%)Human Rights, General
$10,398,332 (6%)
111 Grants (4%)Equality Rights and Freedom from Discrimination
$8,739,795 (5%)
245 Grants (9%)Expression and Information Rights
$7,663,643 (5%)
151 Grants (6%)Sexual and Reproductive Rights
$7,344,121 (4%)
63 Grants (2%)Transitional Justice and Peacebuilding
$6,264,308 (4%)
83 Grants (3%)Access to Justice/Equality Before the Law
$5,715,176 (3%)
70 Grants (3%)Migration and Displacement
$1,536,871 (1%)
38 Grants (1%)
Issue totals include foundation funding that could be identified as meant to address a specific issue. In order to provide unique totals and avoid double-counting, each foundation grant has been assigned to exactly one issue category within the human rights taxonomy.
Foundation Funding by Population
Women & Girls
$52,866,995 (32%)
1,111 Grants (42%)Children & Youth
$39,469,276 (24%)
696 Grants (27%)Indigenous Peoples
$12,216,404 (7%)
294 Grants (11%)Migrants & Refugees
$11,915,532 (7%)
182 Grants (7%)People with Disabilities
$6,194,485 (4%)
155 Grants (6%)LGBTQI
$5,499,657 (3%)
154 Grants (6%)Human Rights Defenders
$3,555,800 (2%)
83 Grants (3%)Sex Workers
$801,410 (0%)
30 Grants (1%)
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.
Foundation Funding by Strategy
Advocacy, Systems Reform and Implementation
$89,514,471 (54%)
1,344 Grants (51%)Capacity-building and Technical Assistance
$46,209,081 (28%)
612 Grants (23%)Coalition-building and Collaboration
$18,727,932 (11%)
375 Grants (14%)Research and Documentation
$17,159,714 (10%)
274 Grants (10%)Media and Technology
$12,639,982 (8%)
233 Grants (9%)Grassroots Organizing
$9,609,842 (6%)
205 Grants (8%)Litigation and Legal Aid
$6,963,067 (4%)
96 Grants (4%)Arts and Culture
$4,562,105 (3%)
87 Grants (3%)Scholarships and Travel
$649,535 (0%)
189 Grants (7%)Security and Resilience
$249,680 (0%)
11 Grants (0%)
Strategy totals include foundation funding that could be identified as supporting a specific strategy. Grants may employ multiple strategies and would therefore be counted in more than one category.
Sample Grants
-
Tewa
Nepal Muslim Mahila Kalyan Samaj (Nepal)
To increase legal literacy among Muslim women, enabling them to advocate and lobby for the rights of their community. -
The Gere Foundation
International Campaign for Tibet (United States)
To promote human rights for the people of Tibet.
Related Resources
- Documenting Human Rights Violations: Increasing Recognition of Civil and Political Rights in Burma
- Investing in a New Era of Global Human Rights Leadership
- Strengthening Women’s Voices and Supporting Women’s Movements
- Taking Advantage of Seasoned Activists to Expand and Strengthen Human Rights Movements
- The Value of Flexible Funding in International Human Rights Grantmaking
266 Grants (10%)