Catalyst Grant | $10,000 for Early-Stage Funding for Bold, Innovative Ideas

Grants & Fellowships

Early-stage funding for bold ideas that deserve a chance to move forward. Open to anyone, from any background, with an idea worth exploring.

Details

The right support at the right moment changes everything.

The Catalyst Grant makes $10,000 available each year to support early-stage ideas that demonstrate creativity, originality, and the potential for meaningful impact. Funding is distributed based on the strength and nature of applications received. In some cases, a single project may receive the full award. In others, funding may be shared across multiple projects where that approach best advances promising ideas.

The program welcomes ideas from across disciplines, perspectives, and lived experiences. Proposals may emerge from lived experience, independent inquiry, academic exploration, creative practice, or new combinations of existing fields. All supported projects should broadly align with the Mensa Foundation’s mission of unleashing intelligence for the benefit of humanity.

Process

A Two-Stage Application

The Catalyst Grant is designed to make it easier to take a first step. You do not need a fully developed proposal or institutional backing to apply. What matters most is the idea itself — its originality, its potential, and why it is worth exploring.

Stage 1: Share Your Idea

Begin with a short concept submission that introduces your idea and what it seeks to explore. The goal at this stage is clarity, not completene

You will be asked to describe:

– The idea or project
– The problem or opportunity it addresses
– Why the idea is meaningful or innovative
– How Catalyst Grant funding would help move it forward
– Basic background information about you or your team

Stage 2: Develop the Idea

If your concept is selected for further review, you will be invited to submit an expanded proposal. At this stage, we will provide guidance on the additional detail that will help reviewers better understand your idea — how it might develop, how funding would be used, and what impact it could have.

Because the Catalyst Grant supports early-stage ideas, you are not expected to have everything fully figured out. The goal is to deepen the idea, not perfect it.

Not every idea will move forward. But every idea is considered with care, curiosity, and respect

Criteria

How We Evaluate Proposals

Catalyst Grant proposals are reviewed with care and with context. We look at the strength of the idea, its potential to grow, and the person behind it. At this stage, potential matters as much as polish.

Clarity of Purpose

Does the applicant have a clear sense of what they are trying to accomplish and why it matters?

Creativity & Originality

Does the idea represent new thinking or a fresh approach?

Potential Impact

What meaningful benefit or insight could it create?

Feasibility

Could Catalyst funding realistically move it forward at this stage?

Scalable Vision

Does the idea have potential to grow, influence, or inspire further work?

Values Alignment

Does it align with the Mensa Foundation’s mission?

Applications open soon.

The first Catalyst Grant cycle opens later this year. Enter your email and we will notify you when applications open.

Get NotifiedGet Notified

FAQ

Questions About the Catalyst Grant

Have any more questions? Contact us.

Who can apply?

You can. The program is open to individuals or groups from a wide range of backgrounds and disciplines. You do not need formal institutional affiliation or prior grant experience — just an idea you believe is worth exploring

What kinds of ideas are eligible?

Any early-stage idea with the potential for meaningful impact and broad alignment with the Mensa Foundation’s mission. Ideas may emerge from lived experience, independent inquiry, academic exploration, creative practice, or new combinations of existing fields.

Do I need a fully developed plan?

No. The Catalyst Grant is specifically designed to support ideas at an early stage. You are not expected to have complete plans, formal backing, or institutional affiliation.

How does the two-stage process work?

All applicants begin with a short concept proposal. Selected applicants may then be invited to submit an expanded proposal, with guidance on the additional information that would be most helpful for review.

How are proposals reviewed?

Proposals are considered using a set of core criteria including clarity, creativity, potential impact, feasibility, and alignment with the Foundation’s mission. Reviewers evaluate submissions individually and then discuss the strongest proposals as a group. Because the program supports early-stage ideas, evaluation emphasizes potential as much as polish.

Who makes the final award decision?

The Review Committee develops recommendations based on its evaluation, and the Foundation’s Board of Trustees makes the final award decision.

What does receiving a grant involve?

Recipients are asked to provide a brief progress update and a final reflection on what was learned, including challenges and next steps. Because the program supports experimentation, outcomes may evolve — and that learning is considered a valuable part of the process.

What if my idea does not fit a traditional category?

That is exactly the kind of idea the Catalyst Grant is intended to support. Proposals that cross disciplines or emerge from nontraditional paths are welcome.

Origin

A Grant Born From Belief

Deborah L. Stone believed that the most promising ideas don’t always come from the most expected places. She knew that access, not merit, is often what separates the ideas that get a chance from the ones that don’t.

She also knew that the gap between a good idea and a realized one is rarely about talent. It is about resources, timing, and whether anyone believed in you early enough to help you take the first step. Through the Stone Family Memorial Fund, she created this program to be that first step for someone who needed it.

Community

A Community Built Around Bold Ideas

The Catalyst Grant is just beginning. But it is designed to grow into something more.

Over time, grant recipients will become part of a community connected by a shared belief: that the right idea, given the right chance, can change things for the better. As ideas take shape and evolve, so too will the network of people behind them — learning from one another, sharing insight, and contributing to a broader culture of innovation and possibility.

Together, these ideas and the people behind them have the potential to shape what comes next.