Best Human Rights Grants in Alaska

The Alaska Community Foundation provides Alaska social justice and human rights organizations with up to US $15,000 in general operating or project support. Eligible applicants include 501(c)(3)s, fiscally sponsored groups, Tribes, schools, local governments, and collaborations serving Alaska communities, with priority for small, developing organizations advancing systemic equity, especially outside the Anchorage bowl.

The AJ Muste Foundation's Rapid Response Grants support U.S.-based organizations engaged in grassroots activism for social justice. These grants, up to $5,000, are aimed at addressing immediate needs of groups fighting for equality and liberation. The funding is designed for unexpected opportunities and emergencies, promoting powerful organizing efforts. The foundation prioritizes groups lacking traditional funding sources and those focused on systemic change rather than individual support.

The HRE USA 2025 Edmonds Summer Fellowship honors the legacy of Kirby Edmonds by offering young leaders hands-on experience in human rights education. This fellowship provides mentorship and learning opportunities to engage youth in creating human rights-friendly schools and communities. Supported by the Dorothy Cotton Institute, it aims to nurture future leaders committed to human rights advocacy. Eligible candidates must be 18 or older, reside in the U.S., and commit to 100 hours of work between June and August 2025.

The Alexandra Hallock Capacity Building Grant for Small Nonprofits, established in 2024, honors the legacy of Alexandra Hallock by supporting small nonprofits focused on human rights, women's empowerment, and LGBTQ+ causes. This grant offers a one-time $20,000 unrestricted funding along with pro-bono capacity building support. It aims to strengthen organizational infrastructure and governance, ensuring impactful community engagement. Eligible organizations must be 501(c)3 nonprofits with revenue under $400,000, operating for at least one year, and based in the U.S.

Alaska 501(c)(3) organizations working on civic engagement and voting rights may be eligible for Park Foundation’s Civic Participation grants supporting voter education, mobilization, and election integrity. Focused on democracy and social justice, the foundation backs state and national groups that protect voters’ rights and combat suppression through year-round, on-the-ground organizing.

Youth leaders ages 13–23 in Alaska and across the U.S. can apply for Riley's Way Foundation’s Call for Kindness Fellowship, awarding up to US $5,000 for youth-led social impact projects. Funding supports initiatives inspired by kindness in areas like social justice, human rights, environmental justice, LGBTQIA+ rights, and community services, plus a 12‑month leadership program.

Nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations or fiscally sponsored projects with national or broad reach working on empathy-building programs can access funding through Acton Family Giving in Alaska and across the U.S. This initiative supports work in social justice and human rights, storytelling, human-animal connection, and social-emotional development for organizations aligned with its Empathy Building priorities.

Alaska social justice and human rights doctoral researchers can access funding for U.S.-focused dissertation projects addressing inequality, work, race, immigration, or related social issues. Through the Russell Sage Foundation’s Dissertation Research Grants, enrolled U.S. doctoral students may receive up to US $15,000 for data collection, analysis, and writing, including projects on employment and BIPOC communities.

Early-career social science faculty researching economic mobility, inequality, and related human rights issues in the U.S. can apply for US $35,000 - US $50,000 in Pipeline Grants from the Russell Sage Foundation. Focused on strengthening social science methods and data, this program may benefit Alaska researchers examining social justice and structural barriers to opportunity.

Alaska schools, local governments, and 501(c)(3) nonprofits can receive US $500 - US $1,000 to host Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day events promoting activism, anti-racism, and anti-bullying. Community partners and Safe Routes to School programs may be eligible to fund student-centered activities, materials, and events that inspire youth leadership and human rights dialogue.

501(c)(3) organizations working on social justice and human rights in Alaska can seek funding to advance education and related initiatives. Baskin Family Foundation supports forward-thinking programs across the U.S., so Alaska-based human rights groups may be eligible if their work aligns with its education and social justice priorities.

Kauai residents pursuing full-time master’s or doctoral studies in social justice, public or human service, education, or health can apply for graduate scholarship support through the Inspired to Serve Scholarship Fund. Focused on these human rights–related fields, Hawai'i Community Foundation invites eligible students, including those who may later work in Alaska, to seek assistance with tuition costs.

Education unions and affiliates working on racial justice in Alaska can apply for the National Education Association Staff Organization’s CRSJ Racial Justice in Education Grant, awarding US $5,000 - US $75,000 for K–12 racial equity initiatives. Grants support awareness, capacity-building, leadership development for people of color, and organizational change to advance human rights and social justice in schools.

Education-focused unions and affiliates working to advance racial and social justice in Alaska schools can seek funding to build community partnerships and boost student achievement, especially for students of color. With a mission to strengthen advocacy, National Education Association provides support for initiatives, leadership-driven activism, and new union roles that deepen parent and community engagement around educational equity.

State Aspiring Educators organizations and campus chapters in Alaska can apply for National Education Association Staff Organization’s CREATE grants, offering up to US $2,000 for projects. Funding supports educator quality, community engagement, political action, and social justice initiatives that strengthen AE programs and partnerships, with submission deadlines three times per year.

Education unions and NEA affiliates working on student-centered bargaining and advocacy initiatives in Alaska can apply for grants up to US $50,000 to support organizing, contract campaigns, and related advocacy. National Education Association Staff Organization funding may benefit affiliates advancing social justice, human rights, and equitable K–12 learning conditions through collective action and community engagement.

Recent humanities or interpretive social science PhDs authorized to work in the U.S. can receive more than US $142,000 to work with social justice–focused nonprofits through the ACLS Leading Edge Fellowships. American Council of Learned Societies supports fellows in roles using advanced research, communication, and project management skills, which may benefit Alaska human rights organizations hosting placements.

Alaska 501(c)(3) public charities, government entities, and qualifying foundations working on social justice, human rights, or basic needs may be eligible for support to improve lives through education, housing, hunger relief, and equity-focused programs. Alaska human rights organizations within American Electric Power’s service territory or serving its customers can seek invitation-only funding from the American Electric Power Foundation.

Alaska human rights and legal advocacy nonprofits working on social justice, reentry, or juvenile justice can access funding through Indigo Oak Fund’s Equal Justice Under the Law program. This Colorado-based private foundation generally funds in Colorado and the Bay Area but occasionally considers nonprofits in other areas, supporting fairness in the justice system and related civic engagement and education efforts.

Emerging 501(c)(3) organizations and fiscally sponsored groups in Alaska focused on social justice or human rights can access capacity-building training and up to US $4,000 in funding. Mockingbird Incubator supports small U.S. nonprofits with budgets under $500,000 through an eight-week cohort program plus post-incubator grant and seed funding opportunities.

Bastian Foundation provides Alaska human rights and social justice nonprofits with grants of US $100 - US $15,000 for general operating support, projects, advocacy, and capacity building. 501(c)(3) organizations that explicitly affirm equality for all Americans, including the gay and lesbian community, may be eligible; funding also extends to broader U.S. initiatives.

The Baugh Foundation supports progressive, inclusive, nonprofit organizations that reflect the love of Christ by providing assistance to those in need, enriching the lives of children and youth, keeping faith communities informed and engaged, and guarding the wall of separation between church and state.We welcome applications from progressive, faith-based organizations. At this time, the vast majority of our funding goes to progressive Baptist organizations or initiatives, and organizations that work to guard the separation of church and state. We believe that a free church in a free state is dependent upon a functioning democracy.Funding Priorities: 

• Social justice and advocacy
• Progressive faith-based journalism
• Meeting basic human needs
• Progressive faith-based post-secondary education
• Inclusivity initiatives
• Arts and enrichment

The Amy Adina Schulman Memorial Fund

The Amy Adina Schulman Memorial Fund is a Princeton, New Jersey-based endowment fund providing grants to individuals, young adults who volunteer or intern for progressive social action projects or programs in an area of their interest and commitment. The Amy Adina Fund also sponsors a lecture each year on a relevant and timely topic related to its educational mission.

The Amy Adina Schulman Memorial Fund was started in 1987 one year after Amy Adina, 20, died suddenly while a student and activist at Rutgers University. It is a realization of her family and her communities’ desire to celebrate her life, to fulfill her dreams and her potential. Since its inception, almost 1,500 grants have been awarded for work in Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and the United States—nearly $1,000,000 in total. The Amy Adina Schulman Memorial Fund is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.

About Our Grants

Small grants (depending on length of service), are awarded to as many applicants as possible rather than giving larger amounts to fewer individuals. The number of awards has grown each year thanks to annual contributions as well as to gifts sent to the Fund to honor special occasions and life cycle events.

The Richard L and Freda K Flerlage Foundation

Our Mission

Working to empower underserved populations through small grants in support of literacy, healthcare, reduction of poverty, and the promotion of social and environmental justice.

We are a small family foundation, when possible we aim to support organizations with relatively small operating funds where our small grants will have their greatest possible impact.

Our average grant is $3,800.

Foundation of the Federal Bar Association

The Foundation of the Federal Bar Association provides the best way for practitioners to give back to the Federal legal community. Chartered by Congress in 1954, the Foundation serves people in communities across the United States through its generous grants, scholarships, and programming.

Our Mission: The Foundation’s mission is to:

• Promote and support legal research and education;
• Advance the science of jurisprudence;
• Facilitate the administration of justice;
• Foster improvements in the practice of Federal law

Foundation Grants

Foundation grants support community service projects and civics programs which comply with the Foundation’s mission to promote and support legal research and education; advance the science of jurisprudence; facilitate the administration of justice; and foster improvements in the practice of Federal law.

Civics Education Grant

The Civics Grant Program is designed to support projects and initiatives that promote a wider public understanding of democratic principles, the judicial system and the rule of law. Through targeted funding, the program empowers FBA chapters, sections, divisions, national standing committees (FBA entity), and other organizations to develop and support projects in their communities that foster public understanding of the rights and responsibilities of American citizenship, particularly among younger Americans.

Applicants may only receive one (1) Foundation grant per year.

Proteus Fund

Proteus Fund partners with foundations, individual donors, activists, and other allies to work strategically towards racial, gender, queer, and disability justice and an inclusive, fully-representative democracy. We curate an ecosystem of mutually reinforcing, aligned donor collaboratives and fiscally sponsored projects that deploy a creative array of strategies and tactics to further this vision.

RISE Together Fund: Small Grants

Call For Application

RISE Together Fund (RTF), an initiative of Proteus Fund, is announcing an open call for inquiries for our 2026 Small Grants Fund for U.S. public charity organizations or fiscally sponsored projects of such organizations, that support Black, African, Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim and South Asian (BAMEMSA) communities.

As part of RTF’s commitment to prioritizing the needs and sustainability of the fields we collectively support, RTF will provide organizations with general operating grants to allow for organizational flexibility when possible. 

About RTF's Small Grants Fund

BAMEMSA movements have a strong history of organizing and collaboration, and are well poised with the knowledge, learning and experience to build an inclusive, multiracial democratic future and respond to the current unconstitutional threats facing the country. Through this fund, RTF aims to resource community power building organizations that use a multiplicity of approaches to create change rooted in the strength and leadership of BAMEMSA movements.

RTF supports groups that build community power, strengthen movement bases, defend civil and human rights including freedom of protest, speech, religion, and association, end the criminalization and surveillance of our communities, and respond to the rise in xenophobia, Islamophobia, and hate. RTF values groups that are intersectional in their approach and have or are developing sustainable long-term strategies to support BAMEMSA communities and movements.

Priority Issue Areas

• Protecting and advancing the rights of immigrant and refugee BAMEMSA communities by responding to harmful policies and practices, and strengthening community-led advocacy at the local, state, or federal level.

• Mobilizing BAMEMSA communities for nonpartisan civic engagement and election protection by increasing nonpartisan voter participation, combating voter suppression, and building sustained civic infrastructure ahead of, during, and between elections.

• Advocating for U.S. policy changes that end violence in Gaza and the West Bank by elevating Palestinian voices, influencing public discourse, and engaging in advocacy that shifts U.S. political, diplomatic, or funding decisions.

• Challenging harmful national security frameworks and their impacts on BAMEMSA communities by documenting, exposing, and organizing against surveillance, Islamophobia, and policies rooted in the War on Terror, particularly in the context of 9/11’s 25-year legacy.

• Responding to emerging opportunities and threats affecting BAMESMA communities such as influencing policy developments, addressing civic issues in the U.S., or developing narratives to change public discourse. This includes work addressing weaponizing issues around bodily autonomy and LGBTQ+ identity to fracture movements and communities.

Priority Strategies

RTF values organizations that take an intersectional approach and are intentionally building long-term community power. We prioritize support for groups that strengthen movement ecosystems, deepen their base, and defend the rights of BAMEMSA communities through the following strategies:

• Convening, Collaboration, and Movement Coordination: Bringing together organizations, leaders, and coalitions to align shared goals, coordinate strategies to advance shared visions, and reduce fragmentation across the field. This includes facilitating strategic convenings, developing platforms for collaboration, building cross-issue or cross-regional partnerships, developing shared agendas or issue campaigns, and strengthening trust and alignment among movement actors.
• Community Power-Building, Base Building, Civic Engagement, and Organizing: Expanding and activating a grassroots base within BAMEMSA communities to drive collective action and policy change. This includes community leadership development, public education campaigns, community organizing, nonpartisan voter engagement and election protection, and ongoing nonpartisan civic participation efforts that build sustained community power.
• Legal and Policy Advocacy Infrastructure: Advancing legal strategies and policy advocacy that expand and protect the rights of BAMEMSA communities. This includes impact litigation, legal advocacy, know-your-rights efforts, policy development, and advocacy at a local, state, or federal level.
• Communications and Narrative Strategy: Shaping public discourse and advancing narratives that reflect the experiences, dignity, and demands of BAMEMSA communities. This includes developing messaging strategies, producing and amplifying media, countering harmful or divisive narratives (including those targeting immigrants, religious minorities, LGBTQ+ communities, and reproductive rights), and increasing the voice share of BAMEMSA community members.
• Bolstering Movement Infrastructure: Strengthening the internal capacity and long-term sustainability of organizations and the broader movement ecosystem. This includes organizations supporting leadership development and pipelines, data and technology infrastructure, security and safety, and other core functions that enable groups to operate effectively and respond to evolving challenges.

Limited funding may be available for requests above $25,000.

Seattle Foundation

Seattle Foundation is an agent of change, igniting powerful, rewarding philanthropy to make Greater Seattle a stronger, more vibrant community for all.

At Seattle Foundation, we believe that community is more than a place. It’s the shared understanding that our joy and well-being are tied to one another. Every day we work with nonprofits, philanthropists, and partners like you to strengthen community by igniting powerful philanthropy and advancing long-term solutions. Because it takes all of us to create a joyful region where every person can thrive.

Theresa Earenfight Scholarship

The purpose of the Theresa Earenfight Scholarship is to support undergrad or graduate students who are passionate about the intersection of social justice and animal welfare within a historical context. Applicants should be studying history, in particular how history intersects with animal activism, animal rights, animal liberation, and other related topics. Preference will be given to students with strong financial need, students of color and those from historically marginalized communities, and/or students who may face barriers to receiving other scholarships. This is a $10,000 annual scholarship renewable through the completion of the student’s degree, assuming the student continues to meet the eligibility criteria. The scholarship may be applied to tuition and fees, or other academic expenses payable to the college or university.