WNY Forward Fund/Strategic Realignment & Nonprofit Resiliency
Forecasted
WNY Forward Fund/Strategic Realignment & Nonprofit Resiliency supports Western New York nonprofits in exploring alliances, mergers, restructuring, and dissolution to strengthen long-term resilience.
Funder: Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo
Due Dates (Anticipated): July 2027 (Application deadline)
Funding Amounts: $2,500–$25,000 per grant; $450,000 allocated for the described funding round
Summary: Supports Western New York nonprofits exploring structural alliances, mergers, restructuring, and dissolution planning to strengthen long-term resilience.
Key Information: Funding supports exploration and planning, not implementation, collaborative programming, or network and coalition support.
Description
The WNY Forward Fund is a collaboration of 15 Western New York funders, managed by the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo. Its Strategic Realignment & Nonprofit Resiliency opportunity helps local nonprofits rethink how they operate amid shifting federal funding, financial strain, and increasing community need. The goal is to encourage innovation and strengthen organizations’ ability to sustain their missions and respond to community needs.
This opportunity supports exploration of structural alliances, shared services and infrastructure, mergers or affiliations, strategic restructuring, and voluntary dissolution. The fund particularly favors planning work that produces a formal timeline, business model, or implementation plan, including legal, financial, and other third-party consulting services. It is intended to help organizations assess structural changes rather than implement them or replace traditional funding for ongoing operations and services.
