The majority of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation's grants are awarded through competitive (request-for-proposal) processes or by invitation. This is also true of the grantmaking process for the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art. While very few grants result from unsolicited letters of inquiry, foundation staff do review unsolicited letters from nonprofit organizations to see if there is a possible fit with DDCF's or DDFIA's program goals and strategies and to identify potential funding opportunities.
Prior to submitting a letter of inquiry to DDCF, interested applicants are strongly encouraged to review the grantmaking processes for the appropriate program to determine the potential fit of their project with the program's strategies: Performing Arts, Medical Research, Environment, Child Well-being. Those interested in submitting a proposal to DDFIA should review the grantmaking processes and strategies of the Building Bridges Program.
Eligibility
Only letters of inquiry submitted by U.S. nonprofit organizations will be reviewed, as the foundation cannot award grants directly to individuals. Individual performing artists seeking funding for the creation or distribution of artistic work should review the Performing Arts Program section to determine eligibility for funding through one of the re-granting programs supported by the foundation. Clinical scientists seeking funding for clinical research should review the Medical Research Program section to determine eligibility for one of the foundation’s competitive award programs.
Submitting a Letter of Inquiry
DDCF and DDFIA request that unsolicited letters of inquiry be submitted electronically using the appropriate form linked below. Your form can be saved for later completion, but cannot be edited once it has been submitted. The forms request the following information:
- Nonprofit Tax ID (This is required to access the form)
- Title of the proposed project
- Brief description of the specific project for which funding is sought
- Requested funding amount
- Description of how the objectives of the proposed project relate to those of the foundation
- Organization mission and strategies
- A primary contact for the organization (This person will receive the foundation's reply via email)
Supplemental materials cannot be submitted at this stage of the inquiry process.
Staff will respond to letters of inquiry within two months and will notify the writer if additional information is desired.
Start a New Letter of Inquiry to a DDCF Program
Start a New Letter of Inquiry to DDFIA's Building Bridges Program