Our grant-making
We make grants to not-for-profit organisations across the globe that aim to make the world a safer, fairer, and more sustainable place to live.
Each programme has its own strategy, funding criteria, and geographic scope. We provide grants to organisations that work in our programme areas. We have a rigorous due diligence and selection process, which includes extensive discussions, financial reviews, and site visits to ensure that the organisations have robust internal processes and controls, a clear strategy, and the capacity to thrive.
+ 300
Grants per year:
the majority of awards are
multi-year in duration.
USD 900,000
The average award:
they range between
USD 25,000 to USD 10 million.
We provide core support and project support grants
We generally commit multi-year, core support (i.e., general operating support), or flexible project grants that align with our programme strategies. We believe that good grant-making means that our grantee partners direct their work in the way they see best. Sometimes Oak provides support to a specific objective within an organisation’s overall mission. In those situations, we encourage applicants to ask for the true costs, including overhead costs, of their project grants.
Our application process
Oak Foundation has an invitation-only application process and we fund on a rolling basis. Grant applications are initiated in three ways:
Direct invitation
Programme officers investigate and learn about organisations that work in our programme areas. They will then invite those organisations to submit a concept note and/or complete an application for funding. Read this document for more information on our timeline and process.
Letter of enquiry
Not-for-profit organisations who have not been invited to apply by a programme officer can submit unsolicited requests for funding through our letter of enquiry process. If an organisation believes that strong alignment exists with Oak Foundation’s funding priorities, we encourage it to submit an unsolicited letter of enquiry. We will then invite applications for a grant only if we also find alignment with our funding priorities and if there is available budget.
Requests for proposals
We occasionally develop or join initiatives in our areas of interest by issuing calls for proposals on our website or convening policy makers, grantee partners, funders, or practitioners to explore solutions to critical issues.
We post all “Requests for
Proposals” on our career page.
Our application timeline
When we formally invite an organisation to apply for a grant, we discuss the size of the grant and whether it will be project support or core support (i.e., flexible and unrestricted funding). We work with organisations to develop the application in partnership, ensuring we communicate consistently about when and who will make the decision on a grant, how the application process works, and how long it will take. We also discuss the possibilities of renewal well in advance of the end of a grant. We consider all renewals as distinct and separate grants. The below timeline is an approximate timeline.
Step 1
Idea exchange & initial screen
Approximate timeline:
1 month
Step 2
Concept note & summary stage
Approximate timeline:
1 month
Step 3
Application development
Approximate timeline:
2 months
Step 4
Application review
Approximate timeline:
2-4 months
Step 5
Recommendation and decision
Approximate timeline:
1-2 months
Step 6
Notification and payment
Approximate timeline:
1-2 months
For more information about the different steps in the grant-making process, please see our Grant application process and timeline guidelines.
Notes: At any stage, a grant may be declined. If this happens, we will inform the applicant as soon as possible. An invitation to submit a summary or full application materials does not guarantee that a grant will be awarded.
Our funding principles
We support organisations to help people and communities thrive in just societies, where everyone is safe, and has the opportunities to succeed. This also includes safeguarding our natural environment for future generations. We support civil society as a pilar of democracy and believe in the power of collective action in achieving ambitious goals. We believe the best grant-making reflects both careful due diligence and a willingness to take risk. We support our partners’ capacity to assess and measure progress. We invest in visionary leadership and provide resources to strengthen civil society organisations.
We fund initiatives that:
- address the root causes of problems
- are replicable either within a sector or across geographical locations
- include plans for long-term sustainability, including co-funding
- strive to collaborate with like-minded organisations
- demonstrate good financial and organisational management
- value the participation of people and communities
Creating long-lasting change
We believe in providing long-term support to our partners to help create long-lasting change. We also believe that our partners benefit from having diverse funding sources to promote resiliency and achieve the impact they desire. Therefore, we generally fund no more than 50 per cent of any project budget or 20 per cent of organisational budgets. Requests to fund higher levels should be discussed with the programme officer.
We do not provide support for:
- individuals
- scholarships or tuition assistance for undergraduate or postgraduate studies
- religious organisations for religious purposes
- election campaigns, political parties, or activities affiliated with political parties
- except in special circumstances, we generally do not provide programme grants under USD 25,000
Additional grant-making
Discretionary grants
A discretionary grant is a donation initiated by one of Oak Foundation’s Trustees, Advisors, or staff.
Discretionary grants are general operating support grants made to registered not-for-profit organisations and are in line with Oak’s values. Every year, we publish the total amount provided in discretionary grants in our Annual Report.
If you have been approached by an Oak Trustee, Advisor, or staff to receive a discretionary grant, please reach out to them for more information on the process.
Are you ready to submit
a letter of enquiry?
You can access the letter of enquiry form by clicking on the button below. We encourage you to first read this page and the programme strategies before you submit a letter of enquiry. Please note that only a few submissions are approved each year. This is due to the volume of requests we receive. Please find the submission form here.