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Strengthening the Impact Ecosystem
Building Social Economic Resilience in Israel
A Matching Grant Initiative
The Edmond de Rothschild Foundation, Israel, in partnership with Jewish Funders Network, has created a $1 million matching grant to strengthen the ecosystem of impact entrepreneurship in Israel and generate greater ongoing philanthropic commitment to the field.
In light of the tragic ripple effect of the global Covid-19 pandemic, the Edmond de Rothschild Foundation has re-committed itself to build and strengthen Israel’s impact ecosystem as a pillar of sustainable social resilience.
The pandemic has offered us an opportunity to reflect on the structures we have in place and to reimagine a future that is more resilient and nimble. The impact entrepreneurship field is poised to advance this thinking and work. As we transition from the crisis phase of the pandemic and into the planning and preparing phase, there is no better time than now to encourage and support this burgeoning field.
Impact entrepreneurship is an intentional approach to addressing unmet social and environmental needs, alongside a financially sustainable business model.
Impact innovation combines a measurable social/environmental return on investment together with a financial return on investment.
The growing impact innovation ecosystem provides capital, products, tools and methods to address the world’s most pressing challenges in sectors such as sustainable agriculture and renewable energy, as well as affordable and accessible basic services, including housing, healthcare, education, etc., all in alignment with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The main goals of the Matching Grant are
To strengthen the ecosystem of impact entrepreneurship in Israel by funding organizations and projects that develop the infrastructure of this field and of organizations working to create new tools and models for social/environmental impact.
In addition, we aim to encourage the creation of new, innovative and sustainable economic models to help alleviate social/environmental problems, while energizing and strengthening organizations and academic institutions working in the field of impact innovation.
For the purpose of this grant, all applications must be submitted and executed through Israeli NGOs with the 46(A) and “Nihul Takin”.
Projects must enhance or expand the “ecosystem” infrastructure – this applies to both for-profit, not-for-profit initiatives as well as collaborations between the two.
Impact innovation for the purpose of this grant is defined according to three criteria: 1) Intentionality – endeavoring to create a distinct social/environmental impact while generating a financial profit. 2) Accurate measurement of the social/environmental impact and 3) Measurement of new financial profit.
Please note that this grant is an impact philanthropic grant, not an investment.
Applicants must meet our eligibility requirements to participate in this matching grant. Read more about eligibility requirements and please make sure to read section What You Need to Know before applying.
The application deadline is December 1, 2020
For more information, please contact:
Reut Stoller, Director of Programs, Jewish Funders Network, Israel
Email: reut@jfunders.org
Goals of the Matching Grants Program:
Impact innovation for the purpose of this grants program is defined according to three criteria: 1) Intentionality – endeavoring to create a distinct social/environmental impact while generating a financial profit; 2) Accurate measurement of the social/environmental impact, and 3) Measurement of new financial profit.
The growth of the impact field encourages the flow of new economic capital and aids in the development of products, tools and methods for addressing pressing global challenges through a variety of solutions. These global challenges include sustainable agriculture and renewable energy to accessible basic services at fair prices such as housing, healthcare, education etc., all in alignment with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The infrastructure of impact entrepreneurship, or the environment in which this operates, includes (but is not limited to) social impact bond creation, social business investment platforms, pilot funding schemes for entrepreneurs, data base and knowledge base development, impact startup hubs/incubators/ accelerators, academic and research institutions, etc.
One of the main goals of this matching grant program is to foster impact entrepreneurship through collaboration higher education and academic institution. For the purpose this matching grant program, higher education collaborations can include affiliation to an academic institution recognized by Council for Higher Education in Israel; academic research; and programs targeting students, recent graduates, academic staff, alumni organizations and academic committees.
Eligibility Guidelines
The matching grants program will match gifts from eligible donors to organizations and projects that foster the goals of the program. By doing so, it will provide a needed injection of capital into the impact innovation field and develop funding capacity for the long term.
Requests for matching funds must be made through an online application and must meet the following eligibility requirements.
Please note that this initiative is an impact philanthropic grant, not an investment.
Organizations should have proven ability to implement proposed programs.
Submission of an eligible application does not guarantee receipt of matching funds.
All eligible gifts will be subject to a review process by a committee made up of Foundation representatives and JFN staff. The determination of the committee shall be final, binding, and conclusive as to all questions and decisions of eligibility and gifts.
Grant Application
The application deadline is December 1, 2020
Please note that information entered into the online application cannot be saved, but must all be completed at one time.
For your convenience, please find attached PDF version.
What do you need to know before applying?
Please note that this initiative provides an impact philanthropic grant, not an investment.
A $1,000,000 funding pool will be available to match first-time or meaningful increase of previous gifts in this field to organizations and projects that create and foster new tools and models for social/environmental impact.
The minimum grant awarded under the matching grants program is $25,000, and $150,000 is the maximum amount that any one organization may receive from this program.
Qualifying gifts ranging from $25,000 to $150,000 will be considered for a 1:1 match on new gifts and a 1:1 match only of the portion of a repeat gift that represents an increase, with flexibility to fund less than 100% of requested funds.
The maximum match for a single gift is $150,000; individual gifts greater than $150,000 are eligible to receive a maximum of $150,000 in matching funds.
For example – If a current donor who has supported the organization at the $100,000 level now increases by 50%, and is now donating $150,000, the grant will match the $50,000 increase at a rate of 1:1, bringing the total funds received by the organization to $200,000.
NOTE: In order to account for fluctuations in the dollar-shekel exchange rate, the specific amount to be matched will be set by the rate immediately prior to allocation.
For Organizations and Projects
Eligible organizations:
Yes. Learn more about the desirability criteria by clicking here.
Yes. An organization or project may be eligible to receive multiple matches of gifts from separate individual donors, up to $150,000 (the minimum amount of each individual gift must be $25,000). $150,000 is the maximum amount that any one organization may receive in matching gifts from this program.
Applications may be submitted through the online application form only and are due by December 1, 2020.
Applications can be for projects that commenced no earlier than July 1, 2020 and must be completed by December 31, 2021. If extenuating circumstances prevent you from filling out the application form online, please contact reut@jfunders.org
Please note that donors matching the gifts must be JFN members or must submit JFN membership forms by December 1, 2020.
If extenuating circumstances prevent you from filling out the membership form online, please contact sharon@jfunders.org
The organization will be notified of matching grants awards on January 1, 2021.
For Donors Who Would Like Their Gifts Matched
JFN encourages donors to work with their selected organizations and projects to provide the specific application information requested.
You are eligible to apply to be a Matching Grant donor if you meet ANY of the criteria* below:
You are seeking to match your first philanthropic gift to the field of impact entrepreneurship in Israel AND this is a gift of $25,000 or NIS 100,000 or more;
OR
You have made a recent gift (since 2018) to the applying NGO, and you are currently meaningfully increasing your largest previous gift, AND your new gift is $25,000 or NIS 100,000 or more.
AND
You are a member of Jewish Funders Network or agree to become a JFN member.
*Note: In order to be approved as a donor for the matching grant JFN staff will reach out to schedule a conversation with the donor to confirm eligibility for this program and provide information about JFN membership and services offered. All conversations between JFN to the additional donor need to be complete by December 31, 2020.
For more information and If extenuating circumstances prevent you from filling out the membership form online, please contact Sharon Dwek, JFN Israel’s Membership Director at sharon@jfunders.org
Matching funds are available for gifts that have been committed by donors no earlier than July 1, 2020. Gifts must be paid by donors and received by the organizations no later than June 1, 2021.
Eligible gifts must be cash (checks or wire transfers). Illiquid stocks, annuities, Israel Bonds, or other slowly maturing instruments are not allowed.
NOTE: We cannot match gifts that are made in the form of tangible goods such as land, computer equipment or any other items given in place of cash.
Having a grant matched is a benefit of membership in the Jewish Funders Network. Matching Grant donors must agree to become members of the Jewish Funders Network if the grant application is approved.
Please read here more information about JFN benefits and resources.
Please note that JFN membership does not guarantee the receipt of matching funds.
If you are eligible to be a matching grants program donor, please complete the JFN membership form by December 1, 2020. You will need to provide specific information about your funding history. JFN encourages donors and organizations to work together to prepare this information.
*Note: In order to be approved as a donor for the matching grant JFN staff will reach out to schedule a conversation with the donor to confirm eligibility for this program and provide information about JFN membership and services offered. All conversations between JFN to the additional donor need to be complete by December 31, 2020.
For more information and If extenuating circumstances prevent you from filling out the membership form online, please contact Sharon Dwek, JFN Israel’s Membership Director at sharon@jfunders.org
Yes, gifts from donors outside Israel are eligible to participate in the matching grant.
Yes, multiple applications will be considered (but not necessarily funded).
Yes. Gifts to organizations must be earmarked for projects that fulfil the goals of the matching grants program unless the mission of the organization is exclusively to establish the infrastructure for impact entrepreneurship.
As indicated above, the matching fund pool for this initiative is capped at $1,000,000. JFN thus anticipates that there will be some donors whose gifts will not be awarded matching funds. While JFN certainly hopes that you will make the proposed gift even if matching funds are not awarded, JFN understands that some donors might choose not to pay their gifts in the absence of the matching funds award. If payment of your pledge is contingent on the award of matching funds, please do not submit payment before receiving notification of the review committee’s decision.
No. The donor must provide the total amount of the gift no earlier than July 1, 2020 and it must be paid in full no later than June 1, 2021. Instructions for how to submit proof of payment will be included in the grant notice.
Terms and Conditions of the Grant for Organizations Awarded the Matching Gran
All required documents must be submitted by December 1, 2020
Organizations that do not submit all of the required documents in Hebrew by December 1, 2020 will not be eligible to receive a matching grant.
Funding will be allocated to each organization after it submits a budget reflecting actual budget performance of 50% of the project (Budget vs. actual report) and utilizing 100% of the donor gift by that payout date.
Organization that do not meet this criterion will not be eligible to apply for the matching grant program.
39
NGOs applied for a total of $6M
11
Organizations selected with 20 new funders (at $2M)
3
Ideation, incubation
and acceleration programs
68
Ideas, ventures and products
3
Tools researched and developed
3
Existing models
scaled
2
Pilot funds
2
Asset classes researched / New data base
About us
The Edmond de Rothschild Foundation (Israel) (the “Foundation”) works to create an inclusive and collaborative Israeli society, by promoting excellence, diversity and leadership through higher education.
We continue a legacy of philanthropic innovation, investing in change agents and promoting a pioneering spirit.
The Foundation, which operates within the framework of the international network of the Edmond de Rothschild Foundations worldwide, initiates dozens of innovative projects throughout Israel, aimed at reducing social gaps and fostering young leadership.
The Foundation seeks to strengthen higher education in as many communities as possible, to promote innovative academic research, to engage artists in social involvement, to invest in groundbreaking economic and social models, and to nurture young and committed leadership, affect the lives of tens of thousands of people and shape the future generation of Israel’s pioneers and entrepreneurs.
The Foundation’s areas of interest and expertise are:
With a firm belief in the power of individuals to bring about change, and out of a commitment and a sense of responsibility for the pioneering spirit of the State of Israel, the Edmond de Rothschild Foundation is dedicated to empowering, connecting, promoting, and nurturing the various groups that make up Israeli society.
The mosaic of identities that constitute Israeli society is an invaluable opportunity to develop a rich and vibrant fabric of life, which can engender – through diversity and partnership – a healthy and progressive society in which shared good is enhanced. We are convinced that the consolidation and growth of human values, along with deepening knowledge and striving for excellence, will lead to the establishment of an inclusive and prosperous Israeli society.
Jewish Funders Network (JFN)
Founded in 1991, Jewish Funders Network is an international community of private foundations and philanthropists with over 2,500 private funders, foundation and trustees from 11 countries around the world whose mission is to promote meaningful giving and take an active part in the processes that change the thinking and action patterns of philanthropy in the Jewish world and in Israel.
JFN-IL, founded in 2008, by Israeli donors and fund holders, who constitute a quarter of the international network, to share ideas about their philanthropic involvement and expand their giving circles, both in Israel and overseas.
Members of the network enjoy a wide range of services aimed to develop and professionalize philanthropic giving through member to member connections, fostering family philanthropy, establishing new tools for strategic philanthropic giving and identifying and removing barriers in the philanthropic field in Israel.