KL Felicitas Foundation: Grants for Global Development
/OVERVIEW: KL Felicitas focuses its grantmaking and impact investments on a broad range of market-based approaches to improve the lives and livelihoods of underserved and marginalized populations around the world.
IP TAKE: This funder favors groups that take a holistic, bottom-up or grassroots approach to their work, rather than those that apply a top-down method. It also works hard to remain transparent in both its approach and financials.
While this is an approachable funder, note that it has no staff. Instead, the KL Felicitas Foundation relies on a number of consultants and advisors to conduct its work, which means it may take a bit to receive a response. The foundation really likes cross-sector partnerships, so if this appeals to your mission and organization, consider reaching out.
Unfortunately, due to it’s smaller size, this is not an accessible funder as it cannot accept applications at this time. That means, too, that funding will require some networking here to get on this funder’s radar.
PROFILE: The KL Felicitas Foundation was established in 2000 by Charly and Lisa Kleissner, who funded the nonprofit with $10 million. The foundation takes an impact investing approach, which is rigorous, to all of it’s grantmaking. It is on a mission is to “[e]nable social entrepreneurs and enterprises worldwide to develop and grow sustainably, with an emphasis on rural communities and families.”
Grants for Global Development
Grantmaking is only one component of the foundation’s giving strategy, which also includes impact investing. Its grantmaking and impact investing has broad objectives, including expanding delivery of "[a]ffordable, critical services and products such as health, water, and electricity to the poor through market-based approaches,” and support for social entrepreneurs in their capacity and skills-building efforts. This funder works to help organizations scale their work, which is why it works at the grassroots level. The foundation does not name other particularities for it’s giving, preferring a broad approach to global development giving.
Important Grant Details:
Grant amounts are on the modest side, generally coming in at $10,000 to $50,000. In the past, the foundation has awarded grants to the D.C.-based Grassroots Business Fund, which helps businesses in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Another grantee is Equal Access Market, a nonprofit dedicated to creating “[p]ositive social change for millions of underserved people across the developing world.”
KL Felicitas does not accept unsolicited grant applications or requests for funding.
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