A woman with headscarf and black jacket in a common space at Roxbury Community College

Now is the time to move equity.

Now is the time to move Boston.

Meeting the moment:

TBF announces expedited $2 million special round of Safety Net Grants

Photo of Lee Pelton behind the TBF lectern

To meet this critical moment, the Boston Foundation is launching an expanded and expedited round of Safety Net Grants, and calling on our Donor Advised Fund holders and all others who are eager to leverage the impact of their giving to join us in support of our efforts. 

Applications open Tuesday, February 18.

At a time when the basic rights and well-being of hundreds of thousands of our neighbors are under assault, and each day brings renewed questions about the ability of our institutions to meet their commitments, we cannot afford to sit idly by.”

-Lee Pelton, President and CEO

Powering a Culture of Philanthropy

TBF's 2024 Annual Report is built around the remarkable and moving stories about our community of donors and the inventive and very personal ways in which they partner with the nonprofit organizations and causes they support. To complement that work, we're also pleased to highlight a new video series that captures our partnerships with nonprofit leaders and organizations across our Pathways to Equity, and the collaborative work at the heart of creating a stronger, more equitable Boston.

tBF Annual Report Cover with dropshadow

Text: TBF arrow icon. Safety Net Grants provide $1 million to 20 organizations. Photo: an older Latina woman poses for a photo in a kitchen with a serious expression.

Twenty organizations to share $1 million in Safety Net Grants

The two-year, $50,000 grants provide general operating support to organizations meeting critical needs in their communities. The grantee partners were recognized alongside the announcement of an expanded and expedited special round of the Safety Net Grants program for Spring 2025.

Read the announcement
Transit Supportive Development image

Transit-Supportive Density in Greater Boston

Written in partnership with TransitMatters, this new report explores the supportive relationship between housing density and effective transit, and highlights some of Greater Boston's best opportunities to craft a stronger ecosystem.

Read the Report
hand drawn banners showing elements from Native Wealth report

'To Live and Thrive' in Massachusetts: Native American Perspectives on Wealth

Crafted by UMass Boston's Institute for New England Native American Studies in partnership with Boston Indicators, this first of its kind report uses data and focus group conversations to show the wealth gap's impact on the region's Native American communities.

Read more about the report
The B COOL project team photo over an example of a chart from their report

TBF joins City of Boston, A Better City and BU School of Public Health in heat mapping pilot

The B-COOL initiative tracked summer temperatures at fifteen Boston sites to understand and improve how the city handles excessive heat situations and to improve climate resiliency for residents.

Click to read about the project

Current Grant Opportunities

Bruce J Anderson Foundation image
Vitas mori. Albus orexiss ducunt ad gabalium. Ubi est altus nomen? Liberi de castus bubo, pugna species! Persuadere diligenter ducunt ad bi-color barcas.

Bruce J. Anderson Foundation 2025 Grants Cycle

The Bruce J. Anderson Foundation provides grants for programs, direct services and new initiatives in the fields of mental health (treatment, research and suicide prevention, with a particular interest in mental health services supporting LGBTQIA young people), environmental protection, historic and archival preservation, and the arts. Grants are made for organizations and activities focused on two geographical areas: Cape Ann and Nashoba Valley.

Click here to learn more about the Anderson Foundation and how to apply
Two women stand and pose for a photo at an Equality Fund event
Vitas mori. Albus orexiss ducunt ad gabalium. Ubi est altus nomen? Liberi de castus bubo, pugna species! Persuadere diligenter ducunt ad bi-color barcas.

The Equality Fund FY25 Grantmaking Cycle

The Equality Fund is accepting applications for its FY25 Grantmaking Cycle! Taking a proactive intersectional lens, the Equality Fund’s grantmaking approach works across the many diverse spaces that make up the LGBTQ+ community to support the most urgent community needs. Learn more about eligibility criteria, funding considerations, and how to apply at the link below.

Click here for eligibility and application details

Our Work

We believe that closing the gap on the region’s greatest disparities opens pathways to opportunity, prosperity and equitable outcomes. This complex, challenging and critical goal requires tackling the individual-, systems- and root-level causes of inequity. Here's where we are digging in.

What We Do
Pathways Venn Diagram - Child Well Being, Economic Opportunity, Community Wealth, Community Leadership
The Resource Organizing Project’s staff at the 2024 summer Grassroots Celebration (from left): Ashley Blount, Dave Jenkins, Liza Behrendt and Katherine Asuncion.

You by our side. Equity at the center.

The systemic and structural inequities at the core of our region’s disparities cannot be dismantled without extraordinary perseverance and collaboration among visionary and courageous partners, donors and leaders. Together we can improve lives and strengthen communities.

Our Work with Donors

Upcoming Events

Visit our Events page for even more upcoming opportunities.

 

Greater Boston Housing Report Card 2024 cover

Fueling change through civic leadership

Working beyond grantmaking, we collect data, commission research and share knowledge to inform public policy and catalyze conversations on issues with the greatest impact on the people of Greater Boston. 

We are a hub of partnerships and networks that work with and answer to the communities we serve. We collect data, commission research, share knowledge, develop programs, and fuel new ideas.