For the many, by the many.
Raft Foundation is a new US-based 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor that brings communities together to support neighbors in need through:
* collective care (mutual aid; basic needs; food justice; migrant and unhoused support; community education; public health; agroecology; community gardening; labor and housing rights; crisis response)* community technology (decentralized tech; open, copyfair, and alternative licensing; security, privacy, anti-surveillance, and encryption; alternative legal and financing structures)* movement infrastructure (regranting; funder organizing; participatory governance; bail funds; popular education; international fiscal hosts; cooperative development; network weaving; conflict transformation)* societal transformation (activist support; community building; peacebuilding/peacemaking; sortition and new democratic systems; transformative justice; facilitation and sense-making; systems thinking; values work; money stories; alternative economies; structural change)
If you think your project could be a fit, please reach out! The above is not comprehensive! All values-aligned projects are encouraged to apply.
To determine if your project is a potential fit for Raft, please review the four program areas on our home page and our organizational values. And then read on to learn more about our fiscal sponsorship program.
Fiscal sponsorship
Fiscal sponsorship (a.k.a., fiscal hosting) is a practice in doing more, better, together.We have yet to find a succinct and totally satisfying way to explain fiscal sponsorship, but through it, Raft Foundation recruits new projects into its 501(c)(3) structure, leveraging its charitable status for grassroots impact and centralizing administrative processes (e.g., finances, insurance, contracts) to lower administrative costs.Through "Model A" (see below) fiscal sponsorship, charitable community projects can begin work quickly without needing to find legal counsel, set up an organization, or set up a bank account.Read the National Network of Fiscal Sponsors' longer definition here.
Benefits
Key benefits:* Quick onboarding: our team will review your application and get back to you within a week, if not faster
* Fast payouts: expenses reviewed and paid at least 3x per week
* Personalized support: our experienced team is available to review donor communications and grant applications
* A supportive online community: we are developing a membership program that brings together talented individuals across many fields to mingle and support one another
* Aligned values: we are on a journey to collectivized governance, read our values here
* Transparent roadmap: read more about our plans to offer more benefits here
Technology
We use the nonprofit-owned transparent finance platform Open Collective to manage our operations. (In the future, when we have more operational muscle and the capital to invest in it, we aspire to offer a non-transparent option.)
Tracks
Raft Foundation offers fiscal sponsorship in two tracks:1. Model A ("comprehensive")
2. Model C ("grantor-grantee" or "pre-approved grant")In the first track, Model A, the fiscally-sponsored project is part of Raft, effectively becoming one of its charitable programs. This means that the project has no formal independent existence, although the project leadership still has significant autonomy.In the second track, Model C, the project is an independent entity, to which Raft grants funds. Those funds are generally taxable income (although many projects are able to balance that out by writing off the corresponding expenses).
Administrative costs
First, we set aside 1% of all income in a collectively-governed pot, the use of which will be determined by members of the organization in a democratic, participatory manner.Then, the additional corresponding administrative cost allocations for these tracks are as follows:1. Model A: 9% of incoming funds + basic insurance allocation (~$300/year)
2. Model C: 7% of incoming funds
Additional policies to pay attention to:* Our standard onboarding cost allocation is $150, but we are quick to waive it for projects starting with $0 or with very low budgets
* For individual donations at or above $250,000, we reduce the cost allocation by 0.75%, and for donations at or above $1 million, we reduce it by an additional 0.75% (for that donation only)
* Model A projects engaging in activities that require additional insurance, and/or that engage in employment through Raft, may see additional related cost allocations to cover direct and indirect costs
* For legal fees associated solely with the project, the project's budget covers 100%; legal fees that are prompted solely by the project, but could potentially benefit future projects, the project's budget covers 50%
* We only accept government grants on a case-by-case basis, and we typically increase the percentage due to increased reporting requirements
* The above percentages do not include payment processor costs, which average 2-3% depending on the donation platform usedIn summary, the full range of cost allocations is 6.5% to 10% plus additional costs, depending on the above policies.
Our role as fiscal sponsor
At Raft, our team takes our responsibility as a fiscal sponsor very seriously.While Raft's fiscally-sponsored projects, enabled by fiscal sponsorship, may feel they have more autonomy, they are also entrusting Raft with final oversight over the use of their funds. Raft's legal responsibility for the activities of its projects requires that it have legal authority regarding projects' charitable funds.We are sensitive to this power dynamic, and thus, when we enter into a contract with a fiscally-sponsored project, it is the beginning of a relationship, one which can only thrive with quality, consistent, open communication. We ask that all our projects consider us a partner on their work, and commit to build long-term, trusting collaboration.Please also review our roadmap and plans regarding membership to learn more about our plans to mitigate these power imbalances where possible.
Join us!
We welcome an introductory conversation with any and all projects that align with our organizational values and fit within one of the four program areas on our home page.If you think your project could be a fit, please reach out!
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Other options
We want projects to feel like you are making an informed decision! Here are some other options to consider:* If you are a mutual aid group based in NYC, consider Pact Collective. They are friends of Raft, and since they are volunteer-operated they can offer a lower cost allocation percentage* Back in mid-2024, Open Collective put together this list of aligned (but not vetted) options* The New Economy Coalition's Solidarity Economy Funding Library maintains a list of fiscal sponsors (filter the Airtable by Type of Org -> "Fiscal Sponsor")
Meet the team
Nathan Hewitt, Founder & PresidentNathan Hewitt (he/him) is a US-based nonprofit and community-tech operations, strategy, and programs professional. He is on the team of Metagov and consults with Aspiration and Fiscal Sponsor Conversations, and has previously been part of DWeb Camp, on the board of Social Impact Commons, and led the operations of Open Collective.Nathan's writing has been featured in Nonprofit Quarterly and WIRED, and he presents and panels on topics such as the future of fiscal sponsorship, the solidarity economy, financial transparency, community engagement, nonprofit management, digital security basics, and DIY zine-making. On his blog, he has written about prison abolition, settler colonialism, and security culture, and he enjoys producing ambient and noise music.Fellow board members:
* Brian Abelson
* Maria Herron
Contact us
Send us an email at [email protected].
Interested in our fiscal sponsorship program?
We would love to speak with you about how we can support your project. Reach out at [email protected], or jump ahead and submit your info via the interest form!
Membership
The below is a sketch of how we imagine we might govern ourselves. It is subject to change, as we grown and learn.
Member types
The idea is that Raft will have two types of members:1. Project Leads (of its fiscally sponsored projects)
2. FellowsThe Project Leads will have the option to join as "Project-Members," and Fellows are non-Project Leads that apply to become part of the organization as "Fellow-Members."
Member obligations
Members must commit to contributing to Raft and its projects. They provide 10 hours per season (i.e., Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter, between solstices and equinoxes) of volunteer work.The type of volunteer work can vary greatly - it can be responding to questions in the forum, writing up a guide on a topic of interest, writing a book review on a topic relevant to Raft's projects, organizing and/or facilitating sessions on different topics of interest to its membership. It can also include providing pro-bono support or services to Raft's projects (other than their own). The possibilities are endless.
Member benefits
Members benefit by having access to all of the private content generated within the organization, its events, and by being part of the network.Additional benefits, supporting the charitable work of Projects and Fellows, may also be added in the future.
Governance
At Raft, we aim to integrate collective governance at every layer of the organization.At the same time, we recognize that fiscal sponsorship is a highly professionalized field - a specialized craft - where specific knowledge and experience is essential to delivering a quality program. And, in the practice of fiscal sponsorship, there are certain moments where someone needs to make a "call," one way or another, and there is not time to run a collective governance process.We also want to balance the fiscal sponsorship program, and the operational structures it requires, with an environment of collaboration. We seek to create an environment of community incubation, where not only are existing projects supported, but new projects organically form. We don't need genius - we want scenius.Thus, our plan is as follows:
1. There is a single executive director - we would not be a worker self-directed nonprofit. The core team would have clear roles and hierarchies - though perhaps could still integrate some aspects of sociocracy
2. The governing board would be selected randomly from the membership and (separately) from the staff, sortition-style.
3. The number of board members would initially scale up with the number of staff, to a maximum of seven (7) members. The number of member representatives will always be one (1) greater than the number of staff (i.e., beginning with 1 staff and 2 membership, then 2 staff and 3 membership, and finally landing at 3 staff and 4 membership board representatives). At least two of the membership representatives should be Project-Members at any given time.
4. Additional circles/committees could form out of the membership in a similar way, for particular temporary or permanent purposesA reminder: this is just a sketch, for now. Presently, the organization is governed by its board of directors.
Values
The waters are rising, and we must rise to meet them.
A raft is about survival and adventure, collaboration and flow. Amidst today's torrent of crises, it's easy to feel helpless. But we believe that if we work together, we can stay afloat, and even shape our collective destiny.We are guided by our founding principles:
* Resilience: 'we will endure together and emerge stronger'
* Autonomy: 'each by our own choice'
* Fullness: 'toward dreams of abundance'
* Transparency: 'with nothing to hide'
(Regarding transparency: internal transparency is essential; complete public transparency is powerful, and thus should be handled with care.)
Secondary principles
As Raft and its community grow, these principles will evolve. The below are the beginnings of an extended organizational philosophy, subject to continuous, collectively-driven iteration:
* Joy, rest, and rigorous care
* Tech is a tool, our data is ours
* Sovereignty and respect
* Only by invitation, and in good relationship
* Interoperable technologies, intersectional lives
* Life-giving, not rent-seeking
* Growth by proliferation, not scale
* Transparency in service of accountability
* Privacy in service of safety
* Iteration in service of revolution
* Autonomy in service of collaboration
* Beyond governments, beyond borders
* From theory to action
* People over profits, planet above all
* A diversity of tactics and approaches
* We can shape the future, but only together
* ‘We’ not ‘they’ – there are no Others
* “The only lasting truth is Change”
~Clarifying notes:- Tech is a tool, our data is ours: We understand that "open source" is no panacea, and is in fact the bedrock of post-dotcom technocapitalism. We are thus quite interested in experiments and more radical licenses. Fundamentally, however, we a practical approach to technology, prioritizing usability/accessibility, then data sovereignty, then business/ownership/stewardship/governance structure, then protocols and interoperability, then licensing and self-hostability.
- Beyond governments, beyond borders: while we do not completely swear off (local, state, federal, international) government funding (e.g., NSF) or collaboration (e.g., human services departments), we only engage in projects that center governments when we believe we can deeply, fundamentally change them (e.g., to make them meaningfully more democratic). Our thinking on this is always evolving and we welcome further dialogue.
Public roadmap
Below, we share our plans for the future. (UNDER CONSTRUCTION)
Phase 1: Fall 2024
* Building the core legal and financial infrastructure: (board recruitment, state entity incorporation, IRS approval, bank account, payment processor accounts, Stripe nonprofit discount, Open Collective profile, IT setup, DUNS number, SAM registration, accounting platform, coop bookkeeping setup
* Marketing site (this website)Phase 2: Winter-Summer 2024-2025
* Insurance
* Developing the fiscal sponsorship program infrastructure (core policy/process development)
* Docs/forum infrastructure, project documentationPhase 3: Fall-Winter 2025-2026
* Initial recruitment push
* Nathan begins working full-timePhase 4: Spring-Summer 2026
By this point, we plan to have enough of a financial base to provide even more benefits to our projects
* Bringing on contract fundraising and grant-writing coaches to support projects
* Bringing on programs to support projects with governance and accountability
* Bringing on an in-house conflict transformation specialist to support projects
* Developing collective governance of the organization (adding project leads to Raft's board, creating sociocratic circles to oversee certain aspects of the organization)Phase 5: Fall 2026
* New team member joins staff
* Implementing collective governance structure
Index of sections on this website (hopefully we will remember to update this):
~ Contact
~ Fiscal sponsorship
~ Home
~ Membership
~ Public roadmap
~ Team
~ Values
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