Funding opportunity: Transition groups in the UK
By Ben Brangwyn 6th November 2012
Funding for radical groups
We’ve just learned about The Edge Fund. This is a new entity and their first round deadline is 1st December 2012. They’re seeking to fund community groups as opposed to registered charities and we reckon that Transition Initiatives might want to apply.
They are only funding UK-based groups this time, and if there are any initiatives who are particularly focusing on inequality/diversity/injustice issues then these would be particularly eligible.
From their website, here’s the elegibility criteria that we think open up the door to Transition groups:
Groups working for systemic change – those who seek to dismantle and replace the structures and processes that create oppression, inequality and environmental destruction.
If you are eligible you will agree with most of these statements:
- My group does not primarily aim to change individuals’ lives by providing social care, support or aid to help them survive in our unjust society;
- We aim to change society to create a world where no-one struggles to survive because resources, power and wealth are shared equally and everyone has what they need to live a full and healthy life (including a healthy environment);
- We are involved in activities that, for example, expose, challenge and raise awareness of injustice, brings people together to build a movement or creates alternatives to systems and structures that give power and wealth to the privileged few;
- We are not an established organisation or registered charity with mainstream sources of funding (e.g. local council, Lottery);
- We have very few paid staff and minimal funding (we often fund work out of our own pockets);
- We are unable to get funding because many funders think we are too political, or radical in our approach;
- We take direction from the people most affected by the issue we’re working on;
- We organise using a non-hierarchical structure.
Let us know if you apply and whether you have any success by sending an email to projectsupport@transitionnetwork.org.