#AnnualReflections: On Micro-Grants

As we witnessed the despairing undoing of small businesses around the world resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic impact, we were reminded that micro-grants to emerging non-profits and hybrid organizations matter now more than ever. Buying into small business is important.  Investing in not-for-profit groups is important, too. Possibly more important. As a result of the pandemic, local leaders aiming to create social innovation and progress in their communities more often accepted that they could not turn to business for support, nor to savings accounts or family funding as backup.  Their ideas were on pause too, and will be on pause even longer than it will be for business owners. There are no paycheck paybacks or stimulus checks earmarked for emerging social changemakers.

Donors who make micro-grants know that catalyzing change happens with little steps taken incrementally toward easily obtainable outcome. They admire the rhythm of slow pace toward accumulating change. Donations for Little Big Believers activated immediate forward motion: a security safe for a fledgling women’s microfinance initiative that couldn’t open a bank account; food and refreshments for volunteers helping a community-based blood drive; equipment to clean a weed-invested pond.

Micro-grant donors are aware that a conventional return on investment is not their reward. Rather, they celebrate that their money goes directly into the hands of local leaders navigating on-the-ground realities who are launching a project for their neighborhood, district, village, or zip code. They know that this money, ranging from $500 to $2,000, is immediately effective. They see how their investment purchases things but more so, creates ripples of confidence, sparks of renewed energy, surges of commitment in the spirits of the local leaders aiming for progress.

Micro-grants work. In 2020. We continued to witness the important role micro-grants played to catalyze early stage development of non-profit and hybrid programs around the world. As we all ponder strategies to re-invigorate small business, we should not forget how indispensable emerging social changemakers are and support their immediate needs with micro-grants.