OVERVIEW: Humanity United, an offshoot of the Omidyar Group, makes grants for the prevention of human trafficking, peace-building, journalism and racial justice.
IP TAKE: Humanity United is an introspective grantmaker that carefully aligns its giving with vision of “a world where people and the planet flourish together.” Working in areas like racial justice, human trafficking and conflict resolution, this funder is known to follow the lead of its grantee partners, many of whom are front-line organizations in most-affected communities and areas of the world. Humanity United also gives collaboratively with other grantmakers and likes to share its findings and progress with stakeholders in its fields of interest.
Humanity United will be difficult to approach without a connection. It does not accept LOIs or proposals at this time. It does, however, participate in philanthropic convenings and conferences, creating opportunities to meet and network with leadership and staff. See the Perspectives page to get an idea of the types of events they attend.
PROFILE: Humanity United (HU) was established in 2008 by the Omidyar Group. The foundation’s stated purpose is to “transform harmful systems into pathways for peace, freedom, and justice.” In addition to grantmaking, Humanity United supports its grantees and partners with “network development, advocacy, strategic communications, and some HU-led initiatives.” Current grantmaking areas include Forced Labor and Human Trafficking, Peacebuilding, Public Engagement and Racial Justice and Equity.
Grants for Human Rights
Human rights grantmaking stems mainly from Humanity United’s Forced Labor and Human Trafficking program. Focusing on regions of the world experiencing the highest levels of exploitation, this initiative aims to “address power imbalances at the heart of worker exploitation.”
- Specific areas of interest include worker power, corporate accountability and safe labor migration.
- Simultaneously, Humanity United names issue/geographic areas of interest including the Asia-Pacific seafood industry, global supply chains and the Nepal-Qatar migration corridor.
- Grants have supported the Asia Floor Wage Alliance, the Investor Alliance for Human Rights, the Rights CoLab and the Global Labor Justice-International Labor Rights Forum.
Grants for Global Security and Development, Violence Prevention
Humanity United’s Peacebuilding initiative envisions a “transformed global system in which international cooperation on peacebuilding is defined and driven by the agency and power of proximate peacebuilders.” Grants from this program support “long-term efforts to increase the agency and power of proximate actors and to generate more inclusive and durable solutions to violence.”
- A significant portion of this giving addresses movement building and aims to “create cross-movement/geographic connections, solidarity, and action.”
- The program also emphasizes innovative and inclusive approaches to peacebuilding, including research and investigations that contribute to a knowledge base on conflict resolution.
- Humanity United maintains long-term commitments to organizations and movements in Colombia and South Sudan, countries where “we see positive shifts in these regions as having global ramifications.”
- Humanity United also participates in the Collective Action Assistance Fund, a three-year funder collaborative that works to “enable communities to amplify their power, influence policy and governance processes, and drive meaningful, systemic change locally and across borders.”
- Funding also goes to organizations around the world that support the Healing & Well-being of activists, advocates and victims of conflict-related trauma and abuse.
Grants for Journalism, Media and Democracy
The Public Engagement focus area seeks to “influence public interest media, U.S. foreign policy institutions, and international institutions” toward the larger goal of “expanding who is included and valued in journalism coverage and policy conversations.”
- Areas of focus include independent journalism and media, policy development that “addresses conflict and exploitation,” and strategic communications to “increases the reach and influence of HU and its partners.”
- To an extent, this focus are intersects with the work of HU’s other focus areas.
- Recent grantee partners include the Human Trafficking Legal Center’s Harriet Tubman Fellowship, the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting and Allied Media Projects, Inc.
Grants for Racial Justice and Indigenous Rights
HU’s newest focus area, Racial Justice & Equity, seeks to “promote the voices of our partners in non-extractive ways while investing in communities of promise, thereby attempting to mitigate harms that often occur in philanthropy.”
- Grants support the “self-determined strategies” of BIPOC-led organizations as they build voice and power in struggles for equity and justice.
- Funding also supports BIPOC community initiatives for divestment, cultural expression, resilience and practical solutions in issue areas like criminal and youth justice, reentry, housing, health care, education and opportunity.
- HU collaborated with the consultancy Coactive Change to facilitate a participatory grantmaking process for this program in which grantee partners help to “shape the path forward.”
- A component of this work also involves scaffolding Black leadership capacity through convenings that focus on “wellness, knowledge-sharing, and meaningful connection.”
Important Grant Details:
Humanity United’s annual grantmaking totals have varied widely over the past several years from over $20 million to less than $1 million. The foundation’s recent grants have ranged in amounts from $10,000 to about $2 million.
- This funder’s grantees tend to be medium- to large-sized, well-established nonprofits and NGOs working in the areas of human rights and conflict resolution. HU also some regranting organizations and participates in collaborative grantmaking efforts.
- The foundation’s largest area of giving concerns the prevention and remediation of human trafficking.
- For additional information about past grantmaking, see the foundation’s Perspectives page.
- This funder is not accepting unsolicited proposals for funding at this writing.
- Interested grantseekers should sign up for the organization’s newsletter at the bottom of the website and check its website for updates periodically.
- General inquiries may be submitted via the foundation’s contact form.
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