Grassroots International

History

Grassroots International began in 1983 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to provide aid to Lebanon after Oxfam ended its support. ¹ The organization expanded over the early years to support human rights and political independence movements in South Africa, the Philippines, Haiti, and the Palestinian territories. ¹ By 2005, Grassroots International shifted from country support to cause-related issues and began working on left-leaning environmentalism, social justice, and resource rights. ¹ By 2010, Grassroots International shifted to its current inception by joining alliances with left-leaning environmental groups such as Grassroots Global Justice Alliance and Climate Justice Alliance. ¹

Views and Programs

Grassroots International is a far-left advocacy-grantmaking organization. ² GI identifies six key issue areas of interest: climate justice, defending human rights, food sovereignty, movement building, resource rights, and sustainable livelihoods. ³ These six issue areas are intertwined with GI’s grantmaking to further its agenda.

Grassroots International states that global warming is real and northern countries are to blame while southern countries are fighting the warming. ⁴ GI’s Climate Justice Initiative funds projects that challenge ideas such as capitalism that it believes causes global warming. ⁵ Grassroots International funds programs to build local movements, defend human and resource rights, and support those adverse to development by providing groups with funding, training, communications material, and legal defense for activists activities. ⁶ GI states that part of a sustainable livelihood includes not only locally grown agriculture but should include gender justice, social justice, and equality. ⁷

Grassroots International supports advancing feminist leadership around the world for women and gender-nonconforming people of color. ⁸ Grassroots International provides training in the U.S. for select individuals interested in active engagement for the organization. ⁹ Training covers such topics as intersecting systems of oppression including capitalism, white supremacy, patriarchy, colonialism, and perpetuating systemic injustices. ¹⁰ Each participant is then asked to host house parties to spread GI’s message and fundraise for the organization. ¹⁰ Solidaire Network has thanked Grassroots International for helping it fight U.S. imperialism, white supremacy, and capitalism in Honduras. ⁸

Affiliated Funds and Groups

Grassroots International is a member of CLIMA Fund and works with Global Greengrants Fund, Thousand Currents, and Urgent Action Fund for Women’s Human Rights. ⁸ This fund produces left-leaning environmental reports on climate change, persuasion videos, and identifies funders for local grant recipients. ⁸ The goal is to change philanthropy grantmaking by linking funders directly to local recipients. ⁸

GI is a member of Environmental Grantmakers Association, an association bringing grassroots groups together into influential funding forums. ⁸ In 2020, through the Building Equity and Alignment for Impact (BEA Fund), Grassroots International provided $1.9 million in grants to help left-leaning environmental groups in the U.S. deal with Covid issues. ⁸

GI also collaborates with other left-leaning environmental, agricultural, and feminist groups such as La Via Campesina, Friends of the Earth, World Forum of Fisher Peoples, Climate Justice Alliance, U.S. Food Sovereignty Alliance, World March of Women, U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights, Indigenous Environmental Network, and Grassroots Global Justice Alliance. ¹¹

Finances

In 2019, Grassroots International reported total assets of $9,920,217, $11,007,290 in revenue, and $8,285,299 in expenses. ¹² In 2018, Grassroots International received $6,605,413 in revenue and had $5,279,773 in expenses. ¹³ In 2022 and 205, Grassroots International received an unspecified grant from MacKenzie Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. ^14 15

Leadership

Chung-Wha Hong has been executive director of Grassroots International since 2014. ¹⁶ Hong spent 12 years at the New York Immigration Coalition as executive director from 2006-2013 and deputy director/advocacy director from 2001-2006. ¹⁷ From 1995-2000 she was executive director at North Korean American Service and Education Consortium, a social-racial-economic justice organization. ¹⁷ She has also worked in various capacities for the AFL-CIO Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance and SEIU. ¹⁷