The Republic is proud to announce that they have received not one, but two funding grants from the Open Society Foundations (OSF) and the Mellon Foundation!
The Open Society Foundations (OSF) has granted them a whopping $200,000 and the Mellon Foundation has granted them a staggering $300,000.
The Republic × The Open Society Foundations (OSF) Partnership
African ideas are not yet mainstream even on the continent, and The Republic is on a mission to change this by developing an Open Access Network of universities across West Africa. As of September 2024, they have received $200,000 from OSF to support this development alongside other Republic initiatives.
OSF champions the search for bold, democratic solutions to urgent, common challenges that advance justice, equity, and human dignity. According to OSF, they do this by ‘supporting a wide array of independent voices and organisations around the world that provide a creative and dynamic link between the governing and the governed.’
Funding from OSF has allowed them to embark on a journey to provide free digital and print access to The Republic for 10 Nigerian universities and 5 more in West Africa! This will involve setting up satellite Republic chapters across these universities and making use of already existing networks. Their chapters will operate as voluntary university clubs—rather than set up new clubs, they will partner with already existing aligned academic communities such as Nigeria’s Union of Campus Journalists and press clubs in other countries. Through these communities, members will have the opportunity to enrich ongoing teaching, debate Republic essays and contribute essays to The Republic, thereby actively shaping and reshaping the public sphere.
The Open Society Foundations, founded by George Soros, are the world’s largest private funder of independent groups working for justice, democratic governance, and human rights.
The Republic × The Mellon Foundation
Through their Arts and Culture program, Mellon celebrates the power of the arts to challenge, activate, and nourish the human spirit. They support exceptional creative practice, scholarship, and conservation practices while nurturing a representative and robust arts and culture ecosystem. They work with artists, curators, conservators, scholars, and organisations to ensure equitable access to excellent arts and cultural experiences and support approaches that place the arts and artists at the centre of thriving, healthy communities.
Three interconnected strategies guide Mellon’s Arts and Culture grantmaking.
- Supporting exceptional organisations and artists that have been historically under-resourced, including the creation, conservation, and preservation of their artwork, histories, collections, and traditions.
- Supporting visionary artists and practitioners and the participatory roles they play across institutions and communities.
- Creating scaffolding for experiments with new economic paradigms and institutional models that centre equity and justice and creative problem-solving in arts and culture.
It is through these objectives that they have granted The Republic the $300,000 grant funding.
The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation is the United States’ largest supporter of the arts and humanities. Since 1969, the Foundation has been guided by its core belief that the humanities and arts are essential to human understanding.
The Republic aims to establish itself as a regional, leading hub/platform for Black and Africa-focused ideas and critical perspectives; and to further connect Africa and the African diaspora on critical issues. They intend to achieve this by expanding their coverage beyond web and into audio, video, print and additional multimedia, as well as in-person formats.
Congratulations to The Republic on this momentous occasion!
For more on the grants, please visit The Republic, The Mellon Foundation, and The Open Society Foundation websites.
Bongiwe T. Maphosa
Bongiwe Maphosa is a budding author with a passion for storytelling. With her thought-provoking narratives, she takes her readers on a literary adventure. Bongiwe's works on the human condition from a fresh perspective have earned her recognition and publications in the Avbob Poetry Anthology of 2019, The Writer's Club of South Africa 2021, and JAY Lit in 2021. She hopes to cement her place in the literary community.
