Now Accepting LOIs

Through the lens of artists and educators

Educators and the arts and cultural community play a significant role in lifting up issues. We will look to these sectors to help tell the stories of our community members adversely impacted by our current food system, inspiring individuals to get involved and be part of necessary change. This program seeks to bring together artists, educators, community members, and food system stakeholders for single events or short-term projects focused on raising awareness for the need of a just and sustainable food system.

We encourage creative, collaborative proposals that use the arts and/or educational tools to uplift opportunities or inform the public on food system challenges. These projects should be designed to widen community participation, open to the public, promote collaboration and dialogue, and to engage and empower the community at large. Please note, this program supports only one-time events or short-term projects, not new or ongoing programming.

Convenings and Connections

WNY Foundation believes in the power of convening and its potential to lead to more informed decision-making processes, effective coalition building and collaboration, and stronger results for solution-based inquiry. Applicants may submit proposals for projects that promote knowledge sharing and collaboration among food system actors OR the facilitation and exchange of learnings, insights, and expertise related to the food system that serves to inform the public-at-large. Learning agendas should be focused on sharing practical knowledge, raising awareness, and inspiring action to create a more sustainable, resilient, and equitable food system.

Applicants are encouraged to employ creative and interactive approaches that might include TedX style conferences, panel discussions, interviews with persons with lived experience who directly impacted by food system disparities, and live Q&A sessions to make the learning agendas more informative, dynamic, and participatory.

Eligibility Criteria

This grant program is open to all organizations interested in submitting a project. If an organization is not a 501(c)(3), they must have a fiscal sponsor or use a 501(c)(3) as a pass-through.