A Commitment to the San Francisco Bay Area

Since its founding in 1966, one of the Foundation’s core commitments has been to the Bay Area and the people who reside here. William and Flora Hewlett were committed to support a thriving and vibrant community here at home, and the Foundation carries on their spirit by making grants to ensure continued access to those things that improve the lives of Bay Area citizens, with a specific focus on providing the area’s most diverse and disadvantaged communities with access to public parks, good schools, quality reproductive health care, and a wide-ranging performing arts community. Explore Bay Area Grants

A Tradition of General Operating Support

The Foundation provides general operating support—essentially unrestricted funding—to organizations whose goals and strategies are closely aligned with ours. We believe this type of funding is our most effective grantmaking tool because it gives an organization two advantages: the ability to carry out its mission in the best way it sees fit and the flexibility to adapt and respond to a changing environment. The Foundation’s focus is on meeting our goals, and when those goals and strategies are shared by an organization we fund, we can allow it to take the lead in reaching our shared goals. Explore General Operating Support Grants

An Increasingly Global Focus

The Foundation tackles some of the world's most pressing social and environmental problems, which means increasingly looking beyond the United States for solutions. Nuclear security is a shared concern; climate change, too, is a global issue that won’t be solved within the borders of any one country. The Internet has opened up new possibilities for online education, but some of the poorest students in the world still lack access to the basics. Meanwhile, the reach of philanthropy is expanding, even to include countries traditionally seen as charity recipients. These are just a few of the issues that the Foundation is addressing—and funding—across the globe. Explore International Grants

A Continued Commitment to U.S. Issues

Since its founding, the Hewlett Foundation has focused on improving the lives and well-being of the citizens of the United States. We make grants to improve education policy, conserve the American West, push for clean energy policies, ensure access to quality reproductive health services, and support a vibrant performing arts community in the San Francisco Bay Area, while at the same time improving the field of philanthropy and the organizations that carry out this important work. Explore U.S. Grants

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