By Abbas Nazil
The MacArthur Foundation and its nonprofit affiliate, Lever for Change, have announced the five Finalists for the third round of the 100&Change competition, a high-stakes global initiative offering a $100 million grant to a single project that demonstrates the potential for transformative social impact.
The winner, who will be named later this year, will join a growing legacy of large-scale philanthropic interventions designed to tackle the world’s most urgent problems.
Selected from 869 eligible proposals, the five Finalists embody a commitment to addressing complex global challenges through scalable, evidence-based, and equitable solutions.
Each proposal demonstrates not only a compelling understanding of the problem but also a practical pathway toward long-term implementation and sustainability.
The projects reflect diversity in both geographic focus and thematic scope—ranging from education and health care to journalism and information equity—all unified by a shared goal of advancing global well-being.
Among the Finalists is the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), which aims to expand its international investigative journalism network.
By equipping journalists with tools, training, and cross-border collaboration, OCCRP is seeking to hold powerful institutions accountable and promote systemic reforms.
Pratham USA is another standout, with a mission to improve foundational learning in reading and mathematics for 25 million children across Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
Using the proven “Teaching at the Right Level” method, the initiative focuses on delivering tailored education through partnerships with governments and local communities.
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Also selected is Sentinel, a project dedicated to revolutionizing global infectious disease surveillance.
By integrating cutting-edge technologies with localized health systems, Sentinel aims to preempt and prevent outbreaks, thus fortifying global health security and saving lives.
The Texas Children’s Hospital initiative seeks to integrate sickle cell disease treatment into primary health care systems across Africa.
This project has the potential to alleviate the immense pain and mortality rates suffered by children with the disease through accessible and standardized care.
Lastly, the Wikimedia Foundation’s Abstract Wikipedia initiative intends to remove linguistic barriers across Wikipedia’s 300 language versions.
By enabling more inclusive and accurate knowledge sharing, the project aims to confront the global rise of misinformation and bolster access to reliable information for billions.
John Palfrey, President of the MacArthur Foundation, emphasized the urgency and ambition of this year’s Finalists.
“Now is the time to dream big, collaborate deeply, and develop new solutions to change the world,” he said.
The competition’s flexible and transparent funding model—offering unrestricted support and detailed feedback for all applicants—has influenced philanthropic strategies since its 2017 inception.
Past winners include Sesame Workshop and the International Rescue Committee (2017), whose Ahlan Simsim program brought educational support to over 27 million children in the Middle East and North Africa, and Community Solutions (2021), which spearheaded the Built for Zero initiative to reduce homelessness across U.S. communities.
With over $868 million mobilized for participating projects to date, 100&Change continues to reshape philanthropic giving by inspiring funders to invest boldly and collaboratively in systems-level change.
