Washington, D.C. · Nonprofit
OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA
OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA (Washington, D.C.) receives grants from 7 organizations whose IRS filings report $2,158,844 to it, the largest being THE WILLIAM & FLORA HEWLETT FOUNDATION ($515,000). 4 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2025
- $629k
- Funders on record
- 7
- Grants received
- $2.2M
- Net assets
- $2.3M
What Observer Research Foundation America does
Mission
Organization mission the Observer Research Foundation America orf america is an independent, non-partisan, and nonprofit organization in washington dc dedicated to addressing policy challenges facing the united states, india, and their partners in a rapidly changing world. Orf america produces research, curates diverse and inclusive platforms, and develops networks for cooperation between the developed and developing worlds bases on common values and shared interest. Its areas of focus are international affairs, security, technology policy, energy and climate, and economic development. Established in 2020, orf america is an overseas affiliate of the observer research foundation orf, indias premier non-government think tank.
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Program
Foreign policy and security orf america conducts programs and research on strategic and security cooperation involving the united states, india, and their partners. Regional programming focuses on the indo-pacific, europe, and the middle east, as well as defense and national security issues, and cooperation on global democracy. Technology policy orf america is focused on examining the implications of emerging technologies on a variety of policy challenges. Ongoing efforts involve the evolution of cybersecurity norms and capacity in the developing world, as well as strengthening cooperation between the united states and its partners on emerging technologies such as sg telecommunications and semic-ductors. Energy and climate orf american is invested in examining ongoing energy transactions in the united stated and the develpping world, including the implications of new technologies, questions of access and energy security, sources of financing, the role of the private sector, and the alingment with pollution policies. Economic development orf america conducts programs and research around more effective development policies, strengthening global value chains, coordinating foreign…
$1,970,658 spent100% of program spending
The program described on its FY2024 Form 990. Program spending in total: $1,970,658.
The organization over time
Each line starts at 100 in 2021, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2021, 50 means half. The number beside each label in the key is where it ended. The shaded band is where the middle 50% of its peers' revenue would sit, given their growth.
Balance sheet
Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2023 to 2024, from $1.4M to $2.6M (+94%).
How it's funded, over time
Each bar is one year's revenue split into where it came from, and every bar is the same height — these are shares, not amounts, so a year that raised twice as much looks the same size. Hover a bar for the split.
100% of OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA’s revenue is contributions — more reliant on donations than three-quarters of its peers (100% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 2 of the last 5 reported years ran a deficit.
reserve
Leadership and staff
The officers, directors, trustees and key employees listed on each return. Joined and no longer listed compare each filing with the year before, matching people by surname and first initial; a year after a gap, or a roster under three people, has no comparison.
Chief executive
Dhruva Jaishankar
Executive director
As listed on its FY2025 Form 990.
Who funds it, year by year
2021 → 2023: the base broadened from 2 funders to 5 funders, grant income rose $525k → $635k.
From the IRS filings of OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA’s funders (the co-funder graph). Association, not causation. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How concentrated its funding is
OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA has a broad base — no single funder exceeds 24% of grant income, and it takes 3 funders to reach half.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 3 funders to its left
Largest funder’s share by year: 2021 95% · 2022 69% · 2023 39% — diversifying over time.
“Effective funders” = inverse Herfindahl index (1 / Σ shareᵢ²) — the number of equal-sized funders that would give the same concentration. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
Where its funders are
OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA draws 100% of its grant income from funders outside Washington, D.C., across 3 states in all.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
Against its field
OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA holds deeper cash reserves than three-quarters of the 2,468 international nonprofits its size.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 2,468 international nonprofits $100k–$1M, FY2025
Organizations like OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA
Organizations whose mission and program text most resemble this one, by semantic similarity over every organization in the US filings — the closest peers, and often the clearest route to shared or prospective funders.
In Washington, D.C.
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
67% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
0%
Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA: IRS status (Business Master File, Publication 78, auto-revocation), the OFAC sanctions lists, the Internal Revenue Bulletin, and California registration, with the Rev. Proc. 2018-32 §8.01 reliance elements stated element by element. Generated from the current files at the moment you download it.
Screens are triage, not determinations; a source that cannot be read reports not screened, never clear. Screen this nonprofit · How the screen works · on the API as GET /api/screening/{ein}?format=pdf
Questions and answers
- Who funds OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA?
- OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA (Washington, D.C.) receives grants from 7 organizations whose IRS filings report $2,158,844 to it, the largest being THE WILLIAM & FLORA HEWLETT FOUNDATION ($515,000). 4 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA have?
- IRS filings report 7 organizations giving $2,158,844 in grants to OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA, 4 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA?
- THE WILLIAM & FLORA HEWLETT FOUNDATION is the largest funder on record, with $515,000 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AMERICA find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in Washington, D.C.. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.
Play a game about who funds Observer Research Foundation America →
These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2025 (financials across 2021–2025), and the filings of 7 funders that report grants to it. “On record” means captured in the filings we have parsed — a funder that does not e-file, or whose grant detail is not itemized, will not appear. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind. Trends on this page end at FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving; later years are shown and marked, and move no figure. Data on this page was exported October 14, 2026. What this page cannot tell you · view filing