Northwest Area Foundation: Grants for Northwest-at-Large
/OVERVIEW: This funder supports poverty-fighting nonprofits in the Northwest states and 75 Native Nations of the region. It does not accept unsolicited proposals, but the staff welcomes email introductions from grant seekers.
IP TAKE: This is an excellent opportunity for Native-led nonprofits in the Northwest. At least 40 percent of foundation funds support Native-led groups. This is also a good funder for infrastructure support, idea incubation and research.
PROFILE: The Northwest Area Foundation (NWAF) was founded by Louis W. Hill in 1934 as the Lexington Foundation. He had a career in the railroad industry, farmed in Montana, and was involved in banking, mining, the development of the 4-H program and art collecting. The foundation supports organizations that “work with their communities to reimagine and restructure unjust systems—to serve, support, and heal people and communities.” NWAF focuses on eight states and 75 Native nations in its target region. prioritizing Native nations, rural communities, communities of color and other underprivileged groups. Grantmaking is limited to organizations located geographically in the states of Washington, Oregon, Montana, Idaho, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa.
Grants for Racial Justice and Indigenous Rights
The Northwest Area Foundation names Native American and Communities of Color as main priorities of its grantmaking, and support for Indigenous peoples and communities of color comprise a significant portion of its funding. Recent grants supporting Native American groups went to North Dakota’s Native American Development Center, First Children’s Finance of Minneapolis, the South Dakota Native Homeownership Coalition and Nimmipuu Protecting the Environment of Pullman, Washington. Other grantees in the area of racial justice include African Economic Development Solutions of St. Paul, the Association for Black Economic Power of Minneapolis, the Hmong American Farmer’s Association and St. Paul’s Comunidades Latinas Unidas en Servicio.
Grants for Work, Economic Opportunity and Community Development
NWAF has demonstrated a strong commitment to initiatives for economic opportunity and community development through its recent grantmaking, although the foundation does not outline specific goals for its funding in these areas. A recent grant went to Micro Enterprise Services of Oregon, an organization that supports “historically excluded entrepreneurs” by providing training, education and fair access to capital. Another recent grant supported the People’s Partners for Community Development of Lame Deer, Montana, which works in the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation to improve the communities’ economies while “maintaining strong connections to our land, our traditional values and our cultural history.” Other recent grants have gone to the Center for Worker Justice of Eastern Iowa, the White Earth Investment Initiative in Minnesota and Montana’s Plenty Doors Community Development Corporation.
Grants for Immigrants and Refugees
Grantmaking for immigrants and refugees makes up a smaller portion of NWAF’s grantmaking, and the foundation does not name specific goals in this area. However, recent grants have supported Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees’ Northwest Area Asset Building Initiative and various programs for immigrants and refugees run by Unite Oregon, the South Dakota Community Foundation, Seattle’s Interim Community Development Resources and the Greater Twin Cities United Way.
Important Grant Details
This funder made close to $13 million in grants in a recent year, with grants ranging from $10,000 to $200,000, although larger grants are made on occasion. This funder supports organizations of all sizes, but most grantees tend to be medium- to large groups with “a track record of success” in the communities they serve. For additional information about past grants, see the foundation’s searchable grants database or its news and insights page.
Unfortunately for grant seekers, the Northwest Area Foundation does not accept unsolicited letters of inquiry or proposals. Grant proposals are accepted by invitation only. However, grant seekers can email a two-page summary of their organization’s work to inform the staff about their cause. NAF provides direct service support to grassroots foundations and regranting funds to intermediary organizations. It is increasingly interested in joining funder collaboratives.General questions can be directed to the staff at 651-224-9635 or via online form.
PEOPLE:
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