In early 2022, I joined the Sasaki Foundation with hopes of working with community experts towards solutions to challenges in their neighborhoods, learning from practitioners about equity in design and planning, and engaging young people in meaningful employment in the design industry. I am thrilled that this hope became reality as we transitioned back to in-person programming, moved downtown with Sasaki, and built new partnerships over the past year.
March 7, 2023
The Cambridge Public Health Department’s Health Promotion Mini-Grant Program will award up to $25,000 in total funding to projects that promote healthy eating, physical activity, or youth mental health. Eligible groups for mini-grants include community organizations, schools, businesses, garden and farm programs, and government agencies that serve Cambridge.
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Stay updated with the latest stories, news, and events.
June 10, 2022
The Sasaki Foundation announced today the winning teams for its 2022 Sasaki Foundation Design Grants. The Design Grants are an annual competition to showcase projects that support and drive interdisciplinary innovation and empower our local communities.
May 16, 2022
The Sasaki Foundation announced today the finalists for its fourth annual Sasaki Foundation Design Grants program. These seven teams will pitch to a panel of judges on Wednesday, May 25, 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the new Lamplighter CX location. The Design Grants are an annual competition to showcase projects that support and drive interdisciplinary innovation and empower our local communities.
January 18, 2022
Although 2021 was a year of remote work and staff transitions, the Sasaki Foundation continued our impact through active community-based research, public programming, and design education. We’re proud of the work we and our partners accomplished this past year.
December 14, 2021
After a search process that yielded more than 130 candidates from a wide range of backgrounds, the Sasaki Foundation is thrilled to announce Jen Lawrence, formerly of the City of Cambridge, as our new executive director. She will guide the Sasaki Foundation in pursuit of our vision: a future in which the power of community-based planning and design is fully realized for the benefit of the public good. With Jen, the Sasaki Foundation will continue our impact through active community-based research, public programming, and design education.
- Healthy Eating and Physical Activity. $1,000 mini-grants are available for projects that promote healthy eating and/or physical activity in children and/or adults. Up to ten projects will be funded. Last year’s winners included such projects as a day of joy for individuals without housing; chair yoga classes for an Ethiopian elders group; and a staff summer wellness program encouraging movement and healthy eating.
- Youth Wellness. $2,000 mini-grants are available for projects that promote wellness in Cambridge youth, with a focus on youth age 12 to 18. Up to five projects will be funded. Last year’s winning projects included a series by local BIPOC artists focused on how art can support mental health; expansion of period preparation parties to help reduce the stigma around periods; and the introduction of yoga and mindfulness classes into an existing youth program.
See the full list of the 2024 mini-grant award winners.
CPHD is hosting two information sessions open to anyone who is interested in applying for either grant. The sessions will provide potential applicants the opportunity to review the application, ask questions and talk about potential project ideas. The links to register for these virtual sessions are below:
- March 11 from 9:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. Register for info session.
- March 13 from 4 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Register for info session.
The mini-grants are competitive. All applications are reviewed by representatives from the Cambridge Public Health Department, the Hideo Sasaki Foundation, and other organizations and groups.
The mini-grant guidelines and application are available on the Cambridge Public Health Department's Mini-Grants web page.
The deadline for submission is April 4, 2025.
To learn more about the mini-grant program, contact Brigitte De Veau 617.665.3759 at bdeveau@cambridgepublichealth.org (Healthy Eating and Physical Activity) or Sarah Lincoln 617.665.3874 at salincoln@cambridgepublichealth.org (Youth Wellness).
Cambridge Public Health Department
The Cambridge Public Health Department protects and promotes the health of everyone in Cambridge through services, information, policies, and regulations. Main focus areas are communicable disease prevention and control, emergency preparedness and community resilience, environmental health, epidemiology, population health initiatives, regulatory enforcement, and school health.
The Hideo Sasaki Foundation
The Hideo Sasaki Foundation believes design has the power to address the most urgent challenges facing us, from social equity to environmental resilience. Design is an agent of change. And yet, access to design—for communities who need it the most—is often limited. Making change requires collective impact. At the intersection of philanthropy, education, and community, the Hideo Sasaki Foundation is committed to advancing the value of design, inviting diverse partners to co-create change. The Hideo Sasaki Foundation serves as the fiscal agent for the mini-grant program.
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[/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label="Previous Post Link" _builder_version="4.21.0" text_font="|700|||||||" text_font_size="40px" text_line_height="48px" custom_margin="50px|||" global_colors_info="{}"]Meet Movement Training and Cultural Center
[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type="1_8" _builder_version="4.16" custom_padding="|||" global_colors_info="{}" custom_padding__hover="|||"][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section] [post_title] => 2025 Health Promotion Mini-Grants through CPHD [post_excerpt] => The Cambridge Public Health Department (CPHD) 2024 Health Promotion Mini-Grant Program is now open for application! This program will award up to $20,000 in total funding to projects that promote healthy eating, physical activity, or youth mental health. [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => open [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => 2025-health-promotion-mini-grants-through-cphd [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2025-03-05 13:14:44 [post_modified_gmt] => 2025-03-05 18:14:44 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://www.sasakifoundation.org/?p=236633 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) ) [post_count] => 1 [current_post] => -1 [before_loop] => [in_the_loop] => [post] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 236633 [post_author] => 2 [post_date] => 2025-03-04 14:30:45 [post_date_gmt] => 2025-03-04 19:30:45 [post_content] => [et_pb_section fb_built="1" module_class="mongo-image" _builder_version="4.27.0" background_image="https://www.sasakifoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/2025-Mini-Grant-Flyer_blogpost.png" global_colors_info="{}"][et_pb_row column_structure="1_8,3_4,1_8" module_class="mongo-image-with-text" _builder_version="4.16" background_size="initial" background_position="top_left" background_repeat="repeat" global_colors_info="{}"][et_pb_column type="1_8" _builder_version="4.16" custom_padding="|||" global_colors_info="{}" custom_padding__hover="|||"][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type="3_4" _builder_version="4.16" custom_padding="|||" global_colors_info="{}" custom_padding__hover="|||"][et_pb_text admin_label="Header small text" module_class="slide-big" _builder_version="4.27.0" global_colors_info="{}"]March 4, 2025
[/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label="Header big text" module_class="slide-white slide-massive-2 " _builder_version="4.27.0" custom_css_main_element="font-size:6vw;||line-height:6.2vw;" global_colors_info="{}"]2025 Health Promotion Mini-Grants through CPHD
[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type="1_8" _builder_version="4.16" custom_padding="|||" global_colors_info="{}" custom_padding__hover="|||"][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built="1" admin_label="Board of Trustees" module_class="padding-top-0" _builder_version="4.16" background_image="https://www.sasakifoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/blog-background.png" background_size="initial" background_position="top_left" global_colors_info="{}"][et_pb_row column_structure="1_8,3_4,1_8" _builder_version="4.16" custom_margin="50px|||" global_colors_info="{}"][et_pb_column type="1_8" _builder_version="4.16" custom_padding="|||" global_colors_info="{}" custom_padding__hover="|||"][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type="3_4" _builder_version="4.16" custom_padding="|||" global_colors_info="{}" custom_padding__hover="|||"][et_pb_text admin_label="Post Date" module_class="post-date" _builder_version="4.27.0" text_font="|600|||||||" text_text_color="#d59999" text_font_size="20px" text_letter_spacing="2px" text_line_height="24px" custom_margin="||20px|" text_font_size_last_edited="off|" global_colors_info="{}"]March 4, 2025
[/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label="Post Title" _builder_version="4.27.0" text_font="|700|||||||" text_font_size="40px" text_line_height="48px" custom_margin="||50px|" global_colors_info="{}"]2025 Health Promotion Mini-Grants through Cambridge Public Health Department
[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type="1_8" _builder_version="4.16" custom_padding="|||" global_colors_info="{}" custom_padding__hover="|||"][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure="1_8,3_4,1_8" _builder_version="4.16" background_size="initial" background_position="top_left" background_repeat="repeat" global_colors_info="{}"][et_pb_column type="1_8" _builder_version="4.16" custom_padding="|||" global_colors_info="{}" custom_padding__hover="|||"][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type="3_4" _builder_version="4.16" custom_padding="|||" global_colors_info="{}" custom_padding__hover="|||"][et_pb_text admin_label="Intro" module_class="bod-bio body-text" _builder_version="4.27.0" global_colors_info="{}"]The Cambridge Public Health Department (CPHD) 2025 Health Promotion Mini-Grant Program will award up to $20,000 in total funding to projects that promote healthy eating, physical activity, or youth wellness.
Eligible groups for mini-grants include community organizations, schools, businesses, garden and farm programs, and government agencies that serve Cambridge.
A project proposal must address one of the categories below and is only eligible for one type of mini-grant per funding cycle:
- Healthy Eating and Physical Activity. $1,000 mini-grants are available for projects that promote healthy eating and/or physical activity in children and/or adults. Up to ten projects will be funded. Last year’s winners included such projects as a day of joy for individuals without housing; chair yoga classes for an Ethiopian elders group; and a staff summer wellness program encouraging movement and healthy eating.
- Youth Wellness. $2,000 mini-grants are available for projects that promote wellness in Cambridge youth, with a focus on youth age 12 to 18. Up to five projects will be funded. Last year’s winning projects included a series by local BIPOC artists focused on how art can support mental health; expansion of period preparation parties to help reduce the stigma around periods; and the introduction of yoga and mindfulness classes into an existing youth program.
See the full list of the 2024 mini-grant award winners.
CPHD is hosting two information sessions open to anyone who is interested in applying for either grant. The sessions will provide potential applicants the opportunity to review the application, ask questions and talk about potential project ideas. The links to register for these virtual sessions are below:
- March 11 from 9:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. Register for info session.
- March 13 from 4 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Register for info session.
The mini-grants are competitive. All applications are reviewed by representatives from the Cambridge Public Health Department, the Hideo Sasaki Foundation, and other organizations and groups.
The mini-grant guidelines and application are available on the Cambridge Public Health Department's Mini-Grants web page.
The deadline for submission is April 4, 2025.
To learn more about the mini-grant program, contact Brigitte De Veau 617.665.3759 at bdeveau@cambridgepublichealth.org (Healthy Eating and Physical Activity) or Sarah Lincoln 617.665.3874 at salincoln@cambridgepublichealth.org (Youth Wellness).
Cambridge Public Health Department
The Cambridge Public Health Department protects and promotes the health of everyone in Cambridge through services, information, policies, and regulations. Main focus areas are communicable disease prevention and control, emergency preparedness and community resilience, environmental health, epidemiology, population health initiatives, regulatory enforcement, and school health.
The Hideo Sasaki Foundation
The Hideo Sasaki Foundation believes design has the power to address the most urgent challenges facing us, from social equity to environmental resilience. Design is an agent of change. And yet, access to design—for communities who need it the most—is often limited. Making change requires collective impact. At the intersection of philanthropy, education, and community, the Hideo Sasaki Foundation is committed to advancing the value of design, inviting diverse partners to co-create change. The Hideo Sasaki Foundation serves as the fiscal agent for the mini-grant program.
PREVIOUS POST
[/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label="Previous Post Link" _builder_version="4.21.0" text_font="|700|||||||" text_font_size="40px" text_line_height="48px" custom_margin="50px|||" global_colors_info="{}"]Meet Movement Training and Cultural Center
[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type="1_8" _builder_version="4.16" custom_padding="|||" global_colors_info="{}" custom_padding__hover="|||"][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section] [post_title] => 2025 Health Promotion Mini-Grants through CPHD [post_excerpt] => The Cambridge Public Health Department (CPHD) 2024 Health Promotion Mini-Grant Program is now open for application! This program will award up to $20,000 in total funding to projects that promote healthy eating, physical activity, or youth mental health. [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => open [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => 2025-health-promotion-mini-grants-through-cphd [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2025-03-05 13:14:44 [post_modified_gmt] => 2025-03-05 18:14:44 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://www.sasakifoundation.org/?p=236633 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [comment_count] => 0 [current_comment] => -1 [found_posts] => 94 [max_num_pages] => 94 [max_num_comment_pages] => 0 [is_single] => [is_preview] => [is_page] => [is_archive] => [is_date] => [is_year] => [is_month] => [is_day] => [is_time] => [is_author] => [is_category] => [is_tag] => [is_tax] => [is_search] => [is_feed] => [is_comment_feed] => [is_trackback] => [is_home] => 1 [is_privacy_policy] => [is_404] => [is_embed] => [is_paged] => [is_admin] => [is_attachment] => [is_singular] => [is_robots] => [is_favicon] => [is_posts_page] => [is_post_type_archive] => [query_vars_hash:WP_Query:private] => 2f41fbf7381527b29021df633e096c63 [query_vars_changed:WP_Query:private] => [thumbnails_cached] => [allow_query_attachment_by_filename:protected] => [stopwords:WP_Query:private] => [compat_fields:WP_Query:private] => Array ( [0] => query_vars_hash [1] => query_vars_changed ) [compat_methods:WP_Query:private] => Array ( [0] => init_query_flags [1] => parse_tax_query ) )The Hideo Sasaki Foundation works to advance equity in the design of the environment. We sponsor research and programs that empower communities and strengthen education in design.
Events
Is It Racist? Is It Sexist? Workshop
March 12, 2025
This interactive workshop with Betsy Leondar-Wright, coauthor of the book Is it Racist? Is It Sexist?, will help you unpack your own values and habits in judging ambiguous situations, let you practice tricky conversations about racism, and offer recommendations for more effective antiracism. Lunch provided.
What we do
Our values build on more than six decades of work by Hideo Sasaki, focusing on the following priority areas.
1
Research & Grants
Large-scale, complex challenges require cross-disciplinary thinking. That’s why we convene experts and innovators from all backgrounds. Our research and grants bring issues of inequity in design to the forefront.
2
Community Learning
Informed and engaged residents are central ingredients of a successful community. That’s why we host public programs that amplify a diversity of voices and address socially relevant topics as we work toward systemic change.
3
Design Education
A thriving design industry relies on a pipeline of diverse, talented, and passionate practitioners who infuse new ideas and disrupt established patterns. That’s why we provide youth with opportunities to discover and explore careers in design.
History
The Hideo Sasaki Foundation is named after Hideo Sasaki, a Japanese American landscape architect who came of age in WWII. Hideo was a pioneer of modern design, a leader, and an educator. He articulated—and proved—the value of interdisciplinary design while breaking down the traditional barriers between practice and teaching.
The Hideo Sasaki Foundation was established by Sasaki, a multidisciplinary design firm founded by Hideo, with support from Hideo’s family and friends. Continuing Hideo’s legacy, we sit at the intersection of research, practice, education, and community-driven processes. We advance equity in design, inviting diverse partners to co-create change.
Hideo Sasaki
1970s