Funding Resources in Washington, DC

As the third-largest employer in Washington, D.C., the World Bank Group recognizes the need for individual and corporate responsibility where its staff live and work. In keeping with the Bank's poverty reduction mission, the Community Outreach Program seeks to improve the lives of our neighbors in the greater metropolitan community. We encourage staff volunteerism, conduct an annual grants program, and partner with area groups to strengthen local communities.  

Program’s activities in 2005

The Grants Program provided small-size grants to nonprofits throughout the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. In 2005, community grants totaled $785,000 and supported over 40 local charities undertaking the following activities: after-school tutoring, renovating low-income housing, HIV/AIDS prevention, skills training for unemployed workers, sheltering battered women, distribution of meals to street residents, Latino youth support, and prenatal and well-baby care. The Grants Program is managed by a grants committee composed of Bank staff and representatives from local grantmakers such as the Community Foundation of the National Capital Region. The committee is responsible for reviewing and selecting grantees on an annual basis.

Funding Collaboratives. The Outreach Program also joined other local grantmakers to support five local funding collaboratives that are testing innovative approaches to addressing underlying social problems. A total of $580,000 was distributed to five organizations: Public Education Partnership Fund ($400,000), the Community Development Support Collaborative ($50,000), the Washington AIDS Partnership ($50,000), the Washington Partnership for Immigrants ($50,000), and the Common Ground Fund ($30,000). Bank staff donating computers to nonprofit agency in Washington, D.C . (2005)

The Dollars for Doers volunteer program complements the Bank’s local grantmaking efforts by encouraging Bank staff to volunteer and serve on the boards of directors of local nonprofits. Bank staff are allowed to take time to volunteer in the community, and their efforts are supported with $500 grants from the Dollars for Doers Program. Bank staff provided more than 10,000 hours of community service to charities in the Washington metropolitan area in 2005. Last year, the program increased the Dollars for Doers budget from $30,000 to $60,000 and worked closely with numerous Bank departments wishing to undertake community service projects.

In-kind Donations. This program recycles unused Worldbank office furniture, office supplies, and computer equipment by donating these supplies to local charities.

Student Internships. The high school internship program provides local high school students from low-income communities with the opportunity to learn job skills. During the summer of 2005, 22 students from three local public schools worked as interns in units throughout the Bank. The interns are paid a salary that includes a training session every Friday. The program has also included homeless students for whom this experience has often proven to be part of a life-changing opportunity. This program was recently expanded to include year-long internships for five students.

Payroll Deductions. The WB Community Connections Fund is a nonprofit organization set up by the Bank to encourage staff to make charitable donations via payroll deductions that in turn leverage Bank matching funds. It supports an annual campaign benefiting 193 of the best-known Washington- based charities and NGOs such as Bethany House, DC Central Kitchen, Habitat for Humanity, and Whitman-Walker Clinic. In 2005, staff donated over $1.5 million that leveraged approximately $750,000 in corporate matching funds.

Disaster Relief. Bank staff spontaneously mobilize to respond to natural disasters around the world by setting up donation tables at the various cafeterias. During 2005, funds were raised for the following international relief campaigns: Children of Niger ($14,700), Central America flood relief ($18,142), Hurricane Katrina relief ($83,244), the South Asia/ Pakistan earthquake ($192,019), and the Asian tsunami ($1,434,192). Funds raised through these donation drives are provided to international Stakeholder consultation training course for Bank and CSO staff (held in May 2005 in Washington, D.C.) who work in 35 organizations such as United Nations agencies or NGOs directly involved in the disaster relief operations.

More Information:
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Funding Resources from the World Bank
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