New Israel Fund
OVERVIEW: The New Israel Fund (NIF) focuses its grantmaking on human and civil rights, social and economic justice, freedom, and protecting Israel’s environment.
IP TAKE: The NIF gives broadly and it gives a lot; however, it awards grants on national, regional and local levels, so potential grantees can expect heavy competition. This isn’t the most accessible funder in this funding space, but it is very approachable and responsive, so contact it to learn more about how it makes grants and general questions. It greatly invests in its grantees.
PROFILE: The New Israel Fund was established in 1979 in order to work towards a “society that ensures complete equality to all its inhabitants.” Its goal is to promote liberal democracy in the Levant region, with a focus on freedom of speech, human rights, inequality, injustice, and extremism. Since its inception, it has given away over $300 million dollars to progressive nonprofits and organizations seeking to promote peace in Israel and Palestine. The fund focuses its grantmaking six priority issues in Israel: religious freedom, Palestinian citizens of Israel, shared society and combating racism, social and economic justice, religious freedom and new initiatives for democracy.
Grants for Security and Human Rights
The New Israel Fund’s grantmaking is primarily focused on advancing the cause of peace, security, and human rights in Israel. Its grantmaking for Human Rights and Democracy aims to address what the foundation sees as a decline in respect for human rights among the Israeli people and government, especially from the “ultra-nationalist right.” These grants focus on protecting freedom of speech and defending democratic institutions. Grants for Palestinian Citizens especially fights against discrimination in the realms of “land planning and distribution, education, municipal funding, representation of Palestinian citizens in decision-making bodies, and more.” Grants for Shared Society work to repair the rift between Israeli Jews and Palestinian Muslims through a variety of approaches, including “networking, community organizing, advocacy and litigation.” In particular, NIF promotes Religious Freedom by fighting against the “ultra-Orthodox monopoly on religious life” that delegitimizes other ways of practicing Judaism, including Reform, Conservative, and Reconstructionist schools of thought, as well as sects of Judaism from around the world.
Grants for Global Development
NIF funds grantmaking for economic development primarily through its Social and Economic Justice focus area. These grants aim to “reduce social and economic gaps as a means of safeguarding democracy and building a cohesive society.” It aims to increase social mobility and civic engagement by expanding inclusive policies towards Israel’s diverse, underserved populations. Its grantmaking specifically focuses on “the lack of housing options, growing poverty and “built-in” inequality at the local and community level.” Grantees include Zazim Community Action, the Association for Ethiopian Jews and the Hilla Program.
NIF’s newest grantmaking initiative, New Initiatives for Democracy, was started in response to the political rise of “Israel’s regressive right.” Goals for early grantmaking from this program include building collaborations between leaders of various progressive constituencies from across Israel, preventing the spread of disinformation, promoting social justice movements and “reframing foreign policy to provide a new playbook for Israeli progressives.”
Important Grant Details:
The NIF supports a variety of organizations, from small to large, and even supports more innovative organizations that “[m]ainstream organizations will support tomorrow.” NIF grant amounts vary widely, from less than $10,000 to upwards of $500,000. To learn more about the types of organizations receiving NIF support, explore their annual report and financials page.
It is unclear whether the NIF accepts unsolicited letters of inquiry or requests for funding; however, given its detailed funding guidelines, grantseekers are advised to reach out via the fund’s contact page.
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