Community Resilience Initiative Bridge Grants

Community Resilience Initiative Bridge Grants is sponsored by The Greater Washington Community Foundation. This opportunity supports mission-aligned projects and measurable outcomes.

Community Resilience Initiative — Greater Washington Community Foundation In times of crisis, the Greater Washington Community Foundation serves as a community convener, advocate, and philanthropic first responder to ensure our region is prepared and equipped to effectively respond to challenges.

We mobilize community partners and resources to protect and preserve the essential work of this region’s nonprofit sector and help ensure critical services can continue without disruption. Our goal is to safeguard and sustain efforts aligned with our mission to build an equitable, just, and thriving region.

Given recent federal actions and their destabilizing effect on the nonprofit sector and our region, our current focus is on strengthening the capacity and resilience of this region’s nonprofit sector to address urgent and emerging needs through deep collaboration, coordination, and targeted resources.

This effort will help ensure the region’s critical nonprofit organizations can continue to meet urgent needs, advocate effectively, and sustain impact for the communities we serve. To date, we’ve deployed $14. 3 million in grants and technical assistance to organizations across the Greater Washington region to convene, support, and advocate for the sector.

Select Community Resilience Fund from the drop down menu on the donation form. For more information about grantmaking, contact Darius Graham, Managing Director of Community Investment at [email protected] . For more information about supporting this work, contact Chris Howie, Managing Director of Development at [email protected] .

Convening funders on a bi-weekly basis since November to share information and spark collective action to support the sector. Co-convened nonprofits and funders in partnership with Meyer Foundation and Georgetown University’s Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership to foster radical transparency and communication among partners.

We are taking a responsive, coordinated approach to providing technical assistance, training, and resources to help stabilize the sector, address ongoing challenges, and foster collaboration. Awarding more than $1 million in Bridge Grants to 21 organizations navigating funding losses or planning for their future during uncertain times.

Providing strategic communications and crisis management tools and training to help organizations enhance messaging, adapt to challenges, and maintain public trust. Hosting strategic communications trainings for nonprofits to share best practices for risk mitigation related to messaging and communications strategy.

Hosting virtual office hours in partnership with Spur Local to assist nonprofits with crisis communications planning and challenges. Hosting Legal and compliance training and support to help organizations navigate legal challenges or undertake scenario planning, risk assessment, or strategic conversations about mergers and collaborations. Hosting clinics for nonprofits in partnership with legal services organizations.

Engaging strategic partners to inform conversations on disruption and opportunity, exploring approaches such as scenario planning, strategic partnerships, shared services, mergers, and organizational sunsets.

We are focused on building capacity for sector and regional advocacy to communicate the impact of the nonprofit sector and important regional issues, and to respond to policies and actions that jeopardize the sector and regional stability. We have made grants to key advocacy organizations that are working to defend and protect the region, our sector, and communities.

We released a letter and were joined by nearly 60 local foundations, nonprofits, and faith leaders to defend our community's right to self-governance and support more investment in evidence-based solutions.