Summit Foundation
/OVERVIEW: The Summit Foundation supports urban development and sustainability initiatives in the United States. Its global development largely supports adolescent sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR) organizations advocating for reproductive, economic, social, and educational rights of marginalized girls living in the foundation’s regional areas of grantmaking interest.
IP TAKE: The Summit Foundation supports organizations advocating for reproductive, economic, social, and educational rights of marginalized girls. Summit is not accessible, so grantseekers may want to consider linking their adolescent SRHR work to other interrelated gender equality issues that are particularly pervasive in Summit’s grantmaking focus in order to attract its attention. Summit’s grantmaking has several geographic priorities, which applicants are advised to research as priorities may change.
PROFILE: The Summit Foundation was established in 1991 by Vicki and Roger Sant, co-founder of Applied Energy Services. Its broad mission seeks to “improve our world and the quality of life for its inhabitants.” It now seeks to “promote the health and well-being of the planet – its people and its natural environment — by achieving gender equality, protecting the earth’s biodiversity and making cities livable.” To that end, it awards grants through three program areas: Equality for Women and Girls, Mesoamerican Reef, and Sustainable Cities.
Grants for Climate Change, Housing and Community Development
Summit’s Sustainable Cities program area works to support “cities’ efforts towards effective and efficient sustainability.” Its main grantmaking priorities are “helping cities establish baselines, targets, plans, policies, measures, and verification,” “detailing paths to success that are scalable and easily adaptable to local conditions,” “establishing new model policies that increase city sustainability,” and “inspiring, informing and motivating city leaders.” Past grantees include 2030 Inc., Eno Center for Transportation, and Innovation Network for Communities (INC)
Summit also conducts most of its climate-change related grantmaking through its Sustainable Cities program, which “seeks to radically increase the sustainability of cities.” The foundation takes a multi-pronged approach to its grantmaking in this program, which includes climate change mitigation. Past grantees in this space include the Earth Defense Fund, and Earth Economics, which received support for its project Blueprint for Increased Green Infrastructure and Investment in Support of Climate Adaptation; and Climate Central for its project Building Sea Level Tools with and for Cities.
Grants for Women, Girls and Global Development
The Summit Foundation’s international development grantmaking prioritizes the rights of adolescent girls “because it is right and by the evidence: Economies will grow, poverty rates will decline, health indicators of women and children will improve and the environment will benefit.” Its Equality for Women and Girls program advances the sexual reproductive health rights of adolescent girls living in Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Quintana Roo, and Mexico. Summit also supports adolescent SRHR organizations in Latin America and the United States. In this area, it funds global development projects that create access healthcare services, age-appropriate sex ed classes, promote sex positive messages about teen sexuality and reproductive health, and offer support to teen parents. It supports global efforts to end child marriage and seeks projects that help girls continue their educations, eliminate gender discrimination, and provide access to economic opportunities. Despite its name, the Empowering Girls program seeks to empower all young people in its geographic priority regions; however, the foundation funds strategies that have the most impact on girls. Another past grantee is the Amigos de Santa Cruz Foundation, which received a grant for its adolescent sexual and reproductive health project and its Youth Empowerment programs. Another Summit grantee is the Asociación de Desarrollo Socio Económico Indígena Bayan, which received a grant for its program addressing child marriage in Honduras.
Grants for Marine Conservation
The Summit Foundation conducts its marine conservation through its Mesoamerican Reef program, which focuses exclusively on both land-based and marine issues that threaten the Mesoamerican Reef in Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and the northern coast of Honduras. The program prioritizes grantmaking for projects that address overfishing, mass tourism, and commercial agriculture. It also addresses key local capacity needs including environmental law and advocacy. Summit also supports the Healthy Reefs for Healthy People Initiative, which “tracks changes in reef health and social well-being through a strong set of commonly agreed indicators that effectively inform management actions.”
Important Grant Details:
The Summit Foundation’s grants generally range from $50,000 to $250,000. Grantseekers may review the foundation’s Past Grants for more information on the types of organizations Summit supports.
Summit does not accept unsolicited proposals or requests for funding. It makes grant guidelines available only to groups that have been invited to apply.
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