Grantee Database
World Arts West
Grant Year
2026-27
Grant Program
General Operating Support
Award Amount
$12,000.00
Project Description
With support from the California Arts Council, World Arts West will conduct artist service, advocacy, and regranting programs that promote the artistic and economic development of our Northern California community of 600+ cultural dance companies representing over 20,000 artists and 100+ cultures. Awarded funds will support World Arts West’s staff and contractors who administer and implement our capacity-building services dedicated to building a sustainable future for California’s cultural artists. Funded programming includes: the 2027 World Arts West Dance Festival, now in its 49th year and free to the public; our Artist Service Programs including the Grants Accelerator Program and Career Pathways; Special Artist Commissions; the Cultural Dance Catalyst Fund supporting grassroots BIPOC arts organizations; Cultural Dance Archiving and Documentation programs; and Cultural Artist Visibility and Advocacy programs.
Organization Summary
World Arts West Dance Festival
The first and most successful cultural event of its kind in the country; each annual festival features 10-15 ensembles – with workshops, panels, film showings and other community programming centered on an overarching theme. Last year, we celebrated our 47th Annual Dance Festival – a 3-weekend experience at PUSH Sanctuary (SF), The Beat (Berkeley), and Presidio Tunnel Tops (SF) focusing on the theme “Dance as Health and Healing,” exploring what constitutes a healthy community.
Arts Equity Research
WAW conducted the first ever comprehensive needs assessment of Northern California’s cultural dance companies. Funded by the Wallace Foundation and set to be published in 2025, A Community of Dance: A Baseline Study of Culturally Specific Dance Organizations in Northern California, provides a baseline understanding of the unique characteristics of culturally specific dance organizations in Northern California. Through an in-depth community engagement process with 100+ organizations, the study highlights the unique strengths and challenges of culturally specific dance organizations while identifying emerging, effective strategies to support this subsector of the arts ecosystem.
Artist Service Programs
Workshops, fiscal sponsorship, mentorship, production support, Cultural Artist Archiving Cohort, Career Pathway Roundtable and Comprehensive Equity Resource for cultural artists.
Cultural Artist Visibility & Advocacy
Ensuring cultural artists are represented on important local, regional & national platforms.
Grants Accelerator Program (GAP)
Year-long program mentoring 12 Bay Area cultural artists to access grants funding and increase their capacity to present their work.
Wallace Foundation National Arts Partners Regranting Cohort
Groundbreaking initiative supporting grassroots BIPOC arts organizations; the largest grant in WAW’s history, enabling us to enter grantmaking for the first time, the next step in WAW’s equity journey centering cultural artists.
Special Artist Commissions
WAW supports the production of innovative, new, large scale dance-music projects.
Organization
World Arts West
Address
1446 Market St.
SAN FRANCISCO
94102
County
San Francisco
Region
Bay Area – San Francisco
Website
Congressional District
California's 12th congressional district
State Assembly District
District 19
State Senate District
District 11
