When young people have a passion about something—and receive support and guidance—they can change the world. One group of Marin teens is trying to do something to support the LGBTQ community in their schools.  Read more.

Learn more about social justice and interfaith understanding

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Find out about the results of our grantmaking

MCF Strategic Plan:

Social Justice and Interfaith Understanding

Marin County is home to a rich and diverse range of institutions and individuals that have a deep commitment to improving the quality of life for all of Marin’s residents. This includes a strong focus on ensuring greater social justice and stronger understanding among different faith traditions throughout our community.

When a community—supported by religious, faith-based, and nonprofit organizations, as well as concerned and engaged individuals—engages in activities to promote social justice and interfaith understanding, sustainable change can occur. To this end, MCF is supporting efforts that increase awareness, mobilize communities, and catalyze social change to systemically address social inequities in Marin County. In addition, MCF recognizes and supports the powerful link between interfaith dialogue and understanding and creating positive social change.

Strategy 1: Increase community engagement to identify and address social justice issues

Engaging in advocacy activities, including community organizing, is an effective strategy to promote civic engagement in the democratic process, advance public policy, and support lasting solutions to a community’s social, political, and economic problems. And promoting leadership within marginalized communities is a critical element to building a stronger and more democratic society. Plus, successful social justice work relies on capacity of organizations to engage in policy and advocacy efforts. MCF’s funding in these areas is addressing these and related issues.

Grants made since the implementation of MCF’s Strategic Plan:

Strategy 1 Grants
Organization Description Awarded Amount
Bay Area Organizing Committee To support capacity building. $60,000
Bay Area Organizing Committee To support social justice, interfaith understanding. $50,000
Canal Alliance To support social justice. $15,000
Canal Welcome Center To support the Cultural Cafe project, which brings families from different Marin communities together to discuss social justice issues. $31,250
Center for Volunteer and Nonprofit Leadership of Marin To provide technical assistance and training to organizations awarded grants through the 2009 FAITHS Initiative. $42,849
Congregation Gan Halev To deepen congregation members' understanding of social justice issues in the San Geronimo Valley community. $5,000
Congregation Rodef Sholom To support the family Mitzvah project, which engages congregation members in education and advocacy activities with members of Marin's homeless community. $5,000
EAH To expand its work into Novato communities. $20,000
EAH To support Novato Housing Coalition's ability to advocate for affordable housing in Novato. $5,000
First Missionary Baptist Church To develop leadership skills among young people so they can actively participate in community improvement projects in and beyond Marin City. $3,000
First United Methodist/San Rafael To advocate for a more just criminal system by raising public awareness through community forums and quarterly newsletters. $5,000
Grassroots Leadership Network of Marin To support social justice, interfaith understanding. $30,000
Grassroots Leadership Network of Marin To support the 2010 Martin Luther King Jr. Social Justice Coalition. $18,750
Grassroots Leadership Network of Marin To support the 2011 Marin City Martin Luther King Jr. Coalition Action Project. $18,750
Green Sangha awareness of harmful impact of plastic $5,000
Jumpstart Network To promote economic security among immigrants by offering free ESL classes. $3,000
Marin Child Care Council To support Parent Voices Marin. $60,000
Marin Child Care Council To support social justice. $50,000
Marin Interfaith Council To bring diverse religious communities together to build relationships and partnerships and celebrate deeper community. $60,000
Marin Interfaith Council To support Advocacy & Action for Homeless Policy Change. $25,000
Marin Organizing Committee To support a strategy-building process to address affordable housing and local issues affecting immigrants. $25,000
Novato Community of Christ To build the nonprofit infrastructure of Organizaci $3,000
Novato Housing Coalition To support social justice, interfaith understanding. $50,000
Novato Housing Coalition To support the Live Local Novato Leadership Program. $34,000
Parent Services Project, Inc. To support organizing and advocacy efforts among low-income residents of Marin. $35,000
Saint Raphael Church community service projects and social justice advocacy $5,000
San Francisco Zen Center To provide opportunities for children from underserved areas in Marin to learn about the interdependent process of growing food and the importance of the watershed at Green Gulch Farm. $3,000
Sleepy Hollow Presbyterian Church To provide opportunities for middle-school students to learn about and address social issues in Marin County. $3,000
St. Andrew Presbyterian Church To provide food through the Southern Marin Food pantry and to develop a plan to diversify sources of funding and donations. $3,000
St. Paul's Episcopal Church To support the success of students attending Marin County Community School by providing nutritional hot breakfasts and positive social connections. $5,000
Westminster Presbyterian Church To ensure vulnerable populations in southern Marin have access to food and health screenings and that community members are well-informed about issues related to health and poverty. $5,000
Youth Leadership Institute To develop school policies. $40,000
Youth Leadership Institute To support community engagement for social justice. $45,000
Youth Leadership Institute To support equitable and safe environments for LGBTQ youth in educational settings. $52,059
Total Grants Strategy 1: $820,658.00
 

Strategy 2: Increase collaboration and dialogue among religious institutions, faith-based communities, and community members

Marin’s residents define themselves as “spiritual seekers,” and the highly diverse makeup of religion and religious practice in Marin presents a unique opportunity for inter-religious dialogue and connection. Religious and faith-based organizations often gain the trust of underserved and hidden populations and can provide a conduit through which these populations can help define and become actively involved in community issues that directly affect their lives. MCF is funding efforts to create greater understanding among people of different faith traditions and activities that connect interfaith understanding and social justice.

Grants made since the implementation of MCF’s Strategic Plan:

Strategy 2 Grants
Organization Description Awarded Amount
Congregation Gan Halev ewish Calendar: A Roadmap for Social Change project $5,000
Congregation Gan Halev To engage its members in social justice work. $5,000
Congregation Gan Halev To support social justice, interfaith understanding. $5,000
International Association of Sufism To support Building Bridges of Understanding: Understanding Judaism and Social Justice. $5,000
International Association of Sufism To support Building Bridges of Understanding. $20,000
International Association of Sufism To support social justice, interfaith understanding. $20,000
Marin Interfaith Council To bring diverse religious communities together to build relationships and partnerships and celebrate deeper community. $20,000
Marin Interfaith Council To support Community Through Interfaith Understanding. $20,000
Marin Interfaith Council To support Marin Interfaith Chaplaincy. $20,000
Marin Interfaith Council To support social justice, interfaith understanding. $20,000
Youth Leadership Institute To support interfaith understanding of LGBTQ youth concerns. $23,220
Youth Leadership Institute To support social justice, interfaith understanding. $23,000
Total Grants Strategy 2: $50,000.00
 
Total Social Justice and Interfaith Understanding Grants: $1,006,878.00