World Peace Foundation

The World Peace Foundation is a private operating foundation — one of the oldest secular peace organizations in the United States, founded in 1910 by Boston publisher Edwin Ginn — that conducts its own internally managed research programs rather than distributing competitive grants to outside organizations. This is the most important fact for any grant-seeker to absorb before investing time in a relationship: WPF's own website explicitly states, "We work collaboratively with others as part of programs that we establish, but we do not support outside projects, nor do we have a research grant-making program."

WPF operates solely out of Tufts University's Fletcher School of Global Affairs in Somerville, Massachusetts. Its budget of roughly $1.29 million per year (FY2022) funds approximately 6-8 staff, research publications, public events, and the 'Disrupting Peace' podcast — not external grantees. The foundation's resources come primarily from the restricted Ginn Trust endowment ($722,634 in contributions in FY2022) and investment income from $26.6 million in total assets. Actual grants paid to outside organizations were $17,000 in FY2022 and $0 in the four prior years.

For researchers and organizations aligned with WPF's six program areas — African Politics & Peace, Arms Trade & Militarization, Atrocity Response, Mass Incarceration, Mass Starvation, and The Future of Peace — three productive engagement pathways exist. First, academic researchers at Fletcher or affiliated institutions may collaborate on WPF-initiated projects as graduate research assistants or interns. Second, practitioners with primary field data from conflict zones, famine-affected regions, prison systems, or arms trafficking networks can contribute intelligence that WPF researchers incorporate into publications, potentially as co-authors. Third, any organization can build long-term research relationships through WPF's regular public events and podcast.

Executive Director Alex de Waal (at WPF since 2011, annual compensation ~$193,000) and Research Director Bridget Conley are the primary points of contact. WPF's Board Chair is Peter Blum; trustees include Jacqueline Bhabha, Eileen Babbitt, Monik Jimenez, and philosopher Anat Biletzki (Vice Chair).

For organizations needing direct external funding for international peace or security research, the right peer funders are Carnegie Corporation of New York, Ploughshares Fund, Smith Richardson Foundation, or Humanity United — all of which operate open or invited grant programs in adjacent areas.

As a private operating foundation under IRS code 4942(j)(3), WPF's "total giving" figures in its Form 990 filings reflect internal program expenditures, not external grants. The actual "grants paid" line — money disbursed to third-party organizations — was $17,000 in FY2022 (likely a small consulting or research fee), and precisely $0 in FY2021, FY2020, FY2019, and FY2018. Earlier years show similarly minimal external payments: $116,228 in FY2013 and $67,429 in FY2012, which may reflect one-time project-based relationships or research collaborations at a time when the foundation operated differently.

WPF's total internal program expenditures have grown steadily over the past decade: $604,344 (FY2011), $805,904 (FY2012), $941,831 (FY2013), $788,413 (FY2014), $1,038,421 (FY2018), $1,070,265 (FY2019), $1,173,547 (FY2020), $1,107,848 (FY2021), and $1,288,785 (FY2022). This represents approximately 113% growth from FY2011 to FY2022, consistent with salary increases and modest program expansion under Alex de Waal's leadership.

Asset trajectory: $17.8M (2011) → $20.6M (2013) → $22.7M (2018) → $28.2M (2020, reflecting equity market peak) → $25.1M (2021) → $26.6M (2022). The foundation draws on its endowment carefully: FY2022 revenue was $1.08M versus $1.29M in program expenses, a ~$210K deficit indicating controlled asset drawdown. FY2021 was an outlier with $1.29M in net investment income (market appreciation), generating $2.49M in total revenue — the only year with surplus.

Primary revenue sources: (1) Ginn Trust restricted contributions ($722,634 in FY2022; $759,848 in FY2020; $912,191 in FY2019); (2) net investment income ($60,327 in FY2022); (3) other contributions from donors. Officer compensation represents ~15% of annual program spending ($193,307 in FY2021; $188,592 in FY2018-2020).

Bottom line for grant-seekers: There is no mechanism for external organizations to access WPF funds. 100% of WPF resources are allocated to internally managed research, staff, and programs. The financial data confirms this is not a grantmaking foundation in any conventional sense.

The following table compares WPF to foundations and research organizations operating in the peace, security, and conflict space. Note that WPF is the only operating-only foundation in this peer set; all others make external grants.

Assets and giving figures are approximate based on recent public filings and may vary by year.

WPF's $26.6M in assets is comparable to the Ploughshares Fund but dramatically smaller than Carnegie Corporation. Its distinction is structural, not financial: WPF is constitutively unable to fund outside organizations due to its operating foundation status and Ginn Trust restrictions. For organizations doing conflict research, arms trade documentation, famine analysis, or African peace work, Ploughshares Fund and Carnegie Corporation are the most accessible grant sources in the peer set. Smith Richardson and Humanity United operate by invitation and require a prior relationship with program staff before any LOI is considered.

WPF entered 2026 with its most prolific research output in recent memory. The Mass Starvation program drove the heaviest publication volume: June 2026 saw back-to-back posts on Victorian-era El Niño famines (de Waal and Bell, June 11) and Rohingya food deprivation as genocide (Syed Khan, June 9), building on a May 2026 co-authored piece on famine trajectories by Daniel Maxwell, Paul Howe, and de Waal.

The Sudan program remained WPF's most publicly visible focus. A November 2025 Fletcher School panel featuring de Waal and MIT's Mai Hassan drew significant academic attention, and a May 2026 first-person reflection by African Union mediator Abdul Mohammed on the AUHIP experience marked WPF as institutional memory for Sudanese peacemaking. WPF's blog also published multiple pieces on the Horn of Africa conflict map in May 2026.

The Mass Incarceration program produced its most substantial output to date: Research Director Bridget Conley's book on COVID-19 in Massachusetts prisons launched in May 2026, with an event at New Beginnings Reentry Services that brought academic and practitioner audiences together. Conley also presented at Northern Arizona University in March 2026 on gender and starvation.

No leadership changes have been announced. Alex de Waal has led WPF since 2011 and his compensation has been stable at ~$193,000. Board composition shows continuity, with Anat Biletzki as Vice Chair and Peter Blum as Board Chair. WPF's media footprint has grown, with CNN, Foreign Affairs, and BBC News citations reflecting elevated public engagement.

Because WPF does not operate an external grant program, the following tips address how to build productive research collaboration with the foundation — the only viable form of engagement.

Target the right researcher and program. WPF's six programs have distinct leads. Alex de Waal (Executive Director) anchors the African Politics & Peace, Mass Starvation, and Atrocity Response programs. Bridget Conley (Research Director) leads Mass Incarceration and co-leads Atrocity. Reaching out to the wrong person with the wrong topic will produce no response. Research the program page before any contact.

Demonstrate substantive expertise first. WPF engages with practitioners and researchers who have already published or presented on the relevant topic. Before approaching WPF, have at least one publicly available paper, report, or policy brief on your area of overlap. WPF researchers do not mentor early-career researchers without prior research credibility.

Cite WPF research visibly. Publishing work that builds on de Waal's starvation/atrocity frameworks, Conley's incarceration work, or WPF's arms trade research creates natural entry points for outreach. Following up an email introduction with "my recent article in [journal] cites your 2024 work on X" dramatically improves response rates.

Use Fletcher School channels if eligible. WPF works intensively with Fletcher School graduate students. If you are a Fletcher student, researcher, or alumni, WPF's student event funding is distributed through the Fletcher student email list — monitor it and apply early with specific, narrowly scoped event proposals.

Avoid these common mistakes: (1) Submitting a grant proposal or budget — there is no grant program; (2) describing your organization as a "partner" before any relationship exists; (3) using advocacy language — WPF is analytically independent and skeptical of organizations that lead with policy conclusions rather than research.

Language to use: "justice-informed research," "political economy of conflict," "non-violent futures," "accountability for mass atrocities," "civilian protection agenda," "structural analysis" of famine or incarceration. These phrases appear repeatedly in WPF publications and signal methodological alignment.

Optimal timing: WPF publishes events 4-6 weeks in advance. Attending an event and following up within one week with a short substantive note is the highest-conversion outreach sequence.