Traditional philanthropy can resemble an old boys’ club.
Only 1.9% of all funding makes it to women and girls.
And other historically marginalized groups (especially those led by LGBTQIA+ people, Black and Indigenous people, migrants and refugees, young feminists, and sex workers) are funded even less.
As a feminist funder, we take a different approach. Think less top-down decision-making, extraction, and poverty porn; and more solidarity, trust, and building collective power.
We aim to provide general operating support grants—unrestricted, flexible money—to cover the real costs of social justice work. We offer multi-year grants so that groups can plan long-term. And instead of dictating priorities, we follow grantee partners’ leadership, supporting them in addressing needs, opportunities, and challenges as they arise, on their own terms.
We are flipping the script on traditional philanthropy, and shifting power to historically marginalized communities.
Our movement-led approach
Global Fund for Women recognizes grassroots people power as one of the most effective mechanisms to create and sustain long-term social transformation. Movements have led to more egalitarian workplace regulations, more equitable land rights, better access to financial institutions, expanded legal protections for domestic workers, and stronger laws against sexual harassment. Yet movements are consistently under-resourced, and funders have struggled to effectively meet their needs. That’s where Global Fund for Women comes in. We seek out movements, give them what they need to succeed, and let them call the shots. We are fully and deeply committed to centering movements, and our belief in the power of movements is at the heart of everything we do. Under our new FY24-26 Strategic Plan, we are doubling down on our mission to provide more money, resources, and decision-making power to movements and shift power toward women, girls, and all marginalized people worldwide. Learn more in our new campaign #InMotion.
Global Fund for Women has made a total of 12,242 grants for $184,790,901 to 5,235 organizations in 176 countries over 32 years.
Money and More: Our Holistic Approach to Supporting Gender Justice Movements
In addition to financial resources, we show up for our partners and communities in holistic ways. These include:
Connect & Convene
We bring people together in brave and safer spaces to build trust, strategize, learn, and collaborate at the local, regional, and global levels.
Solidarity & Support
We show up for our grantee partners in line with their requests and priorities, including issuing statements of support; supporting institutional strengthening processes; and more.
Advocate & Influence
We advocate for feminist, intersectional, and intergenerational policies and practices across philanthropy, development, humanitarian aid, and key policy arenas.
Explore our full grants database.
If you have questions about our approach or want to partner with us, please email us at [email protected].