The first step in applying to the Confluence Fund is a short (1-3 pgs) letter of inquiry (LOI). LOI’s should be submitted by email and sent , with attachments in MS Office (Word, Excel, etc.) and/or Adobe PDF. A valid email address is necessary to insure a response to your LOI. Please send your LOI by Sept 1, 2010 to be considered for the upcoming grant cycle. We try to acknowledge the receipt of all correspondence, but please be aware that it occasionally may be several weeks before we are able to respond to your LOI.

LOI’s are first reviewed to see if they match our program priorities. Those that do not will be immediately declined. LOI’s that are a match for our guidelines are then reviewed to determine the following:

• The priority of the proposed activity within the Confluence Fund's goals.
• The impact of the potential results of the activities.
• The availability of funds in our budget.

LOI’s should include the following:

• A brief history of your organization, with its mission and goals.
• A brief summary of the activity or project for which you are requesting support, including an outline of your objectives, and anticipated outcomes and implications.
• The total amount of funding needed, the amount requested from the Confluence Fund, and information about other sources of support, both assured and requested.

When a letter of inquiry most closely reflects the Confluence Fund's program priorities, we will request a full proposal. Since the Confluence Fund requests more proposals than it can fund, you should not interpret such a request as an indication of likely support. We do not have a formal grant application; however, grant proposals should include the information requested in our grant proposal outline.

Click here to view our Grant Proposal Outline

Often we will request additional information from applicants. We might also consult with persons knowledgeable about your proposal and we welcome your suggestions as to who might be qualified to assist us in our review. More importantly, we will often try to meet with applicants at their project site prior to making a decision on a proposal. Personal contacts with our grantees are a priority of our grantmaking programs.

Decisions on inviting full proposals for review at board meetings are made in the Spring and Fall.  The Confluence Fund’s Board of Directors typically meet during these times to make final decisions on invited proposals.  

Grants are only made to organizations that have been granted tax-exempt status under Section 501 (c)(3) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code, or equivalent government-recognized nonprofit status for foreign grantees. The Confluence Fund does not consider any type of grant request from individuals. There will be no response to requests from individuals. Be aware that the entire process from first contact to award of a grant may take up to six months or more.