Ecosystem grants: Application & criteria

Application questions

These are the questions from the 2023 application for your reference. They may change in the next application round.

The online application starts with some questions about your organization with mostly drop-down choices. The questions include:

  • Applicant contact information
  • 501(c)(3) status
  • Recent fiscal year total expenses
  • Areas served by your organization
  • Brief overview of your organization (max 3,000 characters or roughly 500 words)
  • Fiscally sponsored organization information, if applicable

Please share what issue(s) your organization works on

1. Which of the following issues best describes your organization’s work? If your organization works in more than one area, please choose the one that best fits with your work.

  • Support individuals/organizations to work on a variety of issues
  • Support Native nations to exercise sovereignty
  • Support schools and educators move toward student-centered learning
  • Support others to use art and culture to solve community problems

2. Describe how your organization addresses the goal of the issue you selected in question one. Max: 1,800 characters or roughly 300 words

Please tell us about your organization’s impact

3. Does your organization support other organizations and leaders in one of the following ways? Choose the option(s) that best characterizes your work. It is not expected that you provide support in all the methods listed below.

  • Provide critical data and analysis
  • Advance public awareness/policy solution
  • Spread great ideas and build capacity
  • Build and support networks of leaders

4. Based on what you selected in question three, answer one or more of the following questions, only as applicable to your organization’s work. It is not expected that you provide support in all the methods listed below and it is not necessary to provide an answer to every question. Answer the question(s) that most closely aligns with your organization.

  • Describe how your organization provides critical data and analysis. Max: 1,800 characters or roughly 300 words
  • Describe how your organization advances public awareness and policy solutions. Max: 1,800 characters or roughly 300 words
  • Describe how your organization spreads great ideas and builds capacity. Max: 1,800 characters or roughly 300 words
  • Describe how your organization builds and supports networks of leaders. Max: 1,800 characters or roughly 300 words

5. Does your organization specialize in supporting leaders and other organizations to advance equity through the option(s) you selected in question 3? We understand that this is not an expertise that all Ecosystem grantees will have, but if you do, we would like to know how this is a part of your work and how it impacts others.

  • Yes
  • No

6. If yes, please tell us how you specialize in supporting leaders and other organizations to advance equity. Provide at least two specific examples. Max: 1,800 characters or roughly 300 words

7. What is the unique and significant value you provide to other organizations or leaders? Describe the impact. Provide at least two specific examples and share any relevant outcome data or other evidence. Max: 1,800 characters or roughly 300 words

Please describe how your organization operates

8. Across all our work, we are committed to advancing racial equity in our region. How is your organization advancing racial equity internally and externally? Max: 1,800 characters or roughly 300 words

9. Please provide contact information for three references. They should be people who can describe how your work makes their work more successful or impactful. If you’re selected as a finalist, we may contact the references you provide or other organizations. The reference information should include: contact name and title, organization name, mailing address, email and phone number. Max 900 characters or roughly 150 words

Criteria we use to make a decision

What issues does your organization work on?

  • Does your organization support individuals and organizations solving problems on a variety of issues rather than focusing on a single issue?
  • Does your organization support Native nations to exercise sovereignty?
  • Does your organization support schools and educators moving toward student-centered learning?
  • Does your organization support others in using art and culture to solve community problems?

What is your organization’s impact? To what degree does your organization support other organizations and leaders in one or more of the following ways?

  • Provide critical data and analysis.
  • Advance public awareness and policy.
  • Spread great ideas and build capacity.
  • Build and support networks of leaders.

Does your organization specialize in supporting leaders and organizations to advance equity?

We work to make the region more equitable in opportunities and outcomes for all people. We strive to improve conditions for all marginalized communities, and especially for Black people, Indigenous people, people of color and people from rural communities.

This is not an expertise that all Ecosystem grantees will have, but if your organization does, we would like to hear about how you support others in this way.

Do other organizations and leaders find your organization uniquely and significantly valuable?

Ecosystem grantees are organizations upon which other organizations and leaders rely. We speak with references to understand if Ecosystem applicants play a critical role for others, and how they help them be more effective in their work.

How does your organization operate?

  • Does your organization work to advance racial equity internally and externally?
  • Is your organization stable and strong in terms of governance and finance?
  • Does your organization operate in a way that aligns with our operating values?

Other considerations

We want to support as many people and communities as we can, and to do that, we also consider the following factors:

  • Issue: Ensuring we are supporting work happening on a broad range of issues while also making sure we are supporting work related to the arts, education and Native nation sovereignty
  • Place: Ensure we are supporting work happening throughout our grantmaking region
  • Sector: Ensure we are supporting work happening within and across sectors—government, nonprofit and business
  • Cultural focus: Ensure we are supporting work happening within and across cultural communities
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