The Cleveland-based George Gund Foundation has announced grants totaling $19.3 million in its latest grant cycle. 

Awards include up to $500,000 in support of the leadership transition for incoming Cuyahoga County executive Chris Ronayne. “Thoughtful and transparent leadership transitions must be both a hallmark and promise of our democracy,” said Gund Foundation president Anthony Richardson. “To be sure, the work of democracy building encompasses robust citizen participation in elections, but it also must extend beyond elections to effective governance.”

Other grant recipients focused on the foundation’s priority program areas of racial equity and climate justice include Amalgamated Charitable Foundation, which was awarded $1.5 million in support of the Partnership for Equitable and Resilient Communities initiative; First Year Cleveland and Birthing Beautiful Communities, which will each receive $500,000 over two years for ongoing efforts to reduce the infant mortality rate of Black babies in Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, and Summit County; and the Achievement Centers for Children, which was awarded $100,000 to form and operate a public advocacy network of local nonprofit service providers serving children and adults with disabilities and their families.

For a complete list of grantees, see the Gund Foundation website.

(Photo credit: Getty Images/Isabella Hilligoss)