Racial Equity to Accelerate Change

Borealis Philanthropy has launched the 2025 grant cycle of the Racial Equity to Accelerate Change (REACH) Fund, which aims to support practitioner-led organizing efforts that build power, foster solidarity, and accelerate social change across movements. Borealis Philanthropy is a social justice philanthropic intermediary established in 2015. It serves grassroots movements across the United States by resourcing those working towards transformative change in areas such as Black-led movements, queer and trans liberation, disability justice, and beyond. The organization partners through a collaborative fund model and supports both individuals and organizations who are embedded in communities and movements working to dismantle systemic oppression. The REACH Fund is designed to strengthen the interconnected work of capacity builders, strategists, organizers, healers, storytellers, and others engaged in racial equity work. It prioritizes the efforts of practitioner-organizers who play hybrid roles and serve as essential connective tissue between movements. These individuals often bridge multiple areas such as legal advocacy, cultural work, mutual aid, somatic practice, and community organizing. The 2025 RFP focuses on applicants whose work reflects cross-movement solidarity, deep strategic thought, and organizing capacity that cultivates long-term, transformative outcomes. Applicants can request funding amounts between $30,000 and $150,000, to be awarded over a two-year period. This flexibility allows early-stage projects and established efforts to apply based on their needs. The total funding pool available in this cycle is approximately $1 million. Proposals are evaluated based on alignment with REACH’s emphasis on cross-ecosystem organizing and long-term movement-building strategies. Borealis Philanthropy stresses that successful applications will reflect a strong commitment to co-creation, sustainability, and dismantling systems of oppression including white supremacy, anti-Blackness, ableism, and transphobia. Eligibility extends to a wide range of entities, including 501(c)(3) organizations, fiscally sponsored projects, cooperatives, LLCs, and other legally incorporated U.S.-based organizations or those based in U.S. territories. Borealis adheres to expenditure responsibility for non-501(c)(3) entities, and the supported work must serve a charitable purpose. However, direct service organizations and research projects are only eligible if they also incorporate organizing, advocacy, or policy work. Universities, hospitals, government agencies, and non-U.S.-based organizations are not eligible. The application process begins with a short eligibility quiz hosted on the Borealis Philanthropy Form Assembly platform. Upon passing the quiz, applicants are directed to complete the full application form. The funder encourages applicants to prepare their responses offline to avoid technical issues. A live information session was held on June 18, 2025, and its recording will be shared with all registrants. The application deadline is July 24, 2025, at 11 AM PST / 2 PM EST. Questions about the RFP should be directed to reach@borealisphilanthropy.org, and technical inquiries can be sent to grants@borealisphilanthropy.org. The REACH Fund seeks to invest in strategies that reshape how movement infrastructure is built and supported. It is especially focused on supporting applicants who contribute to broader systemic shifts and long-term resilience in the face of injustice. Through this funding cycle, Borealis Philanthropy continues its commitment to lifting up voices and strategies from within communities most impacted by systemic inequality.

Borealis recommends preparing all application responses offline in advance to avoid technical issues or timeouts.