Social Justice Fund Northwest (SJF) is accepting applications for its 2026 Rural Organizing Grant. This is a competitive, applicant-facing grant for grassroots community-organizing groups working in rural and frontier areas or reservation communities in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, or Wyoming.
Funding: Individual grants of $10,000 to $25,000 for one or two years. The funder has not published a total program allocation in the reviewed guidelines.
Deadline: October 22, 2026. Applications opened September 7, 2026. The public guidelines do not specify a closing time or time zone. Award decisions are expected in May 2027.
Eligible applicants: Organized groups engaged in community organizing. Applicants must hold 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4) status or have a qualifying fiscal sponsor. Unsponsored groups may apply but must secure a sponsor before funding is distributed. Individuals are not eligible. Projects must serve rural or frontier communities or reservation communities in the five eligible states.
Program focus: Rural organizing concerning housing, food and health-care access; coalition and community building; violence prevention; farmworker and labor organizing; and other issues identified in the official funder guidance. Direct services alone are not eligible unless meaningfully connected with community organizing. Priority consideration is given to organizations with annual budgets of $500,000 or less and organizations with at least 51% Black, Indigenous, or other people-of-color leadership.
Application requirements: Applicants should review SJF community organizing criteria and the funder rurality map. Communities whose context is not captured by the map may provide explanatory information in the application. Apply through the official SJF Grants Portal (Foundant). The reviewed guidelines do not publish a separate match requirement or a comprehensive prohibited-cost schedule; applicants should confirm portal terms before submitting.
Official grant guidelines: https://socialjusticefund.org/grants/2026-rural-organizing-grant/ . Information reviewed October 17, 2026.