American Indian Groups in Pacific Northwest Are Raising More Money

Nonprofits that work to improve the lives of American Indians in the Pacific Northwest are having more success raising money from foundations, according to a new study of 76 philanthropies. That growth comes even as giving to Native American organizations elsewhere appears to be shrinking.

Grant makers in the study gave $19-million to benefit Indian organizations and communities in the Pacific Northwest in 2010, 16 percent more than in 2008. The gains came despite a 24-percent overall decline in giving by those same foundations during that period.

Two foundations propelled most of the growth: the Rasmuson Foundation, in Alaska, and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, in Michigan.

The study, conducted by Philanthropy Northwest, a membership group, found that the median grant to Indian causes in that region was $9,000.

By contrast, a 2011 analysis of more than 1,000 of the country’s largest grant makers by the Foundation Center and Native Americans in Philanthropy, which counted only grants of $10,000 or more, found that the national picture for fundraising by Indian groups is less upbeat.

According to that study, foundation support for American Indians declined as a share of total giving, from 0.5 percent to 0.3 percent. And giving was concentrated among a handful of donors. Nearly 60 percent of money for Indian causes came from 10 foundations, according to the study.