Our Founding Vision
The Solidago Foundation was founded in 1996 to fund innovative and effective grassroots organizing across the social, racial and environmental justice movements. Since the beginning, we have seen our role as that of an ally, supporting communities most affected by inequities to build power and create deep, systemic change.
A Quarter Century of Giving
In its lifetime, Solidago has awarded more than 3,600 grants, totaling millions of dollars, to nearly a thousand organizations and projects. We have funded fights for clean air in Virginia coal country, fair wages for immigrant janitors in Minnesota, and criminal justice system reform in Ohio. Leading up to the 2020 election, our grants supported Georgia’s stellar community organizers who turned out record numbers of New American Majority voters at the polls.
Rebuilding Democracy
The 2020 election triggered escalating assaults on our democratic systems, from false claims of a stolen vote to the January 6th attack on the Capitol to numerous restrictive voting laws. Solidago responded strategically, refining our grantmaking to focus on civic engagement, voting rights, and democracy reform. Over the last few years, we have funded robust networks of grassroots civic organizers in key states, along with select national groups that support and amplify their work.
Our Legacy
Founded with the intention of distributing its assets over approximately 25 years, Solidago—along with our 501(c)4 counterpart, See Forward Fund—is now in its final spend down period. In this final year, we will continue to put our resources behind organizations working to create a more just and durable democracy. We will also begin to document our history and legacy, and offer our reflections on more than a quarter century of progressive philanthropy.