OVERVIEW: Dalio Philanthropies’ grantmaking includes education, ocean protection and exploration, economic empowerment, China programs, health & wellness, and arts & community.
IP TAKE: With over $4 billion in assets and $6 billion in grantmaking since it was established, Dalio Philanthropies is a major funder in its areas of giving, particularly K-12 education, economic empowerment, and ocean protection. Dalio is particularly active in the New York City area and Connecticut, but also funds at the national and international levels. In addition to grantmaking, Dalio operates its own signature initiatives and nonprofits, including Dalio Education, Endless and OceanX. IP’s Philip Rojc commented that Dalio supports an “eclectic mix of causes,” and while Ray Dalio himself is a reformer who has been critical of American capitalism, the family’s overarching beliefs and approach can be “a bit hard to pin down.” It’s crystal clear, however, that Dalio Philanthropies has ramped up its giving exponentially over the years and is a power player in the philanthrosphere.
This funder does not accept proposals for funding or welcome contact from grantseekers. Despite its significant assets, Dalio remains a small, mostly family-run organization. Its website is sparse on detail compared to similar philanthropies. It will be hard to get through the door here without deep networking. That said, Dalio is an inclusive and loyal funder that sticks with its causes and grantees over time.
PROFILE: Established in Westport, Connecticut in 2003, Dalio Philanthropies comprise the grantmaking vehicles of Giving Pledge signatories Ray and Barbara Dalio. Ray Dalio was born in Queens. He studied at Long Island University and earned an MBA from Harvard Business School. In 1975, he founded Bridgewater Associates, a global macro hedge fund that has become one of the largest and most successful funds in the world. Barbara Dalio is from Spain and once worked at the Whitney Museum. She is passionate about improving public K-12 education, especially in her home state of Connecticut.
The organization describes its efforts as “wide-ranging rather than single-mission,” but it articulates a commitment to creating “equal opportunity, especially by providing better access to quality education, healthcare, capital, and technology.” Grantmaking and engagements are also aimed at “fostering local and global communities and exploring and protecting the Earth’s oceans.” Dalio Philanthropies is the umbrella for three main Operating Programs:
- Dalio Education supports K-12 education, higher education and youth opportunity in Connecticut.
- Endless is a signature program that aims to prepare kids for opportunities of the future through technology, games and digital creativity.
- OceanX is the philanthropies’ large-scale ocean exploration initiative, which runs “groundbreaking ocean expeditions” aboard the organization’s “flagship research vessel, the OceanXplorer.”
In addition to these major initiatives, Dalio names five broad areas of grantmaking interest: Education, Economic Empowerment, the Ocean, Health & Wellness and Arts and Community. A lesser-known component of Dalio’s giving also supports children’s well-being in China. Note that grants are distributed via through two separate nonprofit organizations, the Dalio Foundation and the Dalio Family Fund.
Grants for K-12, STEM and Higher Education
Education, one of Dalio’s largest areas of giving. Grantmaking is conducted through its Education focus area and the Dalio Education program, which focuses on the state of Connecticut. Another vehicle, Endless, aims to “unlock human potential through technology.”
- The overall focus of Dalio’s education work is “creating meaningful opportunity for young people.” Grantmaking is global in scope and supports a range of public, private and out-of-school learning programs, as well as STEM, teacher development and educational research projects.
- The Dalio Education program, which focuses on the state of Connecticut, works in partnership with schools, districts and communities to address specific needs in the state and “drive positive youth outcomes by elevating the impact of research and data.”
- Dalio Education provides ongoing support to the Rise Network, which Barbara Dalio established in collaboration with Connecticut educators. This program facilitates “improvement networks across schools and districts.” The program has helped underperforming high schools significantly increase “on-track” and graduate rates.
- Dalio Education also created the Opportunity Project, which functions as a “social investment fund” for nonprofits serving at-risk youth in Connecticut.
- In 2025, Dalio gave $5.1 million toward the establishment of the Nuvance Health Career Academy, which aims to train “disconnected youth” for careers in health.
- Other major grantees include the City of New Haven, Compass Youth of Hartford, the Connecticut Teacher of the Year Council and Middletown Public Schools.
- Endless is an initiative that aims to help young people harness the power of technology and gain “access to the skills and tools to live an empowered life.”
- This initiative also mainly functions through ongoing partnerships with large educational and technology organizations, with an emphasis on open access programs and resources.
- Grantee partners include Games for Change, Common Sense Media, Khan Academy, KIPP NYC and the University of Arizona’s Endless Games and Learning Lab initiative, which aims to “redefine the future of games, learning and opportunity, empowering individuals and communities across the globe.”
Grants for Marine Conservation and Science Research
The Dalio Philanthropies’ main marine conservation initiative is its OceanX operating program. OceanX supports ocean exploration and research, as well the creation of compelling media to raise public awareness about marine conservation and the fragility of ocean ecosystems. In this vein, Dalio has partnered with the Ocean Alliance and Project CETI.
In addition to supporting research at leading universities and institutes, OceanX owns and operates the OceanXplorer, a research vessel that boasts “manned submersibles, helicopters, advanced wet and dry labs, and the latest media and editing equipment.”
OceanX Media is the arm of the program that creates and disseminates films, exhibits, virtual reality and other media for dissemination to the public. Grantees and partners of this program have included the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the American Museum of Natural History, California Academy of Sciences, Yale University and PBS/Nova.
As part of its stated commitment to equity, Dalio also invests in work that expands the opportunities of BIPOC people to “become ocean explorers and problem solvers, Dalio Philanthropies is proud to support organizations such as Black in Marine Science and the Center for Diverse Leadership in Science at UCLA.”
Additionally, Dalios’ marine educational work includes OceanX’s Young Explorers program, an ocean science and media program for college students from diverse backgrounds on board the OceanXplorer.
- Beyond OceanX, Dalio co-leads the Blue Oceans Community, an initiative of the Philanthropy Asia Alliance. Other commitments include the Oceans 5 funders’ collaborative and the Arabian Center for Climate Change and Environmental Sciences at New York University’s Abu Dhabi campus.
Grants for Economic Development and Global Development
Dalio Philanthropies invest in economic empowerment across several programs and initiatives around the world. This work works to develop “equal economic opportunities, advancing financial inclusion, and empowering individuals on their journeys toward self-sufficiency.”
- In keeping with his book, Principles, Dalio’s work on financial inclusion and economic opportunity emphasizes resilience and self-sufficiency. Past grantees include New York’s Robin Hood Foundation. Accion International and Acumen, an organization that “uses an investment-driven approach to ensure everyone has access to essential goods, services, and opportunities.”
- Social entrepreneurship is another area of interest. Dalio has provided millions in support to Grameen America, a microfinance organization that “helps entrepreneurial women build businesses to enable financial mobility.”
- The Dalios’ earliest philanthropy concerned the well-being of children in China, and the philanthropies continue to support children’s causes in China via their Beijing Dalio Public Welfare Foundation.
Grants for Health and Mental Health
The Dalio Philanthropies’ Health and Wellness program focuses on “solutions that improve healthcare quality and accessibility for underserved communities.”
- In 2020, the philanthropies gave $50 million to establish the Dalio Center for Health Justice at New York Presbyterian Hospital in New York City. The center supports research and evaluations to “address the root causes of health inequities with the goal of setting a new standard of health access for the communities it serves.”
- Mental health and, specifically, bipolar disorder are areas of strong interest. The philanthropies provide ongoing support to Johns Hopkins’ Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences for research on bipolar and related disorders, as well as its Adolescent Depression Awareness Program. Other mental health grantees include the Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research at the Broad Institute, NAMI NYC and New York City’s Fountain House.
- Meditation is another area of interest, and the philanthropies support several initiatives that provide training to at-risk youth, veterans and health care professionals. Grantees include the David Lynch Foundation and the World Community for Christian Meditation.
- Additional grantmaking supports programs for nutrition and prenatal health. Grantees include the Fair Food Network, Vitamin Angels and the Homeless Prenatal Program of San Francisco.
Grants for Arts and Culture
Dalio’s Arts Community and the Arts initiative configures arts as central to the building of healthy communities. It supports a “number of organizations aimed at deepening community around the arts, music, and culture.” Giving appears to prioritize the Northeast.
- Music, especially jazz, are a grantmaking priority, with grants supporting New Orleans’ Preservation Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center and the Metropolitan Opera’s Access Opera Program.
- Grants also support museums and landmark cultural institutions, especially in New York City. Grantees include the Museum of the City of New York, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the New York Botanical Garden and New York Public Radio.
- In the New York metro area and Connecticut, the philanthropies also support community and cultural organizations that “have played an important role in the lives of the Dalio family. Grantees include the Washington Square Park Conservancy, the Greenwich Historical Society, the Woodlawn Conservancy and the Greenwich Library, among others.
Important Grant Details:
The Dalio Philanthropies typically give away over $100 million a year. Grants are awarded in amounts exceeding $10 million, but the average grant size is about $200,000. This funder offers general operating support and program support through monetary grants and program-related investments.
While this funder works with many large and well-established organizations, smaller nonprofits in Connecticut, New York, California, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Washington D.C. and Florida have also received support.
Dalio Philanthropies has also given across the globe to work that supports projects in Bulgaria, Cuba, China, Haiti and India, among other places.
For additional information about past grantmaking visit the philanthropies’ individual issue pages.
Grantmaking related to students, children, youth and low-income individuals tend to be prioritized.
- This funder initiates all grantmaking internally and does not accept unsolicited proposals.
- General inquiries may be directed to the philanthropies’ staff via email or telephone at (203) 291-5000.
PEOPLE:
Search for staff contact info and bios in PeopleFinder (paid subscribers only).
LINKS: