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Illuminative Inc at a glanceMostly funded, not a grantmaker: see who funds it →

· Public charity

Illuminative Inc

Our mission is to build power for native peoples by amplifying contemporary native voices, stories, and issues to advance justice, equity, and self-determination.

$2.6M
Granted FY2025still arriving
24
Grants FY2025still arriving
14
States reached
$425k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2023 to 2025.

Arts & Culture$2.1MCivil Rights$713kCommunity Improvement$387kHealth$375kPublic Benefit$255kYouth Development$194kHuman Services$70kEnvironment$65kOther$0
02FY2025 · 24 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • $10k–50k10 grants · $270k
  • $50k–250k10 grants · $1.0M
  • $250k+4 grants · $1.3M
$60,000
Median grant
14
States reached
$0
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
AMPLIFIER FOUNDATION$425,000
UNITED SOUTH & EASTERN TRIBES INC$300,000
THE CENTER FOR NATIVE HEALTH INC$300,000
SUNDANCE INSTITUTE$300,000
NATIVE MOVEMENT$200,000
LONE WOLF DOCUMENTARY GROUP$160,000
ALLIANCE FOR A JUST SOCIETY$150,000
COMMUNITY PARTNERS$105,000
BIG SKY FILM INSTITUTE$100,000
NATIVE AMERICAN RIGHTS FUND$75,000
NATIONAL CONGRESS OF AMERICAN INDIANS$63,000
YOUTH FORWARD$60,000
NATIVE AMERICANS IN PHILANTHROPY$50,000
RED AMBITION PRODUCTIONS LLC$50,000
ONE INNERTAINMENT INC$40,000
02The need
03

Does the money reach high-need areas?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.

show:

Its human-services grants (FY23–23, $30k) land where the poverty rate runs at 8%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 33% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%OPEN ARMS PERINATAL SERVICES: $10k → 9%AMERICAN INDIAN YOUTH RUNNING STRONG INC: $10k → 6%PHOENIX INDIAN CENTER: $10k → 11%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount
How this is measured
Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty line in the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP.

Which US states its grants reach

AK
ME
WA
MT
MN
WI
MI
NY
NV
SD
CA
UT
CO
VA
AZ
NM
TN
NC
DC
OK
How this is measured
US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are delivered. Need from public data (U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA), shown as context about the area, never attributed to the funder’s giving.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

28%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$1.2M · 10 repeat orgs$3.0M to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +13% since the first grant, against 0% for those funded once.

10 repeat relationships: 7 still active in FY2025, 3 since wound down; 17 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

10
11

Total granted

$1.2M
$1.1M

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+13%
0%

Still filing today

100%
55%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 24% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $2.0M went to new ones.

50%100%’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’23’24’25
Arts & CultureCommunity ImprovementCivil RightsHuman ServicesEducationHealthOther
How this is measured
First-time means a grantee’s first year in the filing window; renewed means funded in an earlier year too. The renewed share climbs naturally as a portfolio matures, so the signal is a year that bucks it (a wave of new grantees). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as new. Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • NM
    NATIVE MOVEMENT
    2× · 2024–2025 · $250k · revenue +13%
  • HC
    HARNESS COMMUNITY
    2× · 2023–2024 · $85k · revenue +36%
  • NA
    Native American Community Development Institute
    2× · 2023–2024 · $85k · revenue +11%

Funded once

  • PL
    PSFFLP LLC
    one grant, 2024 · $750k
  • IP
    INDIJ PUBLIC MEDIA
    one grant, 2024 · $100k · revenue 0%
  • NP
    NATIVESOUTDOORS PBC
    one grant, 2024 · $50k
How this is measured

Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Its field

Closest unfunded matches

The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians

The affiliated tribes of northwest indians is founded on the principles of unity and cooperation among indian governments and people.

—
2
International Indian Treaty Council Inc

The International Indian Treaty Council (IITC) is an organization of Indigenous Peoples working for self-determination and the recognition and protection of human rights, treaties, traditional cultures, and sacred lands and waters.

Civil Rights
3
Indigenous Women Rising Indigeous Women Rising
—
4
American Indian Institute

The american indian institute's mission is to perpetuate the ancient wisdom and cultural heritage of north america's native people and to promote a greater understanding of that wisdom amoung all people.

Human Services
5
Na'ah Illahee Fund

Naah Illahee Fund is an Indigenous-led organization rooted in the Northwest region of Turtle Island. Our mission is to catalyze the ongoing regeneration of Indigenous communities through participatory grantmaking, capacity building, and…

International
6
American Indian Services

We're dedicated to helping Native Americans have access to a quality education, while still preserving their culture and honoring their heritage. Our mission is to provide preparatory programs for youth and financial assistance for those…

Human Services
7
The Foundation for Indigenous Education Leadership Development
Education
8
Native Wellness Institute

The Native Wellness Institute provides wellness and healing related training and technical assistance to Indian tribes and organizations that is based in Native culture that keeps the teachings of our ancestors alive.

Human Services
9
Northern California Indian Development Council Inc

Research, develop, and administer social and economic development programs to meet the needs of indian and native american communities and individuals residing in the state of california. also for the conservation and preservation of…

—
10
Washington Indian Civil Rights Commission

Washington Indian Civil Rights Commission is led by and for Indigenous people, and envisions a just society in which we are treated with honor, fairness and respect. Our mission is to uphold our individual civil rights through education…

Human Services
11
First Nations Development Institute

First nations development institute advances and promotes the direct participation of tribes, tribal members, and other indigenous peoples in the full use of the economy.

—
12
Tribal Law and Policy Institute

Tribal Law and Policy Institute (TLPI) is a Native American operated non-profit:Dedicated to providing free publication resources, comprehensive training, and technical assistance for Native nations and tribal justice systems in pursuit of…

Crime & Legal
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Native Americans in Philanthropy; the most unlike its peers is Alliance for a Just Society. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
04the grantee network

31 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2025.

Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.

How this is measured

Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2025, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 31 of the 38 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

0
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
8
Early backer (in before they grew)
30/31
Grantees still filing
17/31
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

PSFFLP LLC: $750,000 · OtherPSFFLP LLCUNITED SOUTH AND EASTERN TRIBESINC: $300,000 · OtherUNITED SOUTH AND EASTERN TRIBESINCLONE WOLF DOCUMENTARY GROUP: $160,000 · OtherLONE WOLF DOCUMENTARY GROUPCALIFORNIA CONSORTIUM FOR URBAN INDIAN HEALTH: $75,000 · OtherNATIONAL CONGRESS OF AMERICAN INDIANS: $63,000 · Other+6 more: $225,000 · Other+6 moreAmplifier Foundation: $425,000 · Arts & CultureAmplifier FoundationSundance Institute: $300,000 · Arts & CultureSundance InstituteINDIJ PUBLIC MEDIA: $100,000 · Arts & CultureINDIJ PUBLIC MEDIABIG SKY FILM INSTITUTE: $100,000 · Arts & CultureBIG SKY FILM INSTITUTENative American Community Development Institute: $85,000 · Arts & CultureNative American Community Deve…MEZTLI PROJECTS INC: $65,000 · Arts & CultureMEZTLI PROJECTS INC+3 more: $45,000 · Arts & CultureNATIVE MOVEMENT: $250,000 · Community ImprovementNATIVE MOVEMENTALLIANCE FOR A JUST SOCIETY: $170,000 · Community ImprovementALLIANCE FOR A J…COMMUNITY PARTNERS: $126,500 · Community ImprovementCOMMUNITY PARTNE…MIIGWECH INC: $40,000 · Community ImprovementMIIGWECH INCMOVEMENT STRATEGY CENTER: $30,000 · Community Improvement+1 more: $10,000 · Community ImprovementThe Center For Native Health Inc: $300,000 · EducationMENOMINI YOU INC: $30,000 · EducationHARNESS COMMUNITY: $85,000 · Civil RightsArizona Native Vote: $85,000 · Civil RightsNATIVE AMERICAN RIGHTS FUND INC: $75,000 · Civil RightsNative Americans in Philanthropy: $50,000 · Civil Rights+1 more: $10,000 · Civil RightsYOUTH FORWARD: $168,675 · HealthRios to Rivers: $65,000 · EnvironmentOPEN ARMS PERINATAL SERVICES: $10,000 · Human ServicesAMERICAN INDIAN YOUTH RUNNING STRONG INC: $10,000 · Human ServicesPHOENIX INDIAN CENTER INC: $10,000 · Human Services
Other$1,573,000Arts & Culture$1,120,000Community Improvement$626,500Education$330,000Civil Rights$305,000Health$168,675Environment$65,000Human Services$30,000

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetUNITED SOUTH AND EASTERN TRIBESINC: $300,000 over 1y, 2.2% of budgetNATIVE MOVEMENT: $250,000 over 2y, 1.8% of budgetALLIANCE FOR A JUST SOCIETY: $170,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetYOUTH FORWARD: $168,675 over 2y, 11% of budgetCOMMUNITY PARTNERS: $126,500 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetINDIJ PUBLIC MEDIA: $100,000 over 1y, 2.1% of budgetHARNESS COMMUNITY: $85,000 over 2y, 2.4% of budgetNative American Community Development Institute: $85,000 over 2y, 4.1% of budgetArizona Native Vote: $85,000 over 2y, 4.7% of budgetCALIFORNIA CONSORTIUM FOR URBAN INDIAN HEALTH: $75,000 over 2y, 1.4% of budgetNATIVE AMERICAN RIGHTS FUND INC: $75,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetMEZTLI PROJECTS INC: $65,000 over 2y, 4.0% of budgetRios to Rivers: $65,000 over 2y, 3.0% of budgetNative Americans in Philanthropy: $50,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetMIIGWECH INC: $40,000 over 1y, 3.9% of budgetMOVEMENT STRATEGY CENTER: $30,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetNATIONAL INDIAN YOUTH COUNCIL INC: $25,000 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetOPEN ARMS PERINATAL SERVICES: $10,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetINDIGENOUS LIFEWAYS: $10,000 over 1y, 3.0% of budgetAMERICAN INDIAN YOUTH RUNNING STRONG INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetPHOENIX INDIAN CENTER INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budget
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding

A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

Co-funders

Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

Common Counsel Founda…First Nations Develop…Alliance for a Just S…Ndn Collective IncImpactassetsincThe Schmidt Family Fo…The Ford FoundationRockefeller Philanthr…The California Endowm…Seventh Generation Fu…New Venture FundWend II Inc
Common Counsel FoundationCA21× affinity8 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Common Counsel Foundation · First Nations Development Institute · Alliance for a Just Society · Ndn Collective Inc · Impactassetsinc · The Schmidt Family Foundation · The Ford Foundation · Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors Inc · The California Endowment · Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples Inc · New Venture Fund · Wend II Inc

How this is measured
Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. Overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization Illuminative Inc funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Illuminative Inc. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%1%4%8%15%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    12report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    typical government reliance, FY20–25
    How this is measured
    Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that a grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first, a floor rather than a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12 to 24 months.
    05Through Plinth

    Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

    How do I get to Illuminative Inc?

    Find your warmest path to Illuminative Inc through trustees and officers whose names appear on both boards. Search for your organization and Plinth traces the shortest route it can evidence.

    Each link is a name appearing on two organizations’ public IRS 990 filings, matched on that name and, where the filings support it, on location. A same-state match has geographic support, which is a second matching feature rather than confirmation that the two are one person; a cross-state one is the likeliest to be two people who share a name. Every hop shows its tier, low-confidence and distant paths are held back rather than guessed, and it is worth confirming the person before you use the introduction.

    On method. Every financial figure here is read from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 38 grantees we resolved, each linked to its source. Grantee outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III), read as association with funding, never as caused by it. Low-confidence name matches are suppressed rather than guessed. How we build these →

    How this is measured
    Each figure carries one of six labels. Filed is what the funder reported on its return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears.

    Generated from the IRS Form 990 e-file return for fiscal year 2025, released 2025. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Illuminative’s filings →

    More from the funding graph

    The unnamed billions
    grants reported with no recipient in the public record
    The regranting layer
    51% of grant dollars land in the regranting layer
    The DAF merry-go-round
    $9.7B circulates between donor-advised funds
    The endowment market
    who holds foundation money, and what just moved
    The camps
    funders cluster by geography, not ideology
    By state
    where grant money is based, and what stays home