Philanthropic Funding for Native American Communities and Causes (US)

3 min read · September 12, 2019
Candid, Native Americans in Philanthropy

Statistics · Foundations · Indigenous Peoples

The report sheds light on the latest data on foundation funding for Native Americans, alongside important historical context that has contributed to the unique experiences and challenges Native Americans face today.

Summary

The report shares a snapshot of investments from 2017 onwards, conveying significant philanthropic investments that reflect positive shifts in how foundations partner with Indigenous-led organizations. The American Indian and Alaska Native populations (including those of more than one race) represented 2 percent of the U.S. population in 2016 and 2017. An increasing number of foundations have begun explicitly addressing racial equity in their missions and programs. Momentum is building for philanthropy to build more equitable, inclusive communities and to start using its power and privilege to support grassroots movements. The analysis in this report aims to promote conversations and shifts in practice that lead to improved data, knowledge sharing, and, ultimately, more significant impact.

"Cultural humility is important, as is adapting yourself as a funder rather than asking Native leaders and organizations to adapt themselves to you." Vanessa Daniel, Groundswell Fund, (p.33)

Key findings

Foundation funding exclusively benefited Native Americans as a portion of total explicit financing, in 2015 and 2016, as per the data collected for this research:

• Total grant dollars: $493.8M

  • Grant dollars benefiting Native Americans + other ethnic/racial groups: $285.4M

  • Grant dollars exclusively benefit Native Americans: $208.4M, 42 percent of the total grant dollars.

• Total number of grants: 12,310

  • Number of grants benefiting Native Americans + other ethnic/racial groups: 8,182

  • Number of grants exclusively benefiting Native Americans: 4,128, approximately 33 percent of the total.

Institutional funding for Native American causes overall is dismal:

• Over 15 years, from 2002 to 2016, large U.S. foundations gave an average of 0.4 percent of total funding to Native American communities and causes. The proportion ranged from a high of 0.6 percent in 2006 to a low of 0.3 percent in 2009, 2010, and 2014.

• Twenty percent of large foundations give to Native communities and causes. Even among this specific group, most provide only one or two grants.

• Of total funding for Native Americans, approximately 33 percent of grant dollars and 30 percent of grants from 2002 to 2016 were exclusively designated to benefit only Native American communities and causes.

• Candid's database indicates that 290 public charities provided $201.8M in grants for Native American communities and causes in 2015 and 2016. The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, American Indian College Fund, and First Nations Development Institute were among the larger Native-led grantmaking public charities.

• Candid database identified $101.6M in funding benefiting Alaska Natives (nearly 21 percent of the total budget for Native Americans) through 1,093 grants. Fifty-seven percent of grant dollars for Alaska Natives went to organizations based in Alaska ($58.1M).

• About $32.3M in funding explicitly benefits Native Hawaiians (approximately 7 percent of total funding for Native Americans) through 269 grants. Thirty-four percent of grant dollars for Native Hawaiians went to organizations based in Hawai'i ($11.1M).

Population group

It can be challenging to determine how much funding addresses the intersections of different identities when many grants lack full descriptions. Still, 21 percent of grant dollars ($493.8M approximately as per Candid's database) for Native Americans could be identified as having an explicit focus on children and youth. Native women and girls were the focus of 3 percent of grant dollars. Two percent of grant dollars were identified as focused on Native seniors.

Takeaways

Direct funding for Native Americans does not appear to be a priority for most large foundations, and efforts to increase funding will require greater engagement. The authors suggest that funders that are interested in taking the next step but are not sure where to start should begin with these four commitments to strengthen partnerships with Native organizations and communities:

1) Learn about Native peoples and their history; 

2) Build relationships with Native communities and nonprofits and with peer funders that have relationships in Indian Country;

3) Evaluate your organization's practices, and

4) Begin funding.

Funders often freely assert that their grants benefit Native Americans, alongside virtually all racial and ethnic population codes. Others identify grants helping Native Americans based on the population's demographics or the intended beneficiaries. Most do not provide any information at all. Data on Indigenous people are hard to obtain, as national population surveys and studies often do not have large enough samples to disaggregate and provide separate reliable estimates to be considered as a benchmark. Thus, Indigenous people are often invisible in population studies in their own countries, making it difficult or impossible to address their issues.

See how funders are investing in Native communities and organizations based on their grantmaking data. Explore the funding map.
Read the full report here.

References

Candid, Native Americans in Philanthropy. (2019, September 12). Investing in Native Communities: Philanthropic Funding for Native American Communities and Causes. Issue Lab: Candid's knowledge management platform.