Give Blck: Driving More Funding to Black Nonprofits

Give Blck, a digital tool to address racial disparities in philanthropic funding and make giving to Black organizations easier, launches today.

Of the $450 billion donated annually in America, a tiny fraction goes to Black-founded nonprofits. With more than 200 organizations at launch —across categories such as Arts & Culture, Health, Athletics, Environment, Education, Civil Rights, LGBTQIA+, and Criminal Justice— the new site allows individual and corporate charitable givers to uncover nonprofits aligned with their passions.

The Give Blck movement and site was co-founded by two Black female entrepreneurs and veterans in the philanthropy space: Christina Lewis, founder and president of All Star Code, and Stephanie Ellis-Smith, owner of philanthropic advisory firm Phila Engaged Giving. They are joined on the leadership team by Dr. David Setiadi, an entrepreneur and CTO of @Point of Care.

“Our hope is that donors will use Give Blck to make the necessary shifts to their investment norms to give Black,” said Lewis. “The team at Work & Co led the creation of this new brand from scratch and shipped the first iteration in record time, which enabled us to garner support from both corporations and foundations alike before launch. Together we can ensure supporting Black causes and communities will not be a fleeting moment.”

Give Blck marks the first project stemming from the Work & Co Fund's, commitment to $1 million in pro-bono design and technology work to advance the Black community. From concept through launch, Work & Co led the branding, strategy, design, and development of the new site in under a month. The logo —evoking dominos— represents the knock-on effects in communities of giving to Black-founded nonprofits. The typeface, Halyard, is by Darden Studio.

Added Ellis-Smith: “By supporting more Black-founded nonprofits, donors can be leaders in creating a base and infrastructure for long-term, systemic change for communities that need it most.”

“We’re excited to help lay the foundation for the Give Blck movement,” said Casey Sheehan, Design Partner at Work & Co. “GiveBlck.org is already such a robust resource addressing inequities in giving, and we’re excited to see the database expand to add even more deserving Black organizations matched with funders who deeply care.”

Learn more about Give Blck.