News
Equality Can't Wait
In the latest issue of Social Investor magazine, Cecilia A. Conrad, CEO of Lever for Change and managing director at the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, shares her work accelerating the impact of philanthropy.
The Power of Partnership
A friend of mine, a master teacher, is fond of an exercise in which she asks her students to briefly study a dime and then, without looking back at it, write down 10 of its features. Most can only recall two or three. Then she asks students to join forces in small groups and, working together, most can now reconstruct the full list. How does this apply to our work at Lever for Change? We’ve learned that working in partnership with others often leads to increased productivity and better outcomes for all.
Equality Can't Wait Challenge Awards $40 Million to Four Bold Ideas to Advance Gender Equality in the U.S.
Hosted by Pivotal Ventures, MacKenzie Scott and Dan Jewett, and Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The Challenge Will Award Additional Funding to Two Finalists and Feature Top Ideas On the New Equality Can’t Wait Idea Lab Website
Renewable Thermal Collaborative Selected as Awardee of $10 Million Climate Challenge to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions in the U.S.
Funding Will Help Increase Industrial Renewable Thermal Energy 150 Percent and Slash Industrial Thermal Emissions 30% by 2030.
Additional $10 Million in Funding Announced for Stronger Democracy Award
Today, we’re thrilled to announce an anonymous donor from the ICONIQ Impact community has contributed an additional $10 million to the Stronger Democracy Award, bringing its total to $22 million! Two finalists will receive a $10 million grant, the first from Additional Ventures and the second from the anonymous donor. A third finalist will receive a $2 million grant from philanthropists Cipora and Vlado Herman.
Lyda Hill Philanthropies Announces Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute as Recipient of the $10 Million Lone Star Prize
Four Finalist Projects Receive Additional Funding to Improve the Quality of Life of Texans
Lever for Change Honored to be Included Among MacKenzie Scott's 286 Teams Empowering Voices the World Needs to Hear
Since the inception of Lever for Change in 2019, we have developed and managed nine large-scale challenges to change the world. Working tirelessly toward our goal to unlock $1 billion in philanthropic giving by 2023, we have partnered with dozens of donors and amplified the work of hundreds of people and organizations with bold solutions to address the most intractable problems of our time.
Celebrating the one-year anniversary of our Bold Solutions Network
Time flies. It’s been just over a year since our team at Lever for Change launched the Bold Solutions Network. Born of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation’s 100&Change competition for $100 million, Lever for Change unlocks capital that might otherwise remain on the sidelines. We embolden donors to make larger grants than are typical in philanthropy—$10 million or more—through customized competitions, which provide the opportunity for donors, nonprofits, and social entrepreneurs to connect and solve global challenges together. We then amplify the top-ranked solutions in our Bold Solutions Network to catalyze investments in outstanding teams and accelerate large-scale social change.
Update on Funding & Upcoming Opportunities
At Lever for Change, we prioritize ensuring that our processes and approaches provide value and raise the visibility of bold solutions. While we continued to learn, evolve, and improve over the past year, we have seen strong evidence that being a member of the Bold Solutions Network proves valuable not only for teams who ultimately receive an award, but for all members.
Introducing our new Swift Grants
Lever for Change is excited to launch Swift Grants – a new funding opportunity for Bold Solutions Network members offering small grants of up to $25,000 for collaborative projects.