Our response to COVID-19
As a foundation dedicated to protecting and advancing human welfare, we are working to address the evolving impacts of COVID-19 around the world.
The Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice and Gallery in New York is open. Please read our full visitor guidelines before arrival. Our global offices are adhering to local guidelines for visitors; please contact them directly to check their status.
The Ford Foundation Hosts NYC Department of Health Vaccination Center
We were pleased for our Center for Social Justice to act as a vaccination site in 2021. For information on current vaccine centers and appointments, please visit the city’s COVID-19 vaccine website.
A Message from our President
During these uncertain times, our interdependence has become all the more evident. President Darren Walker shares his reflections on the crisis and sheds light on how philanthropy is offering hope and long-term solutions. Read more.
Photo courtesy of NDWAOur Commitment to Our Grantees
The work of the organizations we support matters now more than ever. We are working closely with them to understand their needs and provide them with the required support and flexibility to navigate the evolving situation. Read more.
Our Collective Efforts
Foundations Decry Vaccine Inequity Leading to the Emergence and Circulation of Dangerous Variants
The Global Alliance of Foundations calls on G7 countries and multinational pharmaceutical companies to urgently lift their restrictions on vaccine supply.
Global Alliance of Foundations Call for Equitable COVID-19 Relief
In an open letter to leaders of the World Bank and IMF, the world’s largest philanthropies form alliance to support global recovery efforts.
Rapid response grantmaking for grassroots organizations around the world, raising awareness around vaccine access with the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project, and joining the People’s Vaccine Alliance to advocate for change.
The economic realities brought on by COVID-19 have threatened the survival of the organizations building the systems central to an equitable recovery. In response, we issued a $1-billion social bond—the first ever by a foundation—to double our impact and help nonprofits confront the virus’s sweeping effects.
Philanthropy’s Pledge during COVID-19
We spearheaded a philanthropy pledge, bringing together nearly 800 major funders, to provide our nonprofit partners with flexible funding as they support the communities hit hardest by the impacts of the pandemic.
Created with Open Society Foundations, National Domestic Workers Alliance among others, the nearly $30-million fund addresses the immediate needs of low-wage workers and their families and supports efforts that push for long-term policy change to ensure their rights are protected.
NYC COVID-19 Response and Impact Fund
In partnership with Bloomberg Philanthropies, we brought together more than 1,300 donors to raise more than $110 million to support New York’s arts and cultural organizations and nonprofit social service providers during the pandemic. To date, 768 organizations have received support.
America’s Food Fund
We partnered with Leonardo DiCaprio, Laurene Powell Jobs and Apple to create the $12-million fund to support World Central Kitchen, Feeding America, No Kid Hungry and other organizations tackling food insecurity in vulnerable communities affected by COVID-19.
The Disability Inclusion Fund’s Rapid Response Fund
To meet the urgent needs of the disability community, which was overlooked in COVID-19 responses, we developed a rapid response fund as part of our commitment to the Disability Inclusion Fund, a five-year, $10-million collaborative fund housed at Borealis Philanthropy.
Developed with the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the emergency fund raised more than $10 million through a coalition of national arts donors to support creatives struggling in the wake of COVID-19.
We teamed up with six other foundations to support Dance NYC’s efforts to fund 25 theaters and dance companies to provide direct assistance to out-of-work dancers in New York.
We joined New York State as a partner of this $100-million fund that provides capital loans to small minority- and women-owned businesses, landlords, and nonprofits across New York State that didn’t receive federal COVID-19 assistance.
A Call to Release NYC’s Incarcerated
President Darren Walker joined forces with Brooklyn’s district attorney and former New York health commissioner to pen an op-ed for The New York Times to urge Governor Andrew Cuomo to release low-risk prisoners to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
In the News
A roundup of our most recent press related to COVID-19.
An equitable vaccine rollout must prioritize the most vulnerable around the world
Rich countries are hoarding vaccines. This has to stop. Until we are all vaccinated, we are all vulnerable.
Funders helped nonprofits respond to the COVID-19 pandemic in unprecedented ways. Now is the time to build on those efforts—and address systemic racism.
Leading Foundations Pledge to Give More
The announcement of our social bond—a $1-billion commitment to support nonprofits weather the effects of COVID-19 and strengthen the social justice sector—made the front page of The New York Times.
Darren Walker on CBS This Morning
President Darren Walker talked with CBS to the inequities exacerbated by the pandemic and the need to support nonprofits on the frontlines that are critical to creating a more just America.
President Darren Walker sat down with TED’s Chris Anderson to talk about COVID-19 as an opportunity to reimagine philanthropy and capitalism to create a more just, sustainable future.