Grantmaking

YPF strengthens a statewide ecosystem by connecting local organizing with broader movement infrastructure. Through our collaborative structure and shared leadership with the field, YPF offers funders a high-impact way to invest in long-term youth power.

YPF grantees are on the frontlines of urgent and intersecting issues, including:

Climate justice
Immigrant rights
Racial justice
Economic justice
Housing justice
Education justice
Mental health and wellbeing
Youth leadership development

Civic engagement and democracy
Criminal justice reform
Policing and abolition
Worker rights
Gender justice
LGBTQ+ liberation
Disability justice
Digital equity

YPF currently operates in The Bay Area, Central Coast, and North Coast, and is expanding to regions throughout the Central Valley and Southern California. 

How Our Grantmaking Works

Youth Power Fund’s grantmaking is driven by young people and those closest to the work. Through a structured partnership between youth organizers and funders, priorities are shaped by the field and carried through each step of the process. Working with Youth Organize! California, YPF ensures grantmaking reflects collective strategy and lived experience. Funds are ultimately administered by Amalgamated Charitable Foundation, turning shared priorities into action without top-down decision-making.

  • Youth organizers, organizational leaders, and funders come together in a structured design process to surface the most urgent priorities shaping the field.

  • Young leaders and funders co-create application criteria, review proposals, and make grant decisions together, ensuring those closest to the work guide where resources go.

  • A small group of contributing funders meets regularly to align on fundraising, communications, and operational support that sustains the fund’s work.

  • A focused advisory group translates shared priorities into action, supporting execution, learning, and long-term strategy.

  • The model scales across regions, strengthening local leadership and supporting cohorts beyond grant dollars to build durable infrastructure.

  • Funds are administered responsibly and deployed in alignment with collective strategy, reflecting shared decision-making rather than top-down control.

“One of our youth program participants was able to move from an unpaid internship to a full time paid position where they are growing in leadership, civic engagement, and solidarity building collaborations.”

— Lark Doolan, Executive Director - Queer Humboldt