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Nebula Fund

Website:

www.nebulafund.org/
Location:

Washington, DC
Type:

LGBTQI+ grantmaking fund
Formation:

2022
Director:

Heather Benjamin

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Nebula Fund is a pooled fund founded in 2022 by seven left-of-center private foundations. It provides grants to LGBT-interests and gender-advocacy organizations internationally. 1 It is a project of left-of-center New Venture Fund (NVF). 2

Background

Nebula Fund was formed in 2022 by seven private foundations. In its first year, Nebula awarded over $1.5 million in grants and is planning to award approximately $3 million in grants in 2023. 3

Nebula Fund, a project of New Venture Fund (NVF), is a pooled fund “designed for and driven by the needs of progressive movements.” It supports organizations that are focused on LGBT interests and left-of-center gender advocacy. 4 Nebula launched its website in April 2023. 5

New Venture Fund is a left-of-center nonprofit organization that provides fiscal sponsorship and management to projects that focus on left-of-center issues. 6 It provides financial management, grant management, human resources, and technical support to Nebula. 7

As of August 2023, Nebula Fund has six full-time employees. 8

Work Areas

Nebula provides left-of-center LGBT and gender-activist movements with core funding and resources. It plans to develop partnerships with organizations focused in this area, including transgender outreach, sex worker advocacy, feminist movements, and abortion access and other reproductive health groups. Nebula has plans to develop alliances with movements associated with race, climate, and other left-leaning causes. 9

Nebula has a goal of supporting “progressive rights-based” activist organizations and individuals, including artists, journalists, filmmakers, and social media influencers to work toward shifting public opinion. 10

Funding

Nebula is a project of New Venture Fund (NVF), initially funded by seven private foundations. 11 As of August 2023, the Nebula website indicates it has funding from eight private foundations. 12

The Ford Foundation awarded Nebula $750,000 to provide core support to “counter anti-gender movements” from November 2022 through October 2024. 13

Grants

Nebula provided a grant to the Institute for Journalism and Social Change for a report entitled “Progressive cash for the anti-LBGTQI backlash?” that was published in April 2023. This report claims that funding from international donors that support LGBT rights has gone to anti-LGBT groups, causing increased anti-LGBT legislation in Uganda. 14 The report was published on the Centre for Feminine Foreign Policy site, which is funded by left-of-center donors such as Tides, Open Society Foundations, and New Venture Fund. 15

In May 2023 Nebula committed to funding the NOVA (Narrativas y Oportunidades, Visibles y Afirmativas) project as part of the LGBTQIA+ Network kickoff in El Salvador focused on strengthening the network organizations and on LGBT advocacy. 16

Leadership

Heather Benjamin is the founding director of Nebula Fund. Previously she was a senior program officer with left-of-center billionaire philanthropist George Soros’s Open Society Foundations for over 8 years and a steering committee member of the Red Umbrella Fund, 17 a sex worker-led grantmaking organization focused on sex worker advocacy. 18 Red Umbrella Fund donors include Open Society Foundations, Oak Foundation, Foundation for a Just Society, and American Jewish World Service. 19

Naureen Shameem is an advisory board member for Nebula Fund. She is founder and executive director of The Noor Network and board chair of Women Living Under Muslim Laws. Previously Shameem was an independent consultant focused on gender, left-wing social advocacy, and human rights. 20 The Noor Network is a think tank focused on “building the power of gender justice and progressive movements to obstruct far right agendas.” 21 She held prior positions with Human Rights Watch, International Centre for the Legal Protection of Human Rights (INTERIGHTS), International Labor Organization, Amnesty International USA (AIUSA), and Association for Women’s Rights in Development. 22

Tristan Lopez is a program assistant at Nebula and lives in Guatemala. He is also on the grantmaking panel for left-of-center International Trans Fund and provided contract work for International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, and Intersex Association World Conference 2022. 23

References

  1. Nebula Fund home page. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://nebulafund.org/expanding-narrative-power/
  2. LinkedIn – Nebula Fund post. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7031787122122457088/
  3. LinkedIn – Nebula Fund job post. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/company/nebula-fund/posts/?feedView=all
  4. Nebula Fund home page. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://nebulafund.org/expanding-narrative-power/
  5. LinkedIn – Nebula Fund post. April 2023. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/company/nebula-fund/?miniCompanyUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afs_miniCompany%3A91542837
  6. “How We Work.” New Venture Fund. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://newventurefund.org/how-we-work/
  7.  LinkedIn – Nebula Fund post. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/company/nebula-fund/posts/?feedView=all
  8. “Our Team.” Nebula Fund. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://nebulafund.org/team/
  9. “What.” Nebula Fund. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://nebulafund.org/what/
  10. “How.” Nebula Fund. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://nebulafund.org/how/
  11. LinkedIn – Nebula Fund post. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7031787122122457088/
  12. Nebula Fund home page. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://nebulafund.org/expanding-narrative-power/
  13. Ford Foundation Grants Database – Nebula. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://www.fordfoundation.org/work/our-grants/awarded-grants/grants-database/new-venture-fund-145236/
  14. Claire Provost. Progressive cash for the anti-LGBTQI backlash? April 2023. Published on Centre for Feminist Foreign Policy. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://centreforfeministforeignpolicy.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Progressive-cash-for-the-anti-LGBTQI-backlash_.pdf
  15. “Our funders.” CFFP – About – Our Team. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://centreforfeministforeignpolicy.org/our-team/#
  16. Ernesto Valle. “LGBTQIA+ Network El Salvador is born.” Washington Blade. June 2, 2023. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://www.washingtonblade.com/2023/06/02/nace-red-lgbtqia-el-salvador/
  17. LinkedIn – Heather Benjamin. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-r-benjamin-b859246/
  18. Red Umbrella Fund home page. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://www.redumbrellafund.org/
  19. “Our Donors.” Red Umbrella Fund – About Us. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://www.redumbrellafund.org/our-donors/
  20. LinkedIn – Naureen Shameem. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/naureen-shameem-a1694270/
  21. “Who We Are.” Noor. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://wearenoor.org/
  22. LinkedIn – Naureen Shameem. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/naureen-shameem-a1694270/details/experience/
  23. [1] LinkedIn – Tristan Samuel López Aguilar. Accessed August 25, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/trist%C3%A1n-samuel-l%C3%B3pez-aguilar-aa0632210/
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Nebula Fund


Washington, DC