{"id":200193,"date":"2025-01-16T15:10:57","date_gmt":"2025-01-16T23:10:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/?page_id=200193"},"modified":"2025-09-11T04:31:32","modified_gmt":"2025-09-11T11:31:32","slug":"grants-for-human-rights","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-for-human-rights","title":{"rendered":"Grants for Human Rights"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-genesis-blocks-gb-container gb-block-container\"><div class=\"gb-container-inside\"><div class=\"gb-container-content\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-cover is-light\" style=\"min-height:151px;aspect-ratio:unset;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-block-cover__image-background wp-image-16807\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/funding-guide-banner-blue-dots-1.png\" data-object-fit=\"cover\"\/><span aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-cover__background has-background-dim-0 has-background-dim\"><\/span><div class=\"wp-block-cover__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-cover-is-layout-constrained\">\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-be4dc359cc5c3a7b783c51dcec986026\" style=\"color:#484848;font-size:42px\">Grants for Human Rights<\/h1>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"intro-box has-background\" style=\"background-color:#ebeeeb\">Learn more about grants for global security and grants for human rights by exploring Inside Philanthropy\u2019s list of top global security and human rights nonprofits below. Subscribers can also explore funders using our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/grantfinder-search\">Grantfinder Search Tool<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/membership\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Become a member.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-genesis-blocks-gb-columns gb-layout-columns-1 one-column gb-background-auto gb-background-no-repeat\" style=\"background-image:url(https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/bg-radiant-dots-shortest.png);background-position:50% 0%\"><div class=\"gb-layout-column-wrap gb-block-layout-column-gap-0 gb-is-responsive-column\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-genesis-blocks-gb-column gb-block-layout-column\"><div class=\"gb-block-layout-column-inner\" style=\"padding-top:20px\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-genesis-blocks-gb-columns gb-layout-columns-2 gb-2-col-wideright\" style=\"padding-top:60px;padding-right:30px;padding-bottom:6px;background-position:80% 0%\"><div class=\"gb-layout-column-wrap gb-block-layout-column-gap-2 gb-is-responsive-column\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-genesis-blocks-gb-column ip-gf-key-funders-box gb-block-layout-column\"><div class=\"gb-block-layout-column-inner\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong>Key Funders<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list key-funders-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-a\/american-jewish-world-service\">American Jewish World Service<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/grants-b\/howard-g-buffett-foundation\">Howard G. Buffett Foundation<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-b\/susan-thompson-buffett-foundation\">Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation&nbsp;<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant-places\/california-los-angeles-grants\/the-california-endowment\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">California Endowment<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/grants-c\/carnegie-corporation-of-new-york\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Carnegie Corporation of New York<\/a>&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/grants-f\/ford-foundation\">Ford Foundation<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-f\/jpb-foundation\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-f\/jpb-foundation\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Freedom Together Foundation<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-f\/fund-for-global-human-rights\">Fund for Global Human Rights<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-g\/gates-foundation\">Gates Foundation<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/h-grants\/william-and-flora-hewlett-foundation\">William and Flora Hewlett Foundation<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-h\/heising-simons-foundation\">Heising-Simons Foundation<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-j\/robert-wood-johnson-foundation\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Robert Wood Johnson Foundation<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-k\/wk-kellogg-foundation\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-k\/wk-kellogg-foundation\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">W.K. Kellogg Foundation<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/m-grants\/macarthur-foundation\">John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-n\/new-venture-fund\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">New Venture Fund<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/n-grants\/novo-foundation\">NoVo Foundation<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-o\/oak-foundation\">Oak Foundation&nbsp;<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/grants-o\/open-society-foundations\">Open Society Foundations<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-p\/ploughshares-fund\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Ploughshares Fund<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/rgrants\/rockefeller-brothers-foundation\">Rockefeller Brothers Fund<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-s\/silicon-valley-community-foundation\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Silicon Valley Community Foundation<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/s-grants\/skoll-foundation\">Skoll Foundation<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-t\/tides-foundation\">Tides Foundation&nbsp;<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-u\/urgent-action-fund-for-feminist-activism\">Urgent Action Funds<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-w\/wellspring-philanthropic-fund\">Wellspring Philanthropic Fund&nbsp;<br><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-genesis-blocks-gb-column gb-block-layout-column\"><div class=\"gb-block-layout-column-inner\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left\"><strong><strong>Funding trends in human rights&nbsp;<\/strong><br><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.un.org\/en\/about-us\/universal-declaration-of-human-rights\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Universal Declaration of Human Rights<\/a>, drafted by representatives from around the world and adopted in 1948, establishes certain fundamental rights to be protected worldwide. These include the right to life, the rights to not be held in slavery or subjected to torture, the right to seek asylum from persecution, freedom of thought and expression, and workers\u2019 and cultural rights, among others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Philanthropy for human rights, complex in nature, focuses on an array of intersecting issues \u2013 from freedom from violence to resource rights, in various national and political contexts. The human rights funding landscape is especially challenging in a time of overlapping crises, including climate change, a rise in authoritarian governments around the world, and multiple genocides.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Between <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrfn.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Trust-Gap-Report-HRFN.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2 and 8%<\/a> of global foundation giving supports human rights work, the Human Rights Funders Network (HRFN) estimates. A relatively few top funders dominate this philanthropic space. In 2020, \u201cThe top 12 funders accounted for 53% ($2.7 B) of human rights funding,\u201d HRFN <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrfn.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/HRFN-Advancing-Human-Rights-2020-Full-Report.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a>. That means that changes in strategy by a single leading funder \u2013 such as the transformation currently underway at the important human rights funder <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/home\/2023-6-13-taking-the-reins-at-osf-alex-soros-inherits-substantial-power-unanswered-questions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Open Society Foundations<\/a> \u2013 can impact the entire field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Human rights philanthropy overlaps with grantmaking for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/girls-women-funders\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">women and girls<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-immigrants-refugees\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">immigrants and refugees<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/fundraising-for-lgbt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">LGBTQ rights<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-for-racial-justice-equity\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">racial equity and Indigenous rights<\/a>, and many other philanthropic spaces. Given the multiplying risk factors that climate disasters and ensuing climate migration will have on human rights, human rights funders are increasingly supporting <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/home\/2024-4-4-how-do-grantmakers-get-started-on-climate-heres-how-one-human-rights-funder-began\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">climate-focused nonprofits<\/a>, as well. Similarly, funding for frontline climate-justice groups increasingly gets categorized as human rights funding, which explains how the environmental funder <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-g\/global-green-grants-fund\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Global Greengrants<\/a> has been identified by both HRFN and Candid as a top human rights grantmaker in recent years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Human rights philanthropy exists in an era of transformation, albeit gradually, from a historically Western-dominated, top-down approach to a more global and local approach. Women\u2019s and feminist funds, such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-f\/frida-the-young-feminist-fund\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">FRIDA<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-a\/astraea-lesbian-foundation-for-justice\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Astraea<\/a>, have been leaders in demonstrating trust-based, intersectional human rights philanthropy, making grants directly to local organizations around the world. And although they represent a small share of overall human rights funding, local and regional funders play a critical role in direct funding of local organizations and movements in countries that are under-resourced, or indirectly resourced, by large philanthropies based in North America and Western Europe, HRFN <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrfn.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Trust-Gap-Report-HRFN.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">found<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Where are human rights grants going?&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The Human Rights Funders Network identifies <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrfn.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/AHR-Sub-issues-List-March-2020.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">27 issue areas<\/a> of human rights grants and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrfn.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/HRFN-Advancing-Human-Rights-2020-Full-Report.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">nine populations<\/a> that face unique challenges when it comes to human rights: children and youth, human rights defenders, Indigenous peoples, LGBTQI people, migrants and refugees, persons with disabilities, racial and ethnic groups, sex workers, and women and girls. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!-- Non-displaying inline paywall marker. Editors: please keep this code block. Position this block before the first full-width paragraph or just above the foundations list heading. -->\n<div id=\"ipInlineOffer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-genesis-blocks-gb-container foundation-list gb-block-container\"><div class=\"gb-container-inside\"><div class=\"gb-container-content\">\n<p>Many human rights grants focus on one of these groups, while a smaller share of grants focus on several intersecting identities. Grants for human rights support everything from grassroots activism to legal aid, research, emergency response, and advocacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Grants for human rights often invest in specific populations or nations. For instance, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/grants-a\/arcus-foundation\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Arcus Foundation<\/a> works to increase safety and protections for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/fundraising-for-lgbt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">LGBTQ<\/a> people in 12 focus countries in the Americas and Africa. Feminist funds, such as the network of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-u\/urgent-action-fund-for-feminist-activism\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Urgent Action Funds<\/a> and the private foundation <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/find-a-grant\/grants-f\/foundation-for-a-just-society\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Foundation for a Just Society<\/a>, are leaders in funding to support human rights defenders.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrfn.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/HRFN-Advancing-Human-Rights-2020-Full-Report.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">vast majority<\/a> of grants and grant dollars for human rights go to organizations based in North America, even if some of those grants ultimately support human rights initiatives in other places.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Gaps in human rights funding&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>With the majority of human rights grants going to North America,  a substantial gap in funding exists for human rights organizations based anywhere else in the world, the Human Rights Funders Network has repeatedly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrfn.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Trust-Gap-Report-HRFN.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">found<\/a>. There is also a persistent gap in <em>direct<\/em> funding going to regions other than North America, with much of the funding passing through intermediaries or INGOs based elsewhere. For example, HRFN found that 40% of the funding meant to benefit the Middle East and North Africa moves through organizations based in other regions. In HRFN\u2019s analysis, this reflects a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrfn.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Trust-Gap-Report-HRFN.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201ctrust gap\u201d<\/a> in global human rights philanthropy. HRFN has also found that identity-based human rights funding most often focuses on a single identity (e.g., women), and less frequently addresses multiple or intersecting identities. The combination of these factors produces gaps such as a very small percentage of human rights philanthropy going to Indigenous women, the majority of whom live in Asia and Africa, as documented in a <a href=\"https:\/\/internationalfunders.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/Leaders-and-Stewards-Global-Analysis-of-Funding-to-Indigenous-Women-_compressed.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">global analysis of funding to Indigenous women<\/a> by Archipel for International Funders for Indigenous Peoples and Foro Internacional de Mujeres Ind\u00edgenas.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As noted above, feminist funds, and local and regional funders, are leading the way in addressing these gaps. Most of the funding from <a href=\"https:\/\/prospera-inwf.org\/resource\/5-year-trends\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Prospera<\/a>, an international network of women\u2019s funds, for example, goes to formerly colonized territories in Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific, Africa, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and Central Asia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrfn.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Trust-Gap-Report-HRFN.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">HRFN<\/a> is also careful to point out that all of this \u201cis not to suggest that human rights work in North America is overfunded,\u201d when the reality is that organizations everywhere are under-resourced relative to the vast need for human rights funding.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group modified-date-row is-content-justification-left is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-f56a869c wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<p><em>Published on <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<div style=\"font-style:italic;font-weight:400;\" class=\"wp-block-post-date\"><time datetime=\"2025-01-16T15:10:57-08:00\">January 16, 2025<\/time><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px;width:0px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Learn more about grants for global security and grants for human rights by exploring Inside Philanthropy\u2019s list of top global security and human rights nonprofits below. Subscribers can also explore funders using our Grantfinder Search Tool. Become a member.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":339,"featured_media":0,"parent":13716,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":true,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":{"0":"post-200193","1":"page","2":"type-page","3":"status-publish","5":"entry"},"featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/200193","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/339"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=200193"}],"version-history":[{"count":20,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/200193\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":224184,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/200193\/revisions\/224184"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/13716"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidephilanthropy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=200193"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}