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The Bush Prize recognizes organizations that have a culture of innovation and a track record of creating innovative solutions to challenges in their communities. The first key to a culture of innovation is to think bigger about what’s possible. Bush Prize winners often pursue solutions that haven’t been tried before, because they think about root causes and the levers that are critical to shifting how things operate.

The Bush Foundation’s tagline is also our strategy: “Investing in great ideas and the people who power them.” This focus on people has been part of the Bush Foundation from its very beginning. It is not a typical foundation approach. In fact, programs like our Bush Fellowship require special approval from the IRS. (With good reason; the IRS wants to be very careful about how foundation dollars flow to individuals.)

While we’ve been known for our Bush Fellowship program for decades, in the past several years we have dramatically expanded the number of additional opportunities we offer to individuals.

Ecosystem grants are designed to provide operating support to the programs and organizations that do the most to support the people creatively solving problems throughout our region. 

Relationships move at the speed of trust. Some of us have heard this phrase before; for those of us who live this phrase in our daily work, it’s a powerful truth. Since 2014, the Bush Foundation has partnered with Headwaters Foundation for Justice, South Dakota Community Foundation and The Consensus Council as intermediaries for our Community Innovation grant program, helping us reach further and have far more impact than we could alone.

The organizations who received Community Innovation grants in 2019 are great examples of the community-led problem solving that's happening in our region.

The Bush Foundation exists to do the most possible good with the resources left to the community by Archibald G. Bush. That’s an amazing opportunity and a big responsibility. It requires us to continuously ask how we can be smarter and more effective in how we work. This year we’ve been asking ourselves big questions, focusing on how we can be more simple, more cohesive, and more open and responsive to the communities we serve. I think of it as a strategy push – pushing ourselves to do better. 

The Bush Foundation is proud to introduce the 2019 Bush Prize for Community Innovation winners: five organizations with a track record of successful problem solving in their communities.

Bush Prize finalists come to life in the “due diligence” part of the selection process, which includes reference calls, a site visit to each finalist to meet with staff and partners, and a look at the organization’s financial picture. 

The Bush Fellowship is a recognition of your accomplishments and support for your potential. It is an investment in you, so that you can make a difference in your community. 

One of the hard things about applying for a Bush Fellowship is that you are writing your application for folks who don’t know you. Your written application is your opportunity to help us understand how the significant moments in your life set the course for who you are today.