Mission
Funders for Reproductive Equity is a community of grant makers who address issues of sexual and reproductive health, rights and justice in the United States and around the world. We aim to ensure that all people have the rights and resources to make and act on decisions about their sexual and reproductive health. To that end, we seek to improve communication, foster collaboration, increase resources, and enhance the effectiveness of funders in this field.
Guiding Principles
No single foundation or funder can create all the change we seek in relation to sexual and reproductive health, rights and justice. We recognize that member foundations have different missions and imperatives, and both respect such differences and seek common cause. Our network seeks to promote effective collaboration and coordination and we encourage constructive debate. We strive to create a culture imbued with respect, candor, openness, and trust in which all members are valued, seen, and heard. Equity, justice, and diversity are priorities in our work.
Current Programming
For more than twenty years, Funders for Reproductive Equity (FRE), formerly Funders Network on Population, Reproductive Health and Rights, has played an unparalleled role in fostering communication, collaboration, and connections among funders in the reproductive health, rights, and justice sector.
Through our groundbreaking initiatives, resources, meetings and events, FRE consistently offers our more than 40 foundation members expert analysis on the most pressing issues in the field, introduces our members to emerging areas of interest and thinking about grant making and philanthropy, encourages collaborations among members and produces the most comprehensive source of data about foundation giving in the field.
FRE's aim it is to maximize philanthropic support for reproductive health, rights, and justice work, both domestically in the United States and around the world. FRE helps funders understand the terrain so that they can make the best, most strategic grantmaking decisions in service of our mission: that all people have access to the information and services they need to protect and promote their reproductive health and rights.
FRE taps into the energy, enthusiasm, and commitment of our members and uses its resources to deepen and enrich members’ knowledge of the trends and thinking in the field, promote collaboration in strategizing and funding efforts, and enhance the overall effectiveness of grantmaking in the reproductive health, rights, and justice arena.
Initiatives include the following:
- A joint funding initiative that supported the creation of the first Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice Fellowship at the Rockwood Leadership Institute. The fellowship has built a foundation for a stronger, more collaborative reproductive health, rights and justice movement. See more at the Rockwood Leadership RHRJ website.
- Case studies of two state-level campaigns, with a focus on relationships of state-based advocates with those from national-level organizations. Additionally, the publication of “Authentic & Equitable Partnerships: A Framework for Building Movements,” which provides recommendations for advocates and funders.
- The establishment of the Catalyst Fund, operated by the Groundswell Fund, which supports organizations that use grassroots organizing to advance reproductive justice policy and systems change. It centers efforts led by women of color while also supporting work led by low-income white women and transgender people, who together make the up the constituency who experiences the greatest reproductive health disparities and the largest barriers to reproductive freedom in the United States.
To learn more about how to join the FRE network, please see the FRE Membership page
History
Coming soon