11,142,000
The mission of the Doris Duke Foundation is to build a more creative, equitable and sustainable future by investing in artists and the performing arts, environmental conservation, medical research, child well-being and greater mutual understanding among diverse communities. The Doris Duke Foundation (DDF) operates five national grantmaking programs as well as Duke Farms and Shangri La, two centers that serve the public directly.
The Doris Duke Foundation (DDF) operates five national grantmaking programs as well as Duke Farms and Shangri La, two centers that serve the public directly.
Doris Duke Foundation
DDF employs three main evaluation strategies that build on and inform each other over time. The foundation's programs tailor each of the three strategies as appropriate to accommodate their diverse grantmaking approaches.
- Monitoring and Assessment:
Through site visits, grantee consultations and review of annual progress reports, staff determines compliance with grant agreements and assesses initial outputs, outcomes and indicators that are likely to correlate with the future impact of the grant. This is an ongoing process conducted by internal staff and, as needed, outside consultants.
- Evaluation of Initiatives:
A specific initiative or cluster of related grants is selected for a more intensive review. This type of evaluation usually involves outside consultants to determine whether funded initiatives appear to be achieving their desired goals and objectives. Results help staff determine whether refinement in the initiative design is needed, and/or whether continued funding is merited. This process is conducted every three to five years, by internal staff together with consultants and/or field experts.
- External Program Review:
The foundation's starting point in creating new initiatives is analyzing a field, or sectors within a field, to identify potential funding opportunities. It is also the point to which staff return every five years to conduct a systematic review of DDF-supported fields and the foundation's role within them. The staff then assesses how to incorporate the findings in the refinement or redesign of program strategies or initiatives (or their elimination) and continues/repeats the evaluation cycle. These reviews are conducted approximately every five years using outside consultants and/or field experts.
If program evaluations conducted by the foundation yield information that may be useful to DDF-supported fields, the foundation will post its findings under the appropriate News & Insights section on their website.
Through the Environment Program, the foundation typically awards grants via invited proposals and, occasionally, open funding competitions. A variety of foundation-supported funding opportunities are also available through regranting programs administered by partner organizations. The foundation’s land capital funds are typically distributed through regranting competitions administered by regional conservation organizations.
Unsolicited proposals about future support for projects that fall within the Environment Program's three primary grantmaking strategies can be submitted through a letter of inquiry. Please review the foundation's areas of focus to determine whether your proposal fits their objectives by visiting the program’s What We Support page.
The Doris Duke Foundation seeks to demonstrate how effective conservation can protect and restore nature, help address climate change and promote a more equitable society. They support initiatives that increase the pace and scale of land conservation and stewardship across the United States to protect biodiversity, bolster the resilience of natural areas and advance climate change mitigation. They also focus on conservation efforts that advance equity, in particular for communities that identify as Black, Indigenous and people of color. To achieve these goals, the foundation concentrates on three complementary and intersecting areas of focus: Nature, Climate, and Equity.
While the method for awarding a grant may differ among programs and initiatives, consideration always is given to the following criteria:
- Does the project address a significant funding gap or support a critical opportunity related to the foundation's mission?
- Is the project designed to achieve both the objectives of the applicant organization and the program goals of the foundation?
- What is the project's potential for long-term impact in terms of replication, reach, visibility or changes in the field?
- Does the applicant organization have the capacity to effectively execute the project?
- What opportunity exists to leverage additional resources as a result of DDF funding?
Global eligibility, with a focus on the United States