AMB Foundation
/OVERVIEW: The AMB Foundation’s grantmaking revolves around global health, education, civic issues and indigenous equity, as well as economic development and help for indigenous populations in developing countries, with an emphasis on South America.
IP TAKE: AMB may lack transparency, but gives a handful of smaller grants to all kinds of organizations— a great ally to know if your work takes place in health or higher education. 990s show a tendency to make grants all over the U.S. with a few grants supporting global development; however, grantmaking emphasizes smaller organizations. This funder is generally accessible and responds to general inquiries via email. Grantseekers may want to consider first reaching out to the foundation at the email address provided below to discuss your work.
PROFILE: Established in 1998, the AMB Foundation (not to be confused with Amy Marie Bosman Foundation, or the Australia-based AMB Foundation) is a small organization, based in Herndon, Virginia, that supports a variety of global development projects around the world. It seeks to benefit “indigenous peoples of the Americas through supporting their health, education, economic empowerment, and cultural preservation.” While the foundation does not specify geographic limitations, it seems to prioritize U.S.-based organizations.
The AMB Foundation makes grants for both public and global health, diseases, agriculture, arts and culture, education, economic development and help for Indigenous populations.
Grants for Global Development and Global Health
AMB's tax documents reveal a tendency to prioritize healthcare and poverty alleviation organizations operating in the Americas. Grantees conducting global work are typically U.S.-based organizations that do work benefitting South America, among other developing countries, rather than grantees based in the countries of interest themselves. Global grants tend to focus on Indigenous rights in developing nations and health work.
In South America, grassroots organizations have received grants to do work in Colombia, Guatemala, Brazil, Mexico, and Paraguay.
Past grantees doing global work include Concern America in its global poverty alleviation work, and Honduras Good Works for its efforts to provide basic medical care. Others include Solidarity Bridge in Illinois and Global Pediatric Alliance in California — both are repeat grantees.
Grants for Civic Engagement and Indigenous Equity
The AMB Foundation’s grants centered on civic issues do not have a stated strategy; however, according to patterns culled from its taxes, AMB tends to fund work related to civic engagement only across the United States, often in the areas of Indigenous rights and equity. Community development grants tend to focus on fixing buildings and other community causes.
Past grantees in theses spaces include Strategies for International Development, Friendship Bridge, Solidarity Bridge, Indian Land Tenure, Solid Rock, First Nations Devel Institute, and American Indian Science and Engineering Society, among others. AMB also conducts grants to Indigenous equity causes through its higher education grantmaking, as noted below.
Grants for the Environment
Environmental grants are few here, but tend to address conservation, biodiversity, sustainable farming and habitats. Recent grantees include the Amazon Conservation Team, Agros International, and Strategies for International Development, which addressed natural resources.
Grants for early Childhood and Higher Education
AMB prefers to take a broad approach towards its education funding, which it spreads across the pre-K and Higher education spaces. More recent grants prioritize higher education, but this is not a hard and fast rule as priorities shift around, returning to the same interest areas, every few years.
Past education grantees include the Rutgers University Foundation, Language Conservancy, Catching the Dream, Fairfield University and the American Indian College Fund, amongst others.
Other grantmaking opportunities:
While this funder also makes grants for arts and culture, as well as community development, these grants are infrequent. Arts grants tend to focus on museums or cultural preservation.
Important Grant Details:
Its grants are modest, typically ranging from $1,000 - $10,000. In recent years, the AMB foundation has made about $191,256 in grants, while assets exceed $4 million.
Recent tax filings reflect that AMB tends to favor smaller and grassroots organizations at both the national and international levels, though much funding remains state-side.
Grants typically benefit American Indians and Indigenous peoples in South America, as well as children and youth. It prioritizes “projects that provide the most direct benefit to Native and indigenous Americans.”
This funder offers grants for infrastructure, curriculum development, emergency funds, equipment, land acquisitions, program evaluations and support, research, scholarships and technical assistance, medical missions, amongst other interests.
It does not fund “proposals for support of organizational operating expenses, administrative costs, university overhead or indirect costs, travel expenses (excepting those that are integral to a project’s execution), feasibility studies, meetings, or conferences.”
This foundation’s board meets in the spring and fall of each year, with June 1 and November 1 deadlines respectively.
AMB accepts unsolicited grant applications but requires that grantseekers submit one electronic copy to mail4AMB@cox.net and one hard copy of the proposal to P.O. Box 710040, Herndon, Virginia 20171, ATTN: Marie Sloane.
PEOPLE:
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