Project Cultivation

We help launch and nurture emerging initiatives that align with our mission. While fiscal sponsorship has long been a cornerstone of our work, our approach goes beyond financial infrastructure. Through Project Cultivation, we offer direct support, strategic guidance, and connection to a values-aligned community. With us, your project will have a home in the civic ecosystem.

Our goal is to ensure project leaders feel empowered, resourced, and part of something bigger. We work closely with them to clarify vision early on and lay the groundwork for long-term impact—creating an ecosystem where bold ideas can take root and thrive.

See Our Current Projects

People-Centered Fiscal Sponsorship

Mediators Foundation became a 501(c)(3) – a legal non-profit business – in 1988, and has been sponsoring projects for over twenty years. The process of acquiring federal non-profit status and ensuring your records are tax-compliant can be cumbersome and lengthy. You shouldn’t have to wait to do good work. As a fiscal sponsor, Mediators provides administrative support, financial oversight, and an avenue to accept tax-deductible donations, allowing you to focus on the core work of your project.

As a well-established player in the bridging field, we lend credibility to new ventures, connect you to our wide community of projects and colleagues, and provide light-touch capacity-building services designed to help your project succeed. This relationship can be for the long or short term. We have had some projects at Mediators for many years, and others that we are proud to see grow into their own 501(c)(3)s.

Interested in fiscal sponsorship? Contact Us!

Mediators Foundation offers fiscal sponsorship under both Model A and Model C structures. For most projects, our Model C Hybrid approach is the best fit, as it gives projects the independence to lead their own work while providing the nonprofit infrastructure, financial stewardship, and capacity-building support to help them grow.

For projects with long-standing employees, larger budgets, or more complex operational needs, we also offer comprehensive Model A fiscal sponsorship with expanded administrative support and oversight. This flexible approach allows us to match our level of partnership to each project's goals and stage of development. We’re happy to explore options with you.

Fiscal sponsorship is offered with no upfront cost. To sustain the administrative labor and infrastructure that supports our projects, we charge a 7–10% administrative fee on charitable donations, based on the complexity of their needs.

We respond to new projects inquiries year-round on a rolling basis. If you have specific questions about fiscal sponsorship, are interested in more detailed information on our processes, or would like to schedule an introductory meeting, please email us with a brief description of yourself and your project (see material request below).

We look forward to connecting and we will get back to you shortly!

What Else Do We Offer Projects?

  • We’ve heard a strong desire for deeper connection across our ~40 projects. We’re excited to now host quarterly Community Calls— a space for meaningful relationship-building, collaboration, and shared learning among our project partners.

    These calls are designed to be a safe and supportive environment where project directors can share updates, ask challenging questions, offer and receive feedback, and draw from the collective wisdom of the network. Above all, they’re a place to be seen, heard, and held in community. Project directors are encouraged to cross-collaborate on and off of these calls.

  • As our network of projects has grown, we’ve observed thematic clusters emerging. Some projects are centered on media and technology; others focus on dialogue and deliberation, mis/disinformation, or network weaving. These cohorts bring together project directors with shared focus areas to discuss emerging issues, share insights, and explore collaborative opportunities. These smaller, topic-specific gatherings will deepen learning and support tailored, field-level impact. The frequency of these convenings, as well as the groupings will be collectively determined by current projects.

  • While the project is responsible for connecting with donors and fundraising to support its self, Mediators Foundation provides light-touch fundraising support in the following ways:

    • Drop-in office hours with our Senior Development Director twice a month, where projects can come to learn more about fundraising strategies, brainstorm ideas, receive direct feedback, and have questions answered

    • Donor-facing Giving Guide, including donation instructions and pitch template

    • Assistance creating online fundraising campaigns and setting up donation buttons to collect donations

    • Access and instructions for donor prospecting tools that can help identify potential funding sources

  • We are committed to building strong relationships and maintaining communication so that projects feel supported throughout their journey. Our team is here as a steady resource, ready to lend time, expertise, and guidance as needs arise.

    New project directors begin onboarding with Mesa Sebree, our Director of Project Cultivation, and Kathy Gschneidner, our Financial Administrator. They’re also invited to meet with Jacob Bornstein, our President, for a complimentary advisory session. Jacob brings extensive experience leading and advising mission-driven organizations across the civic and nonprofit sectors. This conversation is designed to provide practical strategic guidance tailored to the project’s stage and goals. Topics may include:

    • clarifying goals and strategic direction

    • identifying fundraising priorities and timeline

    • strengthening organizational and program design

    • planning for growth and long-term sustainability

    • building effective partnerships and collaborations

    • thinking through leadership, staffing, and team structure

    Ongoing advisory is always available on an as-needed basis via email or scheduled meetings.

  • Many of the professional tools projects use every day offer discounted nonprofit pricing. By leveraging Mediators Foundation's 501(c)(3) status, projects can join subaccounts under our nonprofit plans for tools that support communications, fundraising, design, content creation, and more.

  • We’re committed to celebrating and amplifying the work of our projects and their staff. Whether through published articles, event highlights, or storytelling, we aim to showcase the thought leadership, creativity, and impact happening across our network. With our blog and upcoming newsletter, we offer platforms to share updates, promote events, and highlight ideas- creating opportunities for project directors to be seen, supported, and connected to one another and our larger network.

  • Is there a service not listed here that you’d like to see as a current or future project director? We’d love to hear from you. Mediators Foundation is continuously evolving and remains open to new ideas regarding how we can better support our projects and the wider ecosystem. If you have ideas for ways we can improve, adjust, or expand our services, please reach out to Mesa at mesa@mediatorsfoundation.org.

What’s the Onboarding Process for New Projects?

  • Project Directors typically begin by reaching out via email and sharing more about themselves and their project. This helps us understand your vision, goals, and where you are in your development process.

    You might include materials such as:

    • Professional bio

    • Project overview or concept note

    • Pitch deck

    • Funding timeline

    • Short summary (origin story, theory of change, development plan)

    • Partners or references

    • Website

    We recognize that projects come to us at different stages, so there’s no strict requirement for what you need to submit. As long as we can understand the who, what, how, and why of your project, that’s a great place to start. Additional details often emerge as we move through the process together.

    These calls are designed to be a safe and supportive environment where project directors can share updates, ask challenging questions, offer and receive feedback, and draw from the collective wisdom of the network. Above all, they are a place to be seen, heard, and held in community. Project directors are encouraged to cross-collaborate on and off of these calls.

  • After your initial outreach, Mesa will follow up with more information about Mediators Foundation, including materials that outline our administrative, financial, and legal processes.

    This step is an opportunity to understand what it looks like to receive and manage funds through Mediators Foundation, including our systems for disbursement, payments, and compliance. You’ll also have the chance to review our fiscal sponsorship agreement.

  • We invite you to review these materials and reflect on whether fiscal sponsorship with Mediators Foundation aligns with your project’s needs at this stage.

    If anything feels unclear, missing, or misaligned, we encourage you to flag it—we see this as the beginning of an open conversation about how we can best support your work.

  • Next, we’ll schedule an introductory call with Mesa (typically 30–60 minutes). This is a space to connect with you more deeply, learn about your project, and answer any questions you may have.

  • Following the conversation, our team takes time to reflect on alignment—considering your project’s mission, leadership, and potential for sustainability. We also encourage you to think deeply about whether Mediators Foundation’s offerings and services align with what you’re looking for.

    If there’s a strong mutual fit, we’ll invite you to review a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). We welcome your questions, revisions, or additions to ensure the agreement reflects a shared understanding.

  • Once the MOU is finalized and signed by both parties, your project officially becomes part of Mediators Foundation! From there, we begin the onboarding process and integrate you into our community and systems.

  • We’ll work with you to gather materials and build your project’s landing page on our website. This helps establish your public presence and creates a home for your work within the Mediators network. 

    You’ll share materials for your project’s landing page, which Mesa will build on the Mediators Foundation website. This creates a home for your work within the Mediators network and helps establish your public presence. It’s a way for donors and our broader network to engage with your project.

  • You’ll be introduced to key members of our team, including:

    • Mesa (programs & overall support)

    • Kathy (financial systems & processes)

    • Jacob (strategic & administrative support)

    We’ll walk through how to navigate our systems, including financial workflows, disbursements, and available support.

  • You’ll be invited into our network of Project Directors and join your first Community Call. Through these calls, you’ll get to know the powerful network you’ve joined and be invited to build relationships, explore collaboration, and engage with others in the Mediators Foundation Community. 

  • As your project launches, we’ll support visibility through opportunities such as:

    • Blog features sharing your story, mission, and work

    • Newsletter highlights

    • Inclusion in our internal amplification thread