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International Grantmaking & the Equivalency Determination

Podcast

Natalie Roetzel Ossenfort, Leslie Barnes


We are excited to be joined on this episode by a former colleague and guest from NGOsource, Shyaam Subramanian. NGOsource is helping to streamline the international grantmaking process and ease both restrictions and reporting requirements for international grant awards by making equivalency determinations. NGOs (or international nonprofits) that receive grants through this process are better able to build collective power and address issues faced in their communities.

Not only are we excited about this topic, but we’re excited to have Shyaam back on this show. You all might remember him from earlier pod episodes… recorded back when Shayaam was Senior Counsel for AFJ’s Bolder Advocacy program.

Shyaam and his colleagues work with US donors and NGOs to determine if an international nonprofit is organized and operated like a U.S. public charity. This process is called an equivalency determination or ED. NGOs that receive an ED can receive general support from U.S. private foundations and donor-advised funds, and potentially use the funds for more types of advocacy activities, including lobbying or legislative campaigns.

Our Attorneys for This Episode:

Natalie Roetzel Ossenfort Leslie Barnes

Our Special Guest:

Shyaam Subramanian
Legal Counsel at NGOSource

In this episode, we cover:

  1. Key concepts in Grantmaking
  2. What is an Equivalency Determination (ED?)
  3. What options does a funder have if an NGO does not receive an ED?
  4. A brief overview of ED requirements
  5. NGOsource’s repository model and collaboration with Council on Foundations
  6. Impact stories

Resources