About Chan Zuckerberg Initiative Advocacy
Founded by Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg in 2015, CZI works to help solve society’s toughest challenges — from curing or preventing disease to improving education and addressing the needs of local communities — by combining grantmaking, technology, impact investing, and policy/advocacy.
Focus Areas
Biomedical research / Open scienceRare disease research (Rare As One Project)K-12 education equityCommunity & local grants (San Mateo County, Kauaʻi)Open source software for scienceVenture investments in mission-aligned companies
Funding Style
general operating supportunrestricted/core fundingflexible fundingoperational sustainability
About Chan Zuckerberg Initiative Advocacy
Chan Zuckerberg Initiative Advocacy shows a pronounced commitment to general operating support, with one of its largest recent awards going to Fwdus Inc. for $34,120,122 in 2024. The foundation’s recent grantmaking also includes repeated large-scale support for The Just Trust for Action, underscoring a pattern of sustained backing rather than one-off awards. Founded by Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg in 2015, the organization is framed around helping solve society’s toughest challenges through grantmaking, technology, impact investing, and policy/advocacy. In the recent grants list, that approach appears in funding for civic and policy-oriented work as well as other mission-aligned efforts. The foundation’s leadership is listed as Cristina Huezo, and its giving is regional rather than national in scope. Recent grants include major operating support for organizations in Washington, DC, Durham, NC, and San Francisco, CA, indicating that it uses large grants to support organizational capacity across a small number of recipients. The pattern suggests a funder that often backs established groups with substantial, flexible funding.
What Chan Zuckerberg Initiative Advocacy Funds
A clear theme in the recent grants is policy and advocacy infrastructure. The largest listed award was $34,120,122 to Fwdus Inc. for general operating support, followed by additional operating support to the same organization in later grants. The foundation also awarded $26,250,000 to The Just Trust for Action in 2023, 2024, and 2025, again for general operating support, showing repeated backing for the same organization over multiple years. In California, it gave $8,000,000 to Nph Action Fund for general operating support. Another grant went to California Yimby in Sacramento for $1,500,000, also as general operating support. Across these awards, the shared pattern is flexible funding for organizations working in advocacy, policy, and systems-level change.
How Chan Zuckerberg Initiative Advocacy Gives
Typical grant size is large: the 25th percentile is $3,125,000, the median is $17,125,000, and the 75th percentile is $26,250,000. Recent awards cluster around general operating support rather than restricted project funding. The same grantees can appear across multiple years, most clearly The Just Trust for Action, which received the same $26,250,000 amount in 2023, 2024, and 2025. The foundation is a regular funder, not a donor-advised fund vehicle, and it does not fund individuals. Its giving pattern points to recurring, flexible support for a small set of organizations.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$29.1M
Total Assets
$32.9M
Total Revenue
$76M
Total Expenses
$32.1M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $3.1M and $26.3M, with a median of $17.1M.
25th Percentile
$3.1M
Median
$17.1M
75th Percentile
$26.3M
Geographic Reach
Regional3 states funded
About 25% of grants go to recipients in DC.
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
Leadership
CRISTINA HUEZO
Accepts unsolicited proposals
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