For The Love of Rural
We are proud to be a community foundation rooted in Southwest Minnesota, the place we love and call home. Since our founding in 1986, we’ve been a regional leader in building local economies and advocating for and responding to community needs. We have distributed nearly $130 million through our grantmaking and business finance loan programs, and we’re a trusted partner in investing in and strengthening Southwest Minnesota.
Today, we look to the future with a bold and unwavering vision: A Southwest Minnesota where all people thrive. Our strategic priorities will guide us in elevating our work and reaffirming our partnerships, building stronger and more resilient communities, and leveraging funding and assets to be a responsive and reliable philanthropic partner.
Our Region
Community foundations exist to benefit a specific place. Our place is all Southwest Minnesota. Our region borders South Dakota and Iowa and encompasses 18 counties and two Native Nations. That includes the counties of Big Stone, Chippewa, Cottonwood, Jackson, Kandiyohi, Lac qui Parle, Lincoln, Lyon, McLeod, Meeker, Murray, Nobles, Pipestone, Redwood, Renville, Rock, Swift and Yellow Medicine, as well as Caŋṡayapi Oyate (Lower Sioux Indian Community) and Peżihutazizi Oyate (Upper Sioux Community).
Southwest Minnesota is home to incredible people. There are 279,912 of us representing dozens of Indigenous and ethnic backgrounds, including immigrants and refugees, who contribute to our region’s vibrancy and growth. Our communities range from less than 50 to 21,000 people.
Southwest Initiative Foundation is located on the original and contemporary homelands of the Dakota people in Minnesota. Dakota people view the land as their relative. We honor their responsibility and stewardship in this place. Read our Land Acknowledgement.
Our History
Born out of the farm crisis in 1986, Southwest Initiative Foundation was created to alleviate human distress and support economic recovery. We were known as a grantmaker, a finance partner, a catalyst, and a convener.
In the early 2000s, those roles remained while we took on the new role of regional community foundation, partnering with individual and corporate donors to harness generosity and retain wealth for local communities. With a wider base of supporters and larger balance sheet, we evolved over time, building robust relationships, developing unique programs and collaborating across sectors to keep our Southwest Minnesota communities strong.
Current Strategic Priorities
- Boosting economic mobility through small businesses loans, offering technical assistance to small business owners and entrepreneurs, and collaborating with communities to ensure they have access to quality, affordable child care and a reliable workforce.
- Building resilient communites by offering leadership development, supporting local nonprofits, and sponsoring events and initiatives that promote belonging and wellbeing.
- Retaining wealth locally by partnering with our community foundation affiliates and designated funds to keep dollars in communities, making grants to support projects that build resilient communities, and offering flexible and creative ways for donors to support our mission or another local cause.
Minnesota Initiative Foundations
We are one of six regional foundations working to strengthen the communities and economies of Greater Minnesota. Originally established by the McKnight Foundation, each of the Minnesota Initiative Foundations is independent and serves its geographic region with grants, business loans, programs and priorities, and donor services, as well as collaborates on several statewide initiatives. The Minnesota Initiative Foundations are nationally recognized as unique resources to the people, businesses and communities of rural Minnesota.