Unlocking the World’s Potential: How Grants are Taking Over
Atman Pandya (O'Shaughnessy Fellowship) on the transformative power of grants and independent funding in this special SuperSalon recording with a thorough recap right in your inbox!
Grants are a catalyst for empowering individuals to tinker and explore bold new ideas. We recently explored the transformative power of Grants and Fellowships in a discussion - Unlocking the World's Potential: How Grants are Taking Over, hosted by Atman Pandya, who spearheads the O'Shaughnessy Fellowship.
You can view the wide-ranging discussion on our YouTube right now, but here's a quick recap of some of the topics:
The power of small grants
Grants are not just financial injections but beacons of hope and validation for those embarking on journeys to make a positive impact. They are not mere handouts; they are the wings upon which nascent ideas take flight, often leading to outcomes far more significant than their modest sums suggest.
Grants do more than provide funds; they reshape expectations and can foster a high-trust environment essential for nurturing high-risk ideas.
How are Grant awardees selected?
All grant programs have their unique lens for finding the people they want to support. Individual taste and judgment also play a role in identifying suitable candidates.
Specific attributes like relentlessness, proof-of-work, and stamina in artistic and creative fields indicate a grantee's potential to bring unique and unconventional ideas to fruition.
For moonshot-focused programs and peer groups, internal confidence and the ability to tackle challenging problems is essential. Interviews are crucial in assessing a candidates’ belief systems and engagement with the world.
The 2nd Order Effects of Grants
As the conversation drew to a close, the speakers reflected on the broader impact of these grant programs. They de-risk early-stage ideas and incubate talent that could lead to consequential advancements like new research, technology, or companies.
Grant programs have immense potential, and anyone can start them.
These initiatives, though small in scale, are mighty in their capacity to ignite the flames of innovation and change. More than funding, they empower individuals to explore uncharted territories and redefine the possible boundaries.
We covered much, much more on the salon. You can view the full version here:
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About our speakers and host
Shruti Rajagopalan runs Emergent Ventures India, which supports entrepreneurs and brilliant minds with highly scalable, "zero to one" ideas for meaningfully improving society.
Arnaud Schenk runs Polaris Fellowships, a UK-based, 9-month program built to give 25 exceptional fellows an environment that helps them solve meaningful, challenging problems.
Benjamin Yeoh runs Then Do Better, which provides £1,000 grants to people working on making a positive impact.
Atman Pandya runs O'Shaughnessy Fellowships, a 1-year program that awards up to $100,000 in grants to help individuals turbocharge their life’s work.
Want more? Jump right into one of these highlights from the video:
Grants as a funding model for individuals and organizations. 0:00
Microgrants for personal and social impact. 1:14
Funding high-risk ideas and altering expectations. 3:25
The effectiveness of small grants and fellowships in empowering individuals. 8:42
Selecting fellows for a program. 12:07
Fostering innovation and growth through small communities. 16:31
Networking strategies for non-profits. 20:12
Identifying and selecting innovative ideas for funding. 22:39
Funding for creative projects with a focus on "proof of work" and "stamina". 28:02
Selecting fellows for a moonshot-focused program. 33:16
Selecting fellows for a peer group program. 38:57
Selecting candidates for a startup accelerator program. 45:32
The impact of a fellowship program on creativity and ambition. 50:12
Individual taste and judgment in funding decisions. 55:28
Talent distribution and opportunity inequality. 58:47
Belief systems and resilience in creative fields. 1:03:41
Interview questions to assess belief systems. 1:10:46
Love this! I recently launched my own micro-grant to celebrate my birthday and it's been amazing to see the diversity of projects that can have a big impact with fairly small grants. I hope more people with disposable income consider starting their own micro-grants to support the kind of change they want to see in the world.