Introduction
I started writing grant proposals in the 1970’s when I was in my 20s, working as a fundraiser for a small but dynamic grassroots environmental organization in Alaska. It took me another 20 years before I realized the importance of actually establishing a grantseeking program built on a clearly articulated strategy, as well as the importance of creating a strategy around each and every project that needs funding.
I had always been relatively successfully writing grant requests, but much of that success was based on the issue (conservation) and the location (Alaska) and the decade (1970s), not on my skills! In a way, I was blessed because I was demonstrating success. In another way, this hindered me because I was successfully securing grants, but I really wasn’t learning as much as I could about what I now think of as “intentional” grantseeking. It did however provide a good training ground, without the rejection letters chipping away at my confidence.
I moved on to work for other nonprofits, and eventually run the Economic Development Center for the Fairbanks North Star Borough, and this is when I began to learn the importance of developing a deliberate approach to grantseeking.
At that point, it didn’t take me long at all before it became clear that organizations can submit a grant request here and there, and they may (or may not) get them funded, but if that same organization adopts an intentional approach their success rate goes way up.
As you can easily surmise, based on the fact that I wrote this e-primer, I am a big fan of developing an intentional approach to grantseeking even if you are only going to submit a few grant requests each year.
What this Book is About
In this e-primer I will share my ideas around thinking strategically as you undertake your grantseeking efforts. I will also describe my step-by-step approach to building a strategy around each project or program that needs funding. I hope the examples I provide will help clarify how this process could work for you.
Of course, this is just how I approach grantseeking. Hopefully, you will take some of the ideas that I share and incorporate them into your own methods and processes. When all is said and done, the goal is to feel comfortable with the way you develop your grantseeking strategies.
Cynthia M. Adams
Founder and CEO
GrantStation