2026 Minnesota Community IDEAS Grant Recipients

SAINT PAUL, Minn. — July 14, 2026 — Nine Minnesota organizations will each receive $125,000 in unrestricted funding through the 2026 Minnesota Community IDEAS Grant Program, the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation announced today. The recipients work in communities across the state, from the Native Nations of Minnesota to Bemidji and Duluth to Winona, Northfield and Saint Paul. All organizations were chosen by community members serving on three Community Selection Committees.

The Minnesota Community IDEAS Program is a statewide, community-led grant program that provides unrestricted funding to organizations advancing bold ideas with the potential to create significant, long-lasting change in one of three target communities: Native-led, Native-serving, Greater Minnesota and the Twin Cities Metro Area. The Bush Foundation selected the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation as its Minnesota community grant partner to operate the program, which made its first awards in 2025 and awards grants annually through 2027 to organizations located in and serving Minnesota and the 11 Native Nations within the same geography.

The program was designed in 2024 with an advisory committee of philanthropic and nonprofit leaders from across the state. Organizations submitted a brief interest form in January. From the eligible submissions, 20 organizations per target community were selected at random and invited to complete a full application. This approach was designed to remove merit-based bias from the initial selection process, reduce the burden on organizations applying for funding, and create more equitable access to the opportunity for organizations of all sizes and capacities. Those applications were then reviewed by Community Selection Committees — one for each target community, made up of community members from that community — who made the final funding decisions. Applicants who were not chosen for a grant received $750 for the time it took to apply.

“We are excited to celebrate this year’s recipients and the bold ideas they are advancing in communities across the state,” said Kari Onyancha, Senior Director of Partnerships at the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation. “Their work reflects the ingenuity, determination and care that communities across Minnesota bring to the challenges and opportunities they face. We are proud that these funding decisions were shaped by community members who understand firsthand the strengths, needs and possibilities within their own communities.”

Three grants were awarded in each of the three target communities. The 2026 recipients are:

Native-led, Native-serving organizations

Little Earth Residents Association, Minneapolis — littleearth.org

Mewinzha Ondaadiziike Wiigaming, Bemidji — mewinzha.com

Dream of Wild Health, Hugo — dreamofwildhealth.org

Greater Minnesota

Engage Winona, Winona — engagewinona.org

Ecolibrium3, Duluth — ecolibrium3.org

Sharing Our Roots, Northfield — sharing-our-roots.org

Twin Cities seven-county metro area

Rondo Community Land Trust, Saint Paul — rondoclt.org

Bellis, Saint Paul — mybellis.org

Sheletta Makes a Difference, Twin Cities — shelettamakesadifference.org

The grants carry no restrictions and no reporting requirement. Each organization decides how to use the funding — operating costs, program expenses, capital, reserves — and the Foundation will meet annually with each recipient through 2027 for shared reflection and learning.

To learn more about the Minnesota Community IDEAS Program and the 2026 recipients, visit spmcf.org.

About the Minnesota Community IDEAS Program

The Minnesota Community IDEAS Program is an annual statewide grant program that supports organizations designing, testing and spreading ideas that make Minnesota communities better for everyone, and that inspire, equip and connect people through meaningful, community-led change. The Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation operates the program as the Minnesota community grant partner of the Bush Foundation, which funds parallel programs through partners in North Dakota, South Dakota and Native Nations. Grants are awarded within three target communities — Native-led and Native-serving organizations, Greater Minnesota, and the Twin Cities seven-county metro area — and funding decisions are made by Community Selection Committees composed of community members.

About the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation

The Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation believes in the best of Minnesota and the power of its communities. With roots in Saint Paul and partners across the state, it is Minnesota's largest community foundation and the partner of choice for thousands of donors, nonprofits and community organizations. The Foundation aspires to create an equitable, just and vibrant Minnesota where all communities and people thrive by inspiring generosity, advocating for equity and investing in community-led solutions. To learn more, visit spmcf.org.