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Seven years ago, we set out to do something bold and different, launching the first round of 100&Change. Now, we are launching the third cycle to help address another of the world’s most critical issues.
By funding 100&Change at a level far above what is typical in philanthropy, we seek to address problems and support solutions that are radically different in scale, scope, and complexity. We believe $100 million can enable real progress toward a meaningful and lasting solution to a critical problem of our time.
The first and second rounds of 100&Change offered opportunities for learning. An evaluation of the selection process from the inaugural competition informed changes to the selection process for the 2020 award recipient.
In the second round, we created an organizational readiness tool to help potential applicants determine their readiness to compete in 100&Change. We added a participatory review process, where applicants within the same domain scored and provided feedback on each other’s proposals.
Proposals experienced a drop in the number of applications compared to the inaugural competition, 755 in 2021 vs. 1,904 in 2017 due to the introduction of the organizational readiness tool and a peer-to-peer review before the Wise Head Panel review. We believe that the new organizational readiness tool helped eliminate projects that were not a good fit for 100&Change, and we will continue to use it.
For the third round of the competition, we revisited the application criteria to align with MacArthur’s Just Imperative rooted in the value of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
As a result, we have added “just” as a criterion. In doing so, we sought to frame the five criteria as a whole so that any applicant can see their project reflected. We ask applicants to demonstrate a commitment to equity, inclusion, and accessibility and provide a solution that benefits different populations equitably. We believe there is no topic that is exempt or excluded from these commitments, and so this criterion is not a barrier to entry.
These changes are intended to provide an enhanced level of feedback and ensure that all applicants benefit at each stage of the competition.
We are open to ideas that identify a single problem and its proposed solution. We welcome applications from around the world as well as from both nonprofit and for-profit organizations (subject to the rules that govern private foundations). We hope to inspire a wide range of applications that propose real, measurable solutions to significant problems from any field or sector.
Use the organizational readiness tool to find out. We created this tool to help potential applicants determine their readiness to compete in 100&Change.
Any organization or legal entity, except for government agencies and individuals, can apply, subject to eligibility rules. All projects must further a charitable purpose. A 501(c)4 organization is not eligible to participate as a lead applicant. A 501(c)4 organization may participate in or collaborate on a project advanced by an eligible entity such as a 501(c)3 organization provided the following conditions are met: (i) the project must have a clearly articulated charitable purpose, (ii) the eligible organization will have the legal responsibility and authority for the use of and reporting on any grant funds, and would exercise in fact and law direction, control and supervision of the proposed project; (iii) none of the funds would be used by the 501(c)4 organization other than for the identified charitable purpose, and (iv) the 501(c)4 organization would not engage in any political activities, including participating in or contributing to a political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to any political candidate, or lobby any legislative entity as part of or with respect to the project.
We welcome applicants of any size but have generally found that larger organizations are more likely to effectively absorb and deploy very large grants. While this is not true for all organizations, we encourage you to think critically about whether your organization would be able to take on such a large amount of capital over only a few years, particularly if a $100 million (USD) grant would dramatically increase your annual operating budget.
Yes—keeping in mind the feedback and comments received from the Wise Head Panel and/or Participatory Review on any prior submission. Applicants should also review changes to the scoring rubric.
Government entities, inter-governmental agencies, regional cooperation bodies, and agencies, organizations, organs or elements of the United Nations, are not eligible to participate as the lead applicant. However, such entities can participate in or collaborate on a project submitted by a lead applicant as long as the identified lead applicant/grant recipient is a qualified organization with the legal responsibility and authority for the use of and reporting on any grant funds, and would exercise in fact and law direction, control and supervision of the proposed project and the grant funds. The lead entity cannot act as a pass-through to a government entity as 100&Change is not intended to fund services ordinarily provided by government. Tribes and affiliates or entities of Tribes are not included in this prohibition and can apply as the lead entity.
We encourage you to select a single project that best represents your organization's ability to deliver a solution that is impactful, evidence-based, feasible, durable, and just. Please review the application requirements, rules, and scoring process to understand how your submission will be evaluated.
An organization may submit more than one application. Regional or location-specific branches of larger organizations, as well as departments, schools, and nonprofits within or based in a college/university, can each register and submit separately as the lead applicant on more than one application as long as the proposed solutions are different and separate. Each application must be submitted by a different team member using a unique email address. Overlapping membership of advisory boards is permitted. The intent of the policy is to ensure that any team is concentrating their best effort into a single application.
Organizations with fiscal sponsors are eligible to apply. The lead organization should be a single legal eligible entity with the legal responsibility, authority for and control of the use of any grants funds and be responsible for the reporting on any grant funds and must be able to exercise in fact and law direction, control and supervision of the proposed project and the grant funds. We leave this up to each team to determine and describe in the application and MOU. Applicants may list both the fiscal sponsor and the organization name in the Lead Organization field on the registration form (such as Organization Name (Fiscal Sponsor) or Fiscal Sponsor – Organization Name).
Once selected to receive an award, the lead organization will be required to enter into an additional separate agreement with and acceptable to the competition sponsor (i.e. MacArthur Foundation) pursuant to which, among other things, it reaffirms in writing its agreement to specific key terms and conditions and rules. Should you advance to the later stages of 100&Change, you will have the opportunity to provide updated information as needed for the lead organization formally entering into this separate agreement.
No sector or field is out of bounds of this competition. All proposals, however, submissions must propose a serious solution to a significant problem that has a charitable purpose. Proposals must then pass through a rigorous application process and meet the requirements of being impactful, evidence-based, feasible, durable, and just.
The award is expected to be used for the purposes of the project. We realize, however, that in some circumstances an applicant may have necessary overhead that can be fairly allocable to the project. The MacArthur Foundation allows no more than 29% of the grant for overhead consistent with our Indirect Cost Policy.
Subgrants are considered project-related costs and a partner's indirect costs can be included as part of the total subgrant designated for that partner. The 29% refers to all indirect costs of the $100M project you are proposing.
For ineligible activities (per the readiness tool):
Reasonable costs related to construction, infrastructure, research, scholarships, etc. that are part of the larger proposed solution are allowed.
Please review the rules for more information.
The following are required in order to complete and submit an application for 100&Change:
We considered three different models.
The first was a crowdsourcing model. We liked the idea of people proposing which problems to solve and having a crowd vote whether a proposal is meaningful or compelling. But we did not want 100&Change to turn into a popularity contest.
The second approach was the specialists’ panel model, where we would define a field of work and then identify experts to evaluate applications. There was a sense, however, that experts in a certain field tend to struggle with new ideas that come from outside of their discipline.
What we realized is crowds provide a way to take more risks and innovate. And the wisdom of experts is important. So, we decided to create a crowd of wise experts. We refer to them as our Wise Head Panel. We will randomly assign proposals to them and ask them to score proposals based on their broad knowledge. Each application that advances past Participatory Review will be reviewed by a minimum of five Wise Heads.
Since the inaugural round of 100&Change, we have worked with an evaluation panel of 699 Wise Heads, including thinkers, visionaries, and experts in fields that included education, public health, impact investing, technology, the sciences, the arts, and human rights.
We will ask them to use the scoring rubric to determine whether projects are impactful, evidence-based, feasible, durable, and just.
The Wise Heads will score criteria on a 1-5 scale, similar to the process during participatory review. We do not want to disadvantage a proposal that is assigned to a Wise Head who tends to give low scores or tip the scale in favor of a proposal that has a Wise Head who tends to score high. Scores will be statistically normalized to ensure that no matter which Wise Heads are assigned to an applicant, each proposal will be given equal consideration.
The competition launched on Wednesday, May 22, 2024. You must register by 5:00 PM U.S. Central Time on Thursday, August 15, 2024. Applications are due no later than 5:00 PM U.S. Central Time on Thursday, September 5, 2024.
Evaluation takes place following the submission deadline with an administrative review to check for compliance with the rules and application requirements. Participatory Review is from October to November, and Wise Head Panel review is from November to December. Finalists will be selected in the Spring 2025 and an awardee will be selected in Winter 2025.
The awardee of 100&Change will be provided up to a five-year grant period - please see the application (Solution Overview, Durability of Impact, Project Phases) and the timeline for more information.
In the inaugural round of 100&Change, Sesame Workshop and International Rescue Committee were awarded $100 million in 2017 to educate young children displaced by conflict and persecution in the Syrian response region and to challenge the global system of humanitarian aid to focus more on building a foundation for future success for millions of young children.
In 2021, in the second round of 100&Change, the MacArthur Foundation announced a $100 million grant to Community Solutions to accelerate an end to homelessness in 75 U.S. communities in five years.
Lever for Change was born of the success of the MacArthur’s 100&Change competition, which awarded its first $100 million grant in 2017 and leveraged an additional $511 million to date in funding, thus spurring the philanthropic sector to rethink its approach to achieving impact at scale.
Founded in 2019 as a nonprofit affiliate of the MacArthur Foundation with the goal of driving $1 billion in philanthropic funding to bold solutions by 2023, Lever for Change has influenced more than $1.7 billion in awards and provided support to more than 175 organizations to date.
Lever for Change is dedicated to tackling the world’s biggest problems—including issues like racial inequity, gender inequality, lack of access to economic opportunity, and climate change. By matching donors with problem solvers—through customized challenges and tailored funding opportunities—Lever for Change helps to find and fund bold, effective solutions to accelerate social change.
What is unique about 100&Change is its focus on problems and their solutions, and the requirement that proposals address both. It is also unique because no single field or problem area is designated, unlike most prizes and challenges, and proposals from all sectors and anywhere in the world are encouraged.
Working with philanthropic and nonprofit partners and others, Lever for Change is creating new infrastructure to allow willing and interested funders to explore ideas excluded from consideration by “invite only” policies regarding proposals.
The openness and transparency of the 100&Change application process are also distinctive. Applicants know exactly what they are being scored on, and every applicant receives meaningful feedback on their proposal from our Wise Head Panel. The process provides vital feedback—and useful public visibility—to applicants, even if they do not ultimately receive the grant.
Registration confirmation. Once your registration form is complete, you will be able to access the rest of the platform, including the application and Forums. You will not receive an automated email.
Application confirmation. Be sure to preview your application ahead of submitting. Once you’re ready, submit your application and the status of your application will be reflected on the dashboard. You will not receive an automated email.
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Deadlines. We understand many applicants work on their applications outside of the platform. We strongly encourage applicants to begin completing the application online at least 1-2 weeks ahead of the deadline to allow enough time to enter all the responses and attachments. Our submission deadline is firm and we will not extend it to help ensure fairness for all our participants.
