FreeRange Announces YouTopia Grants

Oct 21, 2009

We've got big news. This year, Free Range is giving away a total of $30,000 in design or strategy services to those with a vision of what the world needs right now. One grant will go to a non-profit and one will go to a socially responsible business. We're calling them Youtopia Grants because they're all about your vision for a better world — and this year, we're letting our clients and fans determine the finalists.

Apply to get funding for your project here:
www.freerangestudios.com/youtopia

In the past, Free Range grants have created hit movies like The Meatrix and breakthrough websites like the Eco-footprint Calculator for the Global Footprint Network. Your project could be next.

We'll be accepting applications until October 31, and voting opens on November 15 to hundreds of our clients and nearly 100,000 fans

About The Grant

You have been working hard to make the world a better place, and we’ve noticed. We want to show our love for your work by offering your organization a chance to gain the attention it deserves.

Through Free Range’s 2009 Youtopia Grant, we are offering up to $15,000 worth of design and/or strategic communications services from our menu of core offerings: strategy consulting, identity design, web design, print design, and online movies. We will be awarding two grants—one to a socially responsible business and the other to a non-profit working for social change.

So what do you want to make happen this year? A new campaign strategy? A website? A fresh logo? A never-before-seen Internet tool? As long as you have a concrete goal to make a positive difference for our planet and its people, we encourage you to apply.

Youtopia can’t be built by any one person or organization. So not only are we awarding two grants this year—but we are inviting everyone to help us select who the recipients are. So, spread the word—get your constituents, friends, grandmothers, (no pets), to get you one step closer to being the organization or business that will work with Free Range to build Youtopia. Cast your vote here.

Please be aware as the finalists will be selected by you and anyone else in the world who wants to cast a vote for their favorite—don’t include any sensitive information.

Before completing your application, please take a moment to learn more about our range of services and samples of our work in order to get an idea of what this grant could do for you. You may also want to review a list of past grant recipients.

Applications are due by 5pm on Saturday, October 31, 2009. Please fill out the application form here.

Questions? Please see the FAQ about the Youtopia Grant. And if you need further assistance, please contact McArthur at mcarthur@freerangestudios.com

Past Winners

2008: Green for All

Green for All is a national organization founded by Van Jones that is working to build an inclusive green economy strong enough to lift people out of poverty.
They are dedicated to improving the lives of all Americans through a clean energy economy that will move America past some of our most pressing challenges. By making us energy independent, it will improve our national and economic security. By radically reducing pollution, it will improve the health of our families and neighborhoods, as well as repair our deteriorating atmosphere. And by creating millions of quality jobs and careers, it will pull America out of the current recession, better protect us from future economic turmoil, and save lives here and abroad.

More than that, building a clean energy economy is a chance to reinvigorate and reinvest in the best part of the American dream: the idea that everyone gets a chance to succeed and be happy. By ensuring that every community has equal access to the opportunity of the new economy, we can lift millions of people out of poverty. Free Range is proud to partner with Green for All in this vital work.

2007: Changing the Present

Thanks to the rise in popularity of alternative gift-giving, thousands of people have chosen to demonstrate their affection by donating a calf to an impoverished family or purchasing an acre of rainforest in someone special’s name. ChangingThePresent.org brings all different types of non-profits and important causes into one marketplace, which means a higher percentage of each sale goes directly to the cause. Through our strategic consulting and branding services, we will help ChangingThePresent.org become a central player in the rising meaningful gift movement, bringing them brand awareness in communities well beyond their current reach.

2006: Global Footprint Calculator

Launched in 2003, the Global Footprint Network aims to make ecological limits central the decisions made by governments, businesses, households and individuals worldwide. To accomplish this goal, the Network is advancing the scientific rigor and practical use of an Ecological Footprint calculator, a tool that quantifies humanity’s demands on the planet and compares them to the Earth’s capacity to meet these demands. Free Range contributed to the online strategy and interactive web design of the calculator tool, making it vastly more engaging and viral.

2005: NCC EcoJustice Campaign

After the 2004 elections, it became ever more apparent that if we were to make social change, that we needed to reach beyond the choir of the usual activists. National Council of Churches EcoJustice Program provided a great opportunity for Free Range to assist in fulfilling their mission to “heal and defend creation, working to assure justice for all of creation and the human beings who live in it.” Free Range assisted with assessing outreach needs and building a forum to activate youth in NCC’s 100,000 congregations nationwide.

2004: Slam Bush

During the 2004 presidential elections, Free Range teamed up with The League of Young Voters and Public Enemy’s Chuck D. to organize rhyme battles and poetry slams across the country. The goals were to engage urban youth in speaking their minds about the Bush administration and to encourage their communities to vote. The contest drew hundreds of participants and tens of thousands of fans online and off. Slam Bush culminated in a live national championship battle in Miami, FL the day before the pivotal Florida debates. Ultimately, Slam Bush energized thousands of young people and brought many into the political process for the first time. watch movie

2003: The Meatrix

We awarded the first Gratitude Grant to the Global Resource Center for the Environment (GRACE) to assist them in publicizing their anti-factory farming campaign. The result was one of the Internet’s best known cult-classics, The Meatrix. The short cartoon has educated over 20 million viewers on the horrors of the factory faring industry, has been translated in more than 10 languages and was decorated with dozens of awards including a 2004 Webby. Years later, The Meatrix continues to serve GRACE as the central educational tool in its campaign.