MINNESOTA

October 19-22, 2025

building

solidarity,

rooted in

justice

Welcome to the 2025 GIA Annual Conference!

Grantmakers in the Arts welcomes you to the Minnesota (Twin Cities)—the home of the Dakota and the Ojibwe/​Anishi­naabe people—at the convergence (Bdoté) of the Mississippi (Wakpá Tháŋka) and Minnesota Rivers for the 2025 GIA Annual Conference, Building Solidarity, Rooted in Justice! In a time of division and erasure, the arts remain a force for truth-telling, bridge-building, and solidarity. Minnesota—home to Indigenous sovereignty movements, Black liberation struggles, and immigrant cultural imprints—offers a profound lens into the complexities of belonging, resistance, and repair.

As we mark the five-year anniversary of George Floyd’s murder, we ask: How do we mend the social fabric fractured by injustice? How do we resource artists as trusted stewards of collective memory? How do we push through discomfort to build solidarity?

This convening calls on funders, artists, and cultural leaders to "trouble" dominant narratives—holding multiple truths, investing in cultural movements, and challenging revisionist histories. We will explore:

  • Building Solidarity Across Difference – Real allyship across racial, rural-urban, and political divides.

  • Indigenous Sovereignty & Movement Histories – Uplifting Native leadership in cultural funding.

  • Arts & Political Resistance – Defending public arts funding and mobilizing for justice.

  • Narrative Power & Truth-Telling – Confronting erasure and preserving untold histories.

Through storytelling, dialogue, and site visits, we will gather as a trusted forum to envision bold futures and reaffirm the power of artists in movements for justice. Join GIA members, colleagues, and allies from October 19-22 in the Twin Cities, Minnesota—where movements take root, where stories shape history, and where the work of solidarity continues.

see you at

the riverfront

The conference will be held at The InterContinental Saint Paul Riverfront Hotel. Enjoy the breathtaking views of the Mississippi River in the heart of downtown. Steps away from live theater, renowned museums, and world-class culture.

Reservations within the GIA room block will be available later this spring. Be sure to visit the conference website for the most up-to-date information! 

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Call for sessions will open March 11, 2025 and remain open until April 11, 2025. You must be a member to submit a session proposal.

    Submit a session proposal.

  • All GIA members, including those organizing or participating in sessions, may register for the conference at the following rates:


    Early Bird Rates

    • GIA Member Tier I (w/ an arts grantmaking budget of up to $1,999,999 and National Partners): $600.00

    • GIA Member Tier II (w/ an arts grantmaking budget between $2,000,000-$4,999,999): $700.00

    • GIA Member Tier III (w/ an arts grantmaking budget of $5,000,000 and above): $800.00

    • Non-Member Tier I (w/ an arts grantmaking budget of up to $1,999,999 and National Partners): $700.00

    • Non-Member Tier II (w/ an arts grantmaking budget between $2,000,000-$4,999,999): $800.00

    • Non-Member Tier III (w/ an arts grantmaking budget of $5,000,000 and above): $900.00


    General Rates

    • GIA Member Tier I: $725.00

    • GIA Member Tier II: $825.00

    • GIA Member Tier III: $925.00

    • Non-Member Tier I: $825.00

    • Non-Member Tier II: $925.00

    • Non-Member Tier III: $1025.00


    Preconference tickets are available to purchase alongside conference registration on a first come, first served basis. Preconference tickets are only available as an add-on to a full conference ticket.

    Preconference Tickets: $175.00

  • The annual GIA conference is the sole opportunity for arts funders to meet in an environment conducive to exploratory, frank conversations about their work. The conference's content is designed to benefit funders and improve their professional practice.

    Each conference includes a number of representatives of arts nonprofits, artists, and other individuals who are not funders but who are specially invited to share their expertise in sessions, in preconference sessions, and as keynote presenters and performers.

  • GIA Conference Guiding Principles and Practices

    Grantmakers in the Arts has a long-held commitment to engaging the community in each city where the annual national conference is held. In planning and producing the GIA Conference, GIA employs principles and practices that seek to create a positive impact for both conference participants and the local community.

  • To preserve the capacity for open discussion, all attendees must refrain from fundraising or solicitation. Organizations that solicit funds should be represented by individuals whose roles involve programming and/or policy, not by fundraising or development staff.

  • After the conference, all keynote sessions will be recorded and available on the GIA YouTube channel. 

    Audio and video recording of conference sessions, presentations, and performances by session organizers and other conference attendees is strictly prohibited to preserve the intimacy, integrity, and safety of these spaces. However, GIA may tape or transcribe conference proceedings according to venue A/V policies and with an explicit contract agreement with artists and presenters.

  • Eligibility to attend the GIA conference is the same as eligibility for GIA membership:

    • Organizations legally incorporated as private foundations, community foundations (including donor-designated funds within community foundations), corporate giving programs, and entities of national, state, county, local, or tribal governments are automatically eligible for membership.

    • Nonprofit organizations whose primary activity is grantmaking must meet all of the following criteria:

      • Grantmaking represents at least 30% of the organization’s total budget

      • Grants are made to benefit the nonprofit arts sector, individual artists, and the general public and not to solely benefit organizations or individuals connected to the grantmaking organization (for example, funds to individual artists to exhibit in the nonprofit organization’s gallery space or to performing artists to produce a product for the grantmaking organization)

      • Grantmaking as a program is prominent in the organization’s mission, literature, and website

thank you to
our sponsors

Bush Foundation • Carlson Family Foundation • HRK Foundation