Investing Philosophy

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​At Nia, we believe that foundation endowments, like all investments, are always at work, having a measurable impact in the world.

 

Knowing that foundations have specific fiduciary duty to their missions, we see our investment dollars as key tools to achieving our mission and goals. We believe, rather than a traditional 5% payout for grants, all foundation assets can (and perhaps should) be activated in support of the foundation's mission.

 

We arrive at this work with a lens of social justice, understanding that the health of our planet is inextricably tied up with the health and freedom of its people. With this in mind, we invest in, and grant to, organizations that address systemic and structural inequality.

 

Recognizing that band-aid approaches are inadequate and have the ability to do more harm in the long run, we carefully and consciously invest to align our endowment with our mission, acting with intention and purpose such that each investment is actively working to further our social and environmental goals.

 

​We are both focused in the deployment of capital—getting it out into the community---as well as in the quality of our transactions and seek to nurture and grow relationships with our entrepreneurs and grantees.

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**Please note: we are not accepting applications at this time.**