Our Cisco Impact cash grants made at the global and regional level focus on the underserved in communities worldwide, seeking to make an impact in three essential focus areas elaborated upon below. We specialize in partnering with community organizations around the world who are working in one of these three focus areas. Together, we build public benefit programs that make innovative use of the Internet and of communications technology. Our ideal grantees take full advantage of Cisco's rich asset mix and end-to-end strategic thinking, using technology and ingenuity to bring about order-of-magnitude improvements in their programs' scalability, replicability, sustainability, cost efficiency, and overall productivity. A list of selected partner organizations and types of programs funded by Cisco is available on the Community Partners section of this website.
Please note that Silicon Valley Impact Grants are restricted to a subset of these investment areas. Interested applicants can learn more and apply online in the Silicon Valley Impact Grant program section of our website.
Basic Human Needs
Cisco seeks to help overcome the cycle of poverty and dependence through strategic investments that enhance the capacity of organizations that successfully address basic needs of underserved communities. Our rationale behind this strategy and approach is that children that are well fed and have a place to call home are better equipped to learn. Cisco's investments support programs with innovative solutions which increase capacity, allowing the grantee organization to deliver its products and/or services more effectively and efficiently. We also support the design and implementation of web-based tools which increase the availability of, or improve access to, products and/or services that are necessary for people to survive and thrive.
Within our framework, the basic human needs investment area includes food, shelter, clothing, and preventive healthcare information. Cisco investments support programs that provide these and other essential prerequisites to self-sufficiency. In the past, Cisco has funded programs such as Habitat for Humanity, to provide housing to families in need. Likewise, our partnership with Community Voice Mail (CVM), provides thousands of low-income people with free voicemail and access to critical and timely information and resources, thus linking them to jobs, housing, and financial stability.
When appropriate, Cisco makes cash grants in response to acute needs, such as disasters and humanitarian crises. In the past, we have provided support through organizations such as the American Red Cross, Save the Children, and CARE, to provide relief to people affected by the cyclone in Myanmar, earthquake in China, Asian Tsunami, Hurricane Katrina in the U.S., Bangladesh cyclone, California wildfires, and other disasters.
Access to Education
Cisco's strategy is to support the creation and deployment of Internet solutions which enable primary school-age children to master a baseline of educational knowledge in mathematics, literacy, science, engineering, and technology. The rational behind this approach is that children that have mastered core curriculum in primary school have the foundation to succeed in secondary school and beyond. In line with Cisco's overall grant-making philosophy, we focus particularly on underserved populations.
Cisco investments support innovative solutions which increase capacity, allowing grantee organizations to deliver, administer, and track education development more effectively and efficiently. To this end, Cisco funds the design and development of tools which increase the availability of, or improve access to, products and/or services for curriculum development, student centricity, teacher development, and parental participation - we do not provide direct funding to schools. Cisco has funded organizations such as Teachers Without Borders, to develop a web-based portal providing an open-source, modular, scalable toolset for teachers. Likewise, Cisco supported the MIND Research Institute to develop a fully web-deliverable platform to enable scale-up of their education programming, which aims to improve the math proficiency rates and problem-solving skills of K-12 students.
Individual Economic Opportunity
Cisco's strategy is to encourage individual entrepreneurship, innovation and success among underserved populations via access to capital, small business development, workforce training, and similarly effective economic empowerment strategies. Our rationale behind this strategy and approach is that these enablers are essential to help underserved people transition from the education environment to the workforce, a key factor in self-sufficiency and citizenship. Cisco's investments support programs with innovative solutions which increase capacity, allowing the grantee organization to deliver its products and/or services more effectively and efficiently. We also support the design and implementation of web-based tools which increase the availability of, or improve access to, products and/or services that are necessary for people to enter or re-enter the workforce and earn a living wage.
Cisco small business development investments focus on knowledge, skill building and access to capital programs targeted to existing and potential small business entrepreneurs to educate them on how to establish, maintain, and grow their businesses. Cisco has funded programs by UNDP/ICTDAR, Digital Opportunities Trust, and others that establish portals with information and resources for small business entrepreneurs, as well as specific training programs on various topics of interest to small entrepreneurs, including business licensing, business plan development, financing options and resources, etc. Cisco grants also support general job creation, job placement, skills development, training, and resources programs for individuals seeking to upgrade their skills and capabilities so they can enter or re-enter the workforce, maintain a viable livelihood, and contribute to overall economic development in their communities. These grants focus on vulnerable and/or underserved populations such as women, youth, wounded and permanently disabled veterans, and others. Cisco also funds microfinance/microcredit programs designed to increase the availability of affordable capital.
Cisco investments in this category have supported programs developed by The Grameen Foundation, The Acumen Fund, ACCION International and others, to upgrade technology platforms of microfinance organizations, facilitate partnerships with other microfinance organizations to establish best practices and share opportunities for replication and scale, and other programs to expand the breadth and depth of products and services provided by microfinance organizations in order to better serve their customers.
