While the field is prone to obsession with established models, what is tried, what is proven, safe, the Barra Foundation is willing to gamble, to experiment, to innovate. Its essence is the Catalyst Fund, an occasional grant program that supports early concepts with transformative power, particularly systems change for underattended to people of Greater Philadelphia.

For social entrepreneurs and nonprofits that want not only support, but license to test, iterate, and test the limits, the Catalyst Fund presents a unique opportunity. Here, this blog unravels what the fund is, who is eligible, how to apply, and advice for preparing a strong application.

What Is the Catalyst Fund?

The Catalyst Fund is the main grantmaking tool for Barra, supporting systems change in Greater Philadelphia. It invests in early capital to nonprofits and initiatives that want to pilot new approaches, provoke assumptions, and bring about system change. Instead of investing in incremental change, Barra aims to invest in ideas that can change a field, a region, or a system.

Areas of Emphasis and Philosophy

Though the Catalyst Fund is the prime program for Barra, the foundation also sponsors “Special Grants” collaboratively with other funders for emergency or collaborative projects. But for it, the prime attraction is still the Catalyst.

Barra frames the business around four main areas of interest:

  • Arts & Culture
  • Education
  • Nutrition
  • Human Services

Projects can blur lines among these areas. The point is that they operate with underserved communities and introduce new models to old problems.

Ideal Proposals

  • Solve a current issue or opportunity
  • Reveal how affected communities direct the solution
  • Introducing an extrapolation outside normal practice
  • Focus on learning, iteration, and change
  • Sit within or affect the Greater Philadelphia area (the five Pennsylvania counties of Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia)

Who Is Qualified to Apply?

Here is what is required to be known regarding eligibility and extent to potentially receive funding for systems change in Greater Philadelphia:

  • Qualified organizations are 501(c)(3) not-profit organizations, or those utilizing a fiscal sponsor (if formally set up).
  • Projects should be novel or startup (less than three years old), but the sponsor organization can be older.
  • The organization should mostly serve under-resourced persons and societies, with the exception of the arts & cultures, where this criterion is less stringent.
  • The project should be in or benefit the people living in the Greater Philadelphia area (the five counties).
  • Barra is not open to spending projects with an AI theme at this time, nor proposals for capital campaigns, environmental/religious politics, stand-alone exhibitions or catalogs, or publication only efforts.
  • Applicants must not ask for unlimited endowment growth; capital improvements are permissible only if central to innovation.

Read the full article about the Barra Foundation's Catalyst Fund at Fluxx.