Maine Initiatives invites community volunteers to become proposal readers for its 2023 Grants for Change (G4C) Program, a participatory grant-making program that funds and strengthens Black, Indigenous, and/or People of Color, community-based, nonprofit organizations in Maine, unceded Wabanaki territory.

This is an open call for volunteers to review and evaluate grant proposals from applicant organizations, and contribute to the decision-making process.

The foundation understands that racial justice and equity are not achieved through perfect grant making, but are relational — they require people to come to a deeper understanding of themselves in relation to others in community. Members seek to foster this type of transformation through the proposal reader process, creating opportunities for individual reflection and collective conversation about the needs of a robust and sustainable racial justice movement across the state, according to a news release from the Portland-based foundation.

Hundreds of Proposal Readers contribute to the G4C Program annually.

In addition to reading and evaluating applicant organization proposals, readers can also attend special trainings, workshops, and G4C events. Selected readers may also be invited to join the Grantmaking Advisory Committee, its primary decision-making body.

An informal gathering for all readers is scheduled for 5-6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 13, in Portland. More information is to follow.

To learn more about how to become a reader:

• Download and read the 2023 G4C Proposal Reader packet at maineinitiatives.org.
• Fill out the G4C Proposal Reader application.
• Register for the 2023 Grants for Change Proposal Reader Information Session from noon-1 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 15, where the G4C Program, the Proposal Reader Process, will be discussed and any questions will be addressed.
• All applications are due by 11:59 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 10.

For more information, visit its website.

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