Funding Scientific Research: A Giving Smarter Guide

Strategic funding enables scientific breakthroughs, from basic science to clinical applications, and helps shape the future of medicine and public health. Philanthropists invest in scientific research for various reasons—to satisfy personal motivations or curiosities, to have a societal impact, or to fill in gaps left by traditional funding. To maximize impact, funders must align their goals with the right research stage and ecosystem support.

In this Giving Smarter Guide, SPARC offers a structured pathway for philanthropic investment in scientific research. Moving beyond disease-specific giving, the report outlines questions and best practices to make philanthropic funding more effective and lasting. The guide also features case studies showing how philanthropic organizations have uniquely filled gaps.

We outline eight core steps in the research funding journey:

• Define philanthropic goals.
• Understand the current research landscape.
• Choose the right funding mechanism.
• Find research proposals
• Judge the merit of the proposals.
• Set the grant agreement.
• Monitor progress.
• Measure impact and success.

By following this pathway, funders can make deliberate and informed investments in science, ensuring their contributions have a lasting effect and catalyze breakthroughs.