Equity & Justice Grant Program

Equity & Justice Grant Program is sponsored by Ben & Jerry's Foundation. Provides grants to Vermont-based nonprofits addressing racial, economic, social, and environmental disparities.

Vermont Grants: Equity & Justice (Published 2026. 04. 26) - Ben & Jerry's Foundation Hands off the Foundation!

Our independence and funding is at risk. Each year, the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation offers grants of up to $15,000, with an average grant size of $10,000, to Vermont-based, Vermont-focused, non-profit organizations working to address racial, economic, social, and environmental disparities and injustice in Vermont.

We will seek out innovative programs that are working toward fundamental change in Vermont and that approach their work through the lens of social justice and equity. We do not offer grants to organizations that seek funding solely for social services to support individuals. This grant program is highly competitive.

Please be sure to read through all of the priorities to ensure a good fit. We have allocated a total of $300,000 to this program in 2026. 4:00 p.

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, August 19th, 2026 FUNDING PREFERENCE WILL BE GIVEN TO ORGANIZATIONS WHOSE AREAS OF INTEREST MAY INCLUDE, BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO: Equity in education and early childcare Equity in access to safe and affordable housing Equity in access to healthy and affordable food We will prioritize programs that work to meaningfully engage and intentionally involve and give voice to those who are most impacted by the problem the organization seeks to address.

Unfortunately, we cannot consider requests for: Programs that solely provide direct services to individuals Discretionary or emergency requests Individuals or scholarship programs Research, litigation or legal expenses Capital or endowment campaigns State agencies or government-sponsored programs Businesses or business associations Religious or proselytizing activities Other foundations or regranting organizations Organizations or programs that are focused or based outside the state of Vermont TO BE CONSIDERED FOR FUNDING, EACH APPLICANT ORGANIZATION MUST BE: A Non-Profit 501(c)3 organization OR Represented by a fiscal agent with 501(c)(3) status Organizations with Total Annual Operating Budgets under $500,000 ELIGIBILITY QUESTIONnAIRE OR LOGIN TO YOUR EXISTING ACCOUNT ▸ Frequently asked Questions Before submitting a funding request, may we discuss our work with your staff to see if we are a fit for your grant programs?

Due to staff limitations we are not able to meet with potential applicants. We encourage all potential applicants to review our grant partners page to better understand the type of organizations we fund and our typical giving amounts. If, after thoroughly reading all of the information detailed on this website, organizations have additional questions, they are welcome to email or call the Foundation directly.

How often can I apply for the Equity & Justice Grant? The Vermont Equity & Justice grants are offered one cycle per year, so there is only one opportunity each year to apply. If you have received a Vermont Equity & Justice grant in the past, please be sure to submit your follow up report before reapplying.

Can I apply for more than one grant program at a time? No. We will only consider one application at a time across our grant program options, and thus recommend researching each program to ensure your organization applies to the most targeted program for your needs What do you mean when you say you do not fund direct-services to individuals?

This grant program is designed to support the equity and justice work that impacted communities are meaningfully engaged in, rather than the services that are rendered to assist individuals in need. Some elements of social service may appear within the scope of the organization’s programming, but this grant does not offer support to programs that are focused solely on those service-based activities.

Who decides which groups receive funding from the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation? All our grant decisions are recommended by teams of Ben & Jerry’s employees. Will we be notified if our pre-application or application is NOT approved?

Yes, we will be in touch with every organization to share our decision, funded or not funded. Notifications are sent through the grant portal system. Please ensure your inbox has our contact information as a “Safe Sender.

” Our organization submitted the application online some time ago, but we still haven’t heard anything. Can we get an update on the status? The deadline for this grant application is in May, however, due to the nature of this competitive process, we have many requests for our Employee Grantmaking Committee to review.

We give them about 6 weeks to thoroughly read through all requests and allow for time to request any additional items that might be needed in their review. The grantmaking meeting takes place in mid-June and we try to send out the notification of the decision by the end of June. If you haven’t heard from us by then, please feel free to reach out for a status update.

Where do I send my application and materials? We do not accept mailed applications and support materials. All applications must be submitted online through our grants management system.

You will need to first register your organization before applying online through the grant program. Please note that we do not accept additional support materials through the mail, as we do not have means to share it across the entire team. Please save your postage.

An organization should only be registered once in our online grant portal. If the organization does not have a record of their login details, please get in touch with the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation and we will add you to the list of contacts and provide you with a login.

If you have already registered the organization and created an account and are worried that you cannot see the organization history, please contact us and we will connect you to the correct account. Please contact Dana Jeffery at 802-495-1378 or info@benandjerrysfoundation. org .

We will attempt to resolve any issues during our usual business hours Mon-Fri 8am to 5pm, EST I completed the Eligibility Questionnaire and I was told I am ineligible for the grant program I am interested in. Can I take the questionnaire again? The questionnaire may only be completed once per year.

We encourage an organization to have assessed their own eligibility by reading the details regarding each grant programs’ funding priorities prior to taking the Eligibility Questionnaire .

Questions may steer you to a program that has different eligibility criteria than that of the program you are intending to apply to, and therefore it is best to be mindful about which program you are wishing to get support from, as you complete the questionnaire. Can I see my Eligibility Questionnaire that I submitted, because I am sure I made a mistake and would like to fix it?

If you completed the Eligibility Questionnaire , you can look at your Applicant Dashboard within the grant portal to view your submission. On the Active Requests tab, the top of the list shows your Eligibility Questionnaire, and by clicking on View Eligibility Questionnaire, you will see the responses you selected.

If you do see that you answered something incorrectly, you will not be able to edit this questionnaire, but you may reach out to the Foundation to discuss your options. I cannot see the grant process when I go to the Apply page. Did I miss a deadline?

If you are logged in and cannot see the grant process you had qualified for in the list of available programs, it is possible you may have missed a deadline. We do not use a code for the grant application, even though you may notice there is an option to add a code. We recommend that you review our program deadline schedule prior to applying for a grant.

I am having difficulty signing in / saving / submitting my application. I would also like to view the application before applying. How can I get some help?

We only accept applications submitted through our grant portal, although we have provided a copy of the application questions for your planning purposes. Vermont Equity & Justice Full Proposal How do I apply for a Renewal grant through the Equity & Justice Grant program? We no longer have a special Renewal application.

If you have received a Vermont Equity & Justice grant in the past, please be sure to submit your follow-up report before reapplying. Improving early childhood education. Vermonters for Criminal Justice Reform Grassroots strategies to end unnecessary incarceration.

Employment support and placement for women. The documents below feature lists, by year, of the organizations and programs we’ve funded in the past. Not only is it inspiring to see all of the impactful work happening around Vermont, reading through these brief descriptions is a great way to better understand the types of projects that qualify for Vermont Equity & Justice Program funding.

2024 VT Equity & Justice Grants 2023 VT Economic Justice Grants 2022 VT Economic Justice Grants 2021 VT Economic Justice Grants 2020 VT Economic Justice Grants 2019 VT Economic Justice Grants grant partners are from ▸