Blue Heart
Blue Heart
2026 Grassroots Giving Guide LEARN MORE
Making it easy to support incredible grassroots organizations!
Art from the Alphabet Alliance of Color in Seattle designed by self-taught artist Sam Picone Louro, who is queer, Boriken Taino and Portuguese.
Blue Heart funded the creation of this piece.
Championing Grassroots Changemakers
& FUNDING AT THE FRINGES
Blue Heart introduces donors to grassroots, community-led groups advancing political power for low-income communities and communities of color across the US. During giving season, well-funded nonprofits often overshadow smaller, impactful organizations serving marginalized communities. Blue Heart is here to uplift those at the grassroots level and ensure big-hearted givers like you find out about work you might otherwise never know existed!
This guide highlights organizations supporting BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color), gender-marginalized, queer, disabled, and low-income communities—advocating for transformative change from the ground up.
Most people donate based on personal recommendations. Invite your network to #GiveBoldly, and help amplify these grassroots changemakers.
How WE CREATED This Guide
This guide supports visionary, creative movement-builders who are often overlooked, in getting the recognition they deserve among donors.
The groups you’ll see in this Giving Guide are included because Blue Heart has granted to them (you can see all prior grantees here), they were recommended by organizations we have donated to, or they were recommended by our community members.
All groups meet the criteria of being currently active in their work, having a clear way for people to donate, having annual budgets under $2 million, and working on grassroots social change.
While focused on the U.S.-based groups, we encourage donations to globally accountable grassroots intermediaries as well. Funding social change isn't 'silver bullet philanthropy'. Rather, it requires investing in diverse strategies and long-term visions.
Art by Christina Whipple and Leilani Salvador / Blue Heart Creator Fund
How to use this guide
-
Discover: Dive into the list, whether you're interested in organizations working locally or those focusing on specific issues we've got you covered.
-
Donate: While any contribution makes an impact, if you're financially stable, consider donating 1% or more of your annual income. Monthly donations help organizations plan better, so consider giving a bit every month.
-
Engage: Follow your chosen organizations on social media (especially IG and Facebook). Stay updated and deepen your bond with them.
-
Share: Most people donate based on personal recommendations. Spread the word, ask your friends and family to #GiveBoldly. Share on socials.
Before you dive in, here are a few questions to ask yourself:
-
Looking to support entities close to home or those with limited philanthropic resources?
-
Use icons next to organizations to guide you.
-
-
Interested in a specific issue?
-
Explore our 12 different issue-specific portfolios.
-
-
Do you want to get your money out of the urban bubble?
-
Rural non-profits are dramatically less-resourced than urban ones. If you want to support grassroots organizing in rural communities, check out our "Rural Organizing" portfolio.
-
-
Want to incorporate a reparations perspective?
-
Reflect on the history and current state of indigenous and marginalized communities and consider how you can contribute to repairing past injustices.
-
-
Concerned about tax deductions?
-
We've marked organizations without a 501c3 status with a [*].
-
Be aware of the design bias when selecting organizations. A sleek website doesn't necessarily equate to the efficacy of an organization. Some may prioritize on-ground efforts over digital presence. Judge by their impact, not their interface.
boldly commit and become a blue heart member
Want to support grassroots power-building all year long?
Join a community of over 100 member-donors who are supporting grassroots change. We have channeled over $300,000 to under-the-radar changemakers, artists, and visionaries.
Blue Heart membership means donating monthly and trusting that your funds go to values-aligned local grassroots organizations.
Members who wish to go beyond donating and get more engaged are welcome to join our bioregional Giving Collectives, spaces to build deeper relationships with one another and amazing organizations, and contribute time, energy, skills, in addition to your money.
(Note: We are a fiscally-sponsored project within the non-profit Peace Division Fund.)
frequently asked questions
Who are you and why did you create this guide?
Blue Heart fuels grassroots entities empowering low-income and communities of color. Through art and frontline stories, we inspire action.
We don't have the capacity to support and partner with all these kickass grassroots organizations, but we want to bring attention to the stories of these organizations as much as we can! We hope that in creating this guide they will get broader attention, appreciation, and funding.
We invite you to support and elevate the local movements that are making our cities more just and livable.
How do I decide how much to give?
If you have a steady job and aren’t living check-to-check, we recommend giving away at least 1% of your annual income. There is a growing community of people who have pledged to give 10% or more. If you want to direct more of your giving towards grassroots movement-building over the long term, get in touch and we can help you develop a more specific giving strategy.
How do I decide how much to give?
Overall guidance: Don't let the good be the enemy of the perfect! You are not a bad person if you gave to a LGBTQ+ organization and not a racial justice organization. These divisions can be pretty arbitrary anyway - all this work is interconnected! We selected this set of organizations to make it easier for you to give to organizations doing powerful work. Choose a few, give to them, follow their updates over the next year, and then revisit. Through giving, you develop relationships and evolve your own personal giving ethic.
Here are some questions that might be useful to help you choose a few organizations:
-
Do you want to give directly to organizations working near where you live? Use the icons next to the organizations to focus on the ones working near you.
-
Do you want to give based on the organization’s issue focus? If you are more interested in a specific issue, we have issue-specific portfolios.
-
Do you want to get your money out of the urban bubble? If you want to support grassroots organizing in rural communities, check out our "Rural Organizing"portfolio.
Why would I want to become a member of Blue Heart instead of (or in addition to) donating right now?
Do you want a deeper dive into the work and vision of the grassroots organizations working across social and environmental justice movements in California, the Pacific Northwest or nationally? We believe inspiration and hope are essential to effective philanthropy, and we designed Blue Heart to help people like you meaningfully engage with social issues through stories from frontline movement-builders. We connect our members with tailored opportunities to learn, give, and act on local social justice issues through a monthly subscription to stories, curated learning resources, and action opportunities.
How do I nominate an organization to be added to next year's guide?
Glad you asked! We are always eager to learn about new organizations. Please tell us about your recommendations.