Preface

In 1972 the Ford Foundation began making grants aimed explicitly at enhancing the rights and opportunities of women. Over the next fourteen years the program evolved from a few discrete activities into a major influence on the Foundation's work. To date, more than $70 million has been granted for efforts specifically on behalf of women. Reflecting the distribution of the Foundation's overall grants budget, approximately two-thirds of this total has been devoted to work in the United States and one-third for projects in developing countries.

The pages that follow trace the history of the Foundation's women's programs, beginning with a brief discussion of the context in which they evolved. The description of program development within the Foundation gives special attention to a Trustee-approved special appropriation, which doubled grant making on behalf of women between 1980 and 1983. The last section presents future program directions we now envision.

This paper, researched and written principally by Kathryn Burns and edited by William Rust, served as a report to the Trustees on the special appropriation. By publicly sharing an account of one institution's engagement with a complex subject, we hope to encourage others to join the Foundation in this important and rewarding work.

Franklin A. Thomas
President
Ford Foundation