Funding Opportunity:
Funding Opportunity: Healthy Living Advocacy Rapid Response

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The Healthy Living Advocacy Rapid Response grant opportunity aims to fund short-term initiatives (three to nine months in length) and are generally limited to requests of up to $75,000. Applicants may submit proposals for work on one or more of the policy priorities listed below as it relates to healthy living. 

Grant Deadline: Not accepting applications. This work is in progress.

Preference will be given to initiatives that focus on one of the following policy priorities:

  • Increasing children’s access to and consumption of affordable healthy foods and/or reducing access to or consumption of unhealthy foods and beverages.
  • Improving community facilities, transportation, roads, trails, sidewalks, parks and open spaces to support active living among children.

The Foundation defines health broadly and is also interested in initiatives that focus on one or more of the following policy priorities:

  • Increasing economic security
  • Increasing affordable housing
  • Increasing quality preK-12 educational opportunities and quality child care
  • Increasing community safety
  • Increasing civic engagement

Criteria:

Healthy Living Advocacy Rapid Response grants should fit into one of these two categories:

  • Promote a public policy change at the state and/or local level.
  • Protect or improve implementation of a current policy or practices related to one of the policy priorities listed above.

Regardless of categories, Rapid Response grants should be:

  • Strategic: The proposed activities should align with a long-term, thoughtful and disciplined effort to promote or protect policies and practices related to one of the policy priorities listed above.
  • Time Urgent: Quick action must be taken in order to be effective. Applicants must demonstrate a critical and favorable window of opportunity to act that is not likely to be present in the future.
  • Systemic Change: Rather than focusing on interventions that address individual behavior or provide direct services, the planned action should promote or protect one of the policy priorities listed above.
  • Capacity: The group or organization has the skills and expertise to effectively carry out the proposed action effectively. Applicants must demonstrate they have the vision, leadership and track record to do the work.
  • Supported: The effort has the buy-in and support of others, including the people most impacted by the policy and other organizations involved in promoting or protecting one of the policy priorities listed above.

Eligible Activities:

The Foundation will provide funding to support organizations in expressing opinions, informing people, and mobilizing constituents around the policy priorities identified above using a wide variety of advocacy activities, including:

  • Coalition Building and Management
  • Grassroots Organizing
  • Influencer Education
  • Litigation
  • Media Relations and Media Advocacy
  • Policy and Legal Analysis
  • Policymaker Education
  • Public Education
  • Public Opinion Research / Polling
  • Regulatory Feedback

Ineligible Activities:

Funding may not be used for the following:

  • Bridge funding (to fill a funding gap)
  • Long-term initiatives
  • Previously planned Initiatives
  • Staff salaries
  • Supporting or opposing candidates for elected office or partisan political activities

*Deadline:

There is no application deadline or formal grant cycle for Rapid Response Grants. Rapid Response grants are considered on a rolling basis.

All applicants will undergo due diligence with a program officer assigned to the application. Funding decisions will generally be made within 30 days of a proposal being submitted.

We often partner with third-party evaluators, contractors and other organizations over the course of our work with applicants and grantees. Your application and its attachments may be shared with these individuals or entities during the review process and grant cycle. All third-party organizations partnering with the Foundation have signed a confidentiality agreement and will not use or share the information for purposes outside of the scope of work specific to the grant application or grant award. If you have any concerns or would like additional information, please email [email protected] or call our senior director of Grantmaking Operations at 303-953-3600.

Resources

The Colorado Health Foundation cannot earmark funds for lobbying or voter registration activities.

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