Indigenous Women's Fund - Grantmaking Programs

All grantmaking will be oriented at investment in the development of Indigenous women and the strengthening of the Indigenous women's movements in alignment with the Fund's vision, mission, and goals, and will be distributed in a socially responsible manner according to the Fund's philosophy of social change philanthropy. The Indigenous Women's Fund will provide long-term and flexible funding for Indigenous women's organizations, including support for core administrative costs, travel, and capital expenditures that relate to organizational development or networking.

There will be four types of grants that the Fund will offer to Indigenous women's groups:
1) leadership and capacity-building grants;
2) scholarships to Indigenous women;
3) grants programs that advance Indigenous women's rights in one of the Fund's thematic areas; and
4) endowment, long-range strategic grants, micro-lending grants.

1. Leadership and Capacity-building of the Indigenous Women's Organizations

The Indigenous Women's Fund will define capacity-building of Indigenous women's organizations as activities that improve the ability of an organization to achieve its mission, sustain itself over the long term, and contribute to the global Indigenous women's movement. These activities may encompass a variety of areas including strategic planning, program development, advocacy strategies, partnerships and collaborations, decision-making processes, leadership development, human resources, fundraising, public relations, marketing, financial management, legal issues, self-evaluation, and more. Capacity-building may remain internal to an organization or could involve other organizations, communities, sectors, and can incorporate various actors. It can be conducted at the community, local, national, regional, or international level.

2. Programs that Advance Indigenous Women's Rights

The Fund will support groups implementing programs in one or more of the following areas and with a focus on young women:

Economic Empowerment and Financial Management
This area will training programs that that develop Indigenous women's capacities in small business ownership, banking, use of technology for business, and financial management, with particular focus on young Indigenous women entrepreneurs.
Environment and Sustainable Development
This area will include programs related to land and resource rights, climate change, and other environmental issues that have a particular impact on Indigenous women because of lack of recognition and violations of their rights.
Information and Communication Technology
This area will include programs that develop innovative media and communication strategies, or that allow Indigenous women to use new technologies to promote their rights.
Indigenous Women's Health and Education
This area will include programs that promote gender equality to combat HIV/AIDS, to provide access to health care or education that respects the particular perspectives of Indigenous women, to protect sexual and reproductive rights.

These grants will be awarded in one-year cycles and grantees may re-apply the following year. Once the Fund is established, the grant period may be extended to three years or more, in accordance with decisions of the Board of Directors. The program areas will be based on periodic strategic planning and evaluation carried out by the Board, and subject to change based on emerging themes in the Indigenous Movement in order to respond to the multiple and changing needs of Indigenous women and their communities.

3. Endowment and Long-range Strategic Grants, and Micro-Lending Grants (ie: grants for the "future")

For these type of grants, it will be particularly important for the Fund to measure the institutional capacity of the organizations, since this will assure that they will develop further with the help of the grant. The Fund will work closely with organizations seeking to start their own endowments to support them in developing their fundraising strategy and investment plans.

These grants will be allocated from the interest of the Fund's endowment and aimed at providing long term flexible funding. They will be granted to Indigenous women's organizations in one of the following forms:

"Endowment grants" for established organizations that wish to build their own endowment fund or conduct a capital campaign.
"Investment grants" for an organization to invest a lump sum and use it over a long period (5-10 years) for core expenses
"Reserve grants" for an organization to deal with unexpected cash shortfalls or unanticipated major expenses
"Micro-Lending grants" specifically with the purpose of asserting collective rights. A group of women might receive a grant to set up a micro-lending project, after completion of it, one way to give back is to give part of the earnings (could be lifestock) to another group , etc. The fact that the majority of Indigenous women are poor and the idea that communities give back to communities, as a result, social relations are strengthened. How you do micro-lending is key, not charity, not reproducing paternalistic relations, this is addressing the root causes.

4. Scholarships to Indigenous Women to Pursue Technical and Higher Education

The Fund will grant scholarships to support undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate degrees to Indigenous women. Scholarships will also be awarded to acquire technical education such as ……Scholarships will be awarded in any field of study, subject to criteria that will be defined by the Board of Directors. However, the Fund may offer targeted scholarships in specific areas of study, and priority may be given to those students applying to university programs with which FIMI has an established relationship.

Each woman who receives a scholarship from the Fund must be committed to continue her work in the community or with an Indigenous women's organization. For example, the Board may require a minimum of five years of work with an organization with a mission an area related to the goals of the Indigenous Women's Fund.

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