Up to $50M Available for Ideas That Transform San Francisc
- Ty Boone
- Aug 7
- 4 min read
Crankstart and Lever for Change have launched a $150 million competition seeking ambitious ideas that can make San Francisco a better place to live.
Boundless San Francisco is open to proposals across virtually any subject area. Organizations may address housing, public health, education, economic mobility, climate resilience, arts and culture, community safety, technology, public spaces, or another challenge affecting the people who live and work in the city.
However, this is not simply a large grant for expanding an existing direct-service program. The competition is looking for ideas capable of changing the systems, policies, conditions, or opportunity structures shaping life in San Francisco.
Up to three organizations will ultimately receive between $10 million and $50 million each.
Grant Breakdown
Boundless San Francisco
Boundless San Francisco is funded by Crankstart and managed by Lever for Change.
The competition is designed to identify bold, durable, and evidence-informed solutions that can produce meaningful change across San Francisco.
Funding Organization: Crankstart
Competition Manager: Lever for Change
Total Funding Available: Up to $150 million
Number of Finalists: Three to seven
Finalist Development Support: A total of $1 million to $3.5 million divided among the finalists
Number of Final Awardees: Up to three
Final Award Amount: $10 million to $50 million per awardee
Geographic Focus: City and County of San Francisco
Subject Areas: Open
Applicants may also request flexible, below-market financing, such as a low-interest loan, when that financing is necessary to implement the proposed solution.
Eligible Applicants
Organizations may apply from San Francisco, elsewhere in the United States, or outside the country.
Eligible lead organizations may include:
U.S.-based 501(c)(3) public charities
Eligible fiscally sponsored projects
Colleges and universities
Private operating foundations
Tribal governments
Foreign charitable or nonprofit organizations meeting the competition’s requirements
National, regional, or local government entities
For-profit companies and certain hybrid organizations
Individuals and certain entities treated as individuals for tax purposes may not serve as the lead organization.
The lead applicant must be a legally established organization in good standing. It must also have the authority and financial capacity to control the project, manage the award, oversee participating partners, and report on the use of funds.
Geographic Requirements
The proposed project must primarily benefit people who live or work in the City and County of San Francisco.
No more than 25% of project activities may be directed toward the surrounding Bay Area counties outside San Francisco.
Organizations without an existing San Francisco presence are not automatically excluded. However, they must present a credible plan for establishing the local relationships, partnerships, knowledge, and operational capacity necessary to implement the work successfully.
A national reputation will not replace local understanding.
What the Competition Is Looking For
Proposals will be evaluated using four primary criteria.
Transformative Ambition
The project should move beyond isolated service delivery and address the systems, policies, norms, or opportunity structures sustaining the problem.
Direct services may be included, but they should contribute to a broader strategy for changing conditions across the city.
Viability
Applicants must present a clear and specific implementation plan.
Reviewers will consider whether the organization understands San Francisco, the communities affected by the issue, and the partnerships required to achieve the proposed results.
Evidence of Results
Applicants should present quantitative or qualitative evidence demonstrating that the proposed approach works or is likely to work.
Early-stage ideas may still be considered, but their theory of change must be supported by credible reasoning and relevant evidence from comparable work.
Durability
The proposal must explain how the solution and its benefits will continue beyond the award period.
A project that requires permanent philanthropic support without a sustainability strategy is unlikely to meet the standard.
Application and Selection Process
Applicants must first register for the competition. Registration is separate from submitting the complete application.
Valid applications will initially be evaluated through a participatory-review process. Each participating applicant will be required to evaluate four peer proposals.
Top-scoring applications will advance to review by an evaluation panel. The competition team may request additional information before selecting three to seven finalists.
Finalists will receive project-development support and technical assistance to strengthen their proposals. Up to three final awardees are expected to be selected in fall 2027.
Important Dates
Applicant webinar: August 18, 2026
Registration deadline: September 11, 2026, before 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time
Complete application deadline: October 9, 2026, before 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time
Participatory review: November and December 2026
Final award decisions: Expected in fall 2027
Review the complete Boundless San Francisco competition, rules, and application requirements.
This is a transformational funding opportunity, and it requires transformational readiness.
An organization should not begin with the question, “How can we turn our current program into a $50 million proposal?”
The stronger question is, “What condition affecting San Francisco are we prepared to change at scale, and what evidence proves that our organization can lead that change?”
A competitive applicant will need a clearly defined problem, a credible theory of change, measurable evidence, strong community relationships, experienced leadership, financial controls, an implementation structure, and a realistic sustainability model.
The award amount is substantial because the expected level of organizational maturity is equally substantial.
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