Launching SoGive Grants

Exciting news from the SoGive (virtual) office! 

Currently SoGive issues grants to several charitable organisations. Most of the funding comes from a small number of major donors. In order to seek out the highest impact choices, it is valuable for SoGive to also seek out giving opportunities which have a high risk/high reward profile. 

In order to do this, we are thrilled to announce the pilot launch of SoGive Grants which will allow individuals and organisations working on high-impact projects to apply for funding.

The total amount that we propose distributing via this mechanism will be dependent on the number and quality of applications we receive. Conceivably this could be anywhere from £20k to £500k. This range is large reflecting the fact that this is a pilot and there is some uncertainty about the nature of the applications we will receive.

Who is eligible?

We encourage applications from a broad range of projects that would appear high-impact as viewed through an Effective Altruism lens. We are particularly interested in work that focuses on the following:

• Biosecurity/pandemic risk, especially those applications which cover “alternative” (i.e. not technical) ways of reducing pandemic risk; technical biosecurity (e.g. funding biologists to work on biosecurity) is also covered by other funders (e.g. the Open Philanthropy Biosecurity Scholarships)

• Climate change, especially in ways that involve keeping fossil fuels in the ground

• Research or policy work that enables the world to improve, preferably dramatically; research and policy work which appears effective through a longtermist lens is more likely to be viewed positively, although we may also consider neartermist work in this vein if there is a strong reason to believe that the work is neglected and high impact.

We do not encourage applications for AI safety research, as we believe there are several other funders in this space. 

Applications are open to organisations or to individuals, although please note that any individuals applying would need to set up a non-profit entity (e.g. a registered charity or social enterprise) in order to receive the funds; setting up a company limited by guarantee is relatively quick and straightforward in the UK - we haven't checked this for other jurisdictions. Organisations applying should be a non-profit entity, such as a registered charity (e.g. 501(c)(3) in the US), if the entity is not a registered charity, we are more likely to require references, and if the application comes from an individual who will create a bespoke legal entity, then we are highly likely to seek references.

You can be based anywhere worldwide in order to apply for a grant. Russia may be an exception to this; we have not investigated whether the Ukraine conflict would constitute a barrier to us providing grants to Russian organisations, and we plan to investigate this if we receive any interest in applying from any Russian applicants. If you are unsure whether you are eligible for a grant, please simply apply. 

If you have queries of a purely logistical nature, you may address those queries to isobel@sogive.org, however as much as possible we would encourage you to simply submit an application, and raise your queries as part of that process; as our application form is very similar to the EA Funds application form, applicants who have applied to EA Funds may not need material extra work to apply to SoGive Grants.

Grant applications will be shared and reviewed within the SoGive team, and may also be discussed with our donors if we want to make a positive recommendation. We may also share grant applications with trusted informal advisors in the relevant field to get their advice, if you would prefer us not to share your application (or parts of your application) further then please make this clear on your application.  

Note that this is a pilot, and the way we operate in the future may differ, assuming that this process is repeated.

Application Process

The application form can be found here.

The deadline for applications is May 22nd 2022 23:59 UTC.

If your proposal has potential then this process may involve up to 2 further meetings (likely via video call) sometime in June/July.

To allow time for this and for thorough vetting, final recommendations will be confirmed in early August, with payments made shortly afterwards.

Applicants requiring a quicker response are encouraged to apply to other sources of funding.

If you have any further questions which aren’t addressed in this document or our FAQs please contact isobel@sogive.org 

FAQs

How much funding can I apply for?

We are envisaging providing funding for projects in the range of £10,000-£150,000, but of course we can be flexible if we think your project is a really great fit.

I’ve already applied for funding elsewhere, should I still apply? 

If your project meets our criteria, then please still apply. There is a section in the application form which discusses other sources of funding, we appreciate your transparency on these matters.

Will you post a public report of those who receive grants?

Yes, we plan to provide a public report of successful grants. This is an initial pilot; if there are reasons why this turns out to be impractical, we may adjust our plans. If you have particular reasons why you believe the report should not be in the public domain, you will be able to let us know as part of the application process.

We’re an established organisation. Are we eligible to apply?

While we envisage applications from relatively early-stage organisations, we will also accept applications from more established organisations.

We’re a for-profit organisation, are we eligible to apply?

Unfortunately at this time we are unable to support grants to for-profit organisations.

Will I get feedback on my application?

All applicants will be notified of the eventual decision regarding their application. We expect to provide more detailed feedback to some, but not all of the applications.