Arts Rising Funding Circle 2008-2009
We are pioneering a new approach to help bring more support for the field of arts & social change, which has sadly received less and less funding over the years.
Contact us to learn how you can play a part.
Interested in a volunteer position or internship? Click here
Learn about the 2007-8 arts & social change organizations and projects we were honored to support. Click here.
Purpose of Circle
To increase funding for arts and social change by:
- being a visible, widespread, public magnet for individual donors already interested in this field;
- drawing in new individual funders by showing the field’s breadth, beauty and effectiveness;
- creating a simple and appealing structure whereby donors can pool their funds for greater impact, and learn (from each other and from field experts) how to make a strategic difference in their areas of interest.
How to request funding
Alas, you don’t. At least for now projects will be selected by funding circle members, to make the work more manageable.
Our hope is that the first few funding cycles will be just a beginning – the start of attracting and pulling together donors from many sources. We hope the pool can keep growing through many years, inspiring the launch of other Arts and Social Change funding circles, more open to requests from the wider community.
How to join or support the funding circle
To Join: Contribute $1,000 or more and take part in a two-day meeting in the spring. Give $100 or more and be involved in other ways. See more details below under roles. Please contact us if you are interested in exploring joining this year or possibly in the future.
To Support the Work: If you believe in what this work is about and want to see it succeed, but don't have time to be involved, please consider donating to the funding pool or to Zing Foundation to help with the organizing costs. Info about how to contact us follows.
All contributions are tax-deductible. 100% of the gifts to the funding pool directly support arts & social change organizations.
Areas of funding for 2008-2009
The Funding Circle will start out with three funding areas: social action, community development, and dialogue. All funds collected for the funding pool will be divided evenly:
Social action: To help infuse pressing social movements with the power of the arts.
Current priorities: arts that address environmental crises; infrastructure for arts for social action.
Community development: To strengthen communities by engaging grassroots creativity.
Current priorities: low income youth; infrastructure for the community arts field.
Dialogue: To use the power of the arts to bridge deep divisions.
Current priorities: Bringing together people across religious, ethnic and racial divisions; infrastructure for dialogue work.
Additional criteria for all projects funded
- Use participatory arts (i.e., they engage community members in the art-making)
- Artistic quality (emphasis on both process and outcome)
- Promote positive values (e.g., love not hate, hope not fear, tolerance not prejudice) and embody these values in their organizational process, not just the artistic outcome
Roles You Can Choose Among for Involvement
We intend to make the funding circle inclusive and accessible. Gifts of any size are welcome, all donors who give either to Zing or to the funding pool receive updates about the Circle's progress throughout the year.
- Active Member: Give $1,000 or more. Invited to sponsor a project for possible funding. Take part in educational programs like conference calls and/or local outings to learn more about different approaches and strategies modelled by exciting arts & social change projects and how to be an effective funder for the field. Attend the spring two-day meeting.
- Decision-maker: Give $1,000 or more. Join at least 3 conference calls with other decision-makers. Invited to take part in educational programs. Do site visits and project evaluations. Attend the spring two-day meeting to make decisions about the grants.
- Supporting Member: Give $100 or more. Take part in educational programs. Invited to recommend a project to be considered by an active member to sponsor.
- Friends: Give at any level. (All donations are tax deductible. Receive our e-bulletin and and final report of what fabulous projects you helped to fund.
For information about how to join or how to make a contribution please contact: Zhaleh@ZingFoundation.org.
For more details about the Arts Risng Funding Circle process click here.
Arts Rising is a project of Threshold Foundation in collaboration with Zing Foundation.