International Grantmaking Program

 

The Mission of the Dorothea Haus Ross Foundation is to support nonprofit organizations that seek to ensure basic needs and human rights including sustenance, education, healthcare and security to the most vulnerable children throughout the world. The Foundation's current grants programs focus on children with disabilities; those who have been trafficked or are at risk of being trafficked; and refugee or displaced children.

Our current program is focused on several populations of particularly vulnerable children and also, on a very selected basis, supports organizations that enable entrepreneurs to build sustainable economic communities for their children and families. We note the overlap and diversity of these program areas and do, on occasion, support organizations whose work may be in an allied or supporting area. Most of the programs supported by the Foundation focus on ensuring that children are safe and have access to education and care.

 

Funding Areas

  • Trafficked and Exploited Children, whether kidnapped or entrusted to unscrupulous labor brokers by destitute families, are trapped in a world of forced labor, soldiering, begging and prostitution. They are denied most basic human rights, endure brutal daily conditions and, should they survive, have limited prospects as adults.

    We partner with organizations that work to prevent child trafficking; to secure the release of children from their captivity and provide them with shelter, care and rehabilitation; and advocate for the passage and enforcement of laws against trafficking and the related scourge of child marriage. Our partners may return children to their families when that is a safe option or provide safe and nurturing preferably non-institutional long term care that enable children to gain a sense of self worth and dignity.

    Program Targets:

    Prevention/Public Education Awareness

    Rescue/Safety/Care

    Education/Rehabilitation

    Inclusion/Long Term Care Solutions

    Community-based Anti-child marriage Initiatives

  • Disabled Children are among the most marginalized and vulnerable. Lacking legal status and protections in many communities, disabled children face oppressive, and at times lethal, social stigma. Not surprisingly, they receive far less of scarce food, education and healthcare.

    We partner with organizations that provide health care, emotional support, education and training, and that promote dignity and facilitate the child’s active and full inclusion and participation in their home, school and community.

    Program Targets:

    Community-based Rehabilitation

    De-institutionalization and strengthening of Family and Community-Based Care Models

    Education to Reach Full Potential

    School and Community Inclusion

    Creation of local capacity to provide assistive, mobility and prosthetic devices

  • Displaced and Refugee Children are often separated from families and communities in the midst of societal, environmental or economic collapse or war and conflict situations. They are vulnerable to bodily harm, being trafficked, and both disease and hunger and they witness and experience brutal events far beyond their capacity to comprehend. The effects are both immediate and long term, and children who find themselves resettled, or whose communities have found peace, have lost years of normal childhood development and education.

    We partner with organizations that provide housing, stability and education to children to help them survive the difficult and dislocating conditions in which they are forced to live.

    Program Targets:

    Safety/Housing/Reunification with Family

    Stability/Play

    Development of focused PTSD and other treatment programs

    Education/Expedited Curriculum/Vocational Training

    Family re-unification for unaccompanied minors

  • Sustainable Economic Communities, often led by entrepreneurs, provide the bedrock for child health, safety and development, and are the focus of this program. These communities are often in regions susceptible to climate change and political upheaval.

    We partner with a very limited number of community based organizations that empower village-level entrepreneurs to provide a sustainable livelihood for their families and which strengthen the fabric of community health and education.

    Program Targets:

    Model programs of village level and entrepreneur-led economic development

    Focus on vulnerable communities and families, specifically refugees, adolescent girls, indigenous, and families with disabled children.

* Please note the Ross Foundation ONLY funds US 501(c)(3) organizations *

The Foundation is small, our mission broad, and the needs of vulnerable children throughout the world immense.  Unfortunately, we are able to fund only a very small percentage of the good work that is being done for vulnerable children and are not able to review unsolicited proposals. Please review the application guidelines for further information. 

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