Purpose
The Foundation has provided research support on the theme of purpose that ranges from physical cosmology, evolutionary biology and biochemistry to the nature and development of purpose across the lifespan.
FEATURED GRANT
Development of Purpose in the Lives of Young People: A Scientific Examination
Professor
William Damon, Director
Stanford
Center on Adolescence
Stanford
University (Stanford CA)
The
Foundation has invested in three separate phases of Dr. Damon's research into
the nature and development of youth purpose. The first phase included a Research
Conference at Stanford University. The second phase of funding initiated a
range of empirical investigations into the nature and development of youth
purpose. The third phase will support young scholars investigating Youth Purpose
at the dissertation or post-doctoral level.
More »
Sample Grants
| Grant Title |
Award Date |
Grant Amount |
| |
- Secrets of Successful Aging: How Exemplary Individuals Find Purpose and Flourish through Late Adulthood
Penny S. Visser, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Psychology
University of Chicago (Chicago, IL)
- This grant will support an investigation of the processes that promote successful aging through a national survey. Particular attention will be paid to two potential sources of purpose and meaning: a) deep religious or spiritual convictions, and b) an abiding commitment to stepping outside of oneself to serve others.
|
October 2007 |
$283,150 |
- British Abolitionism and Noble Purpose: A Planning Grant to Organize a Conference on the Role of Progress in History
Donald A. Yerxa, Ph.D., Assistant Director
Editor, Historically Speaking
- This grant is to plan a conference on the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the British slave trade to consider a series of big questions about history, particularly whether moral progress is a possibility. The conference is jointly organized by The Historical Society and the John Templeton Foundation, in conjunction with the Spring 2007 Templeton Board of Advisors meeting in London.
|
November 2006 |
$266,820 |
- William E. Simon Fellowships for Noble Purpose
T. Kenneth Cribb, Jr., President
Intercollegiate Studies Institute, Inc. (Wilmington DE) - These
two grants support the administration of the William E. Simon Fellowships for
Noble Purpose. The program aims to encourage graduating college students to
pursue a goal that will strengthen civil society. The program is named after
the late William E. Simon.
|
November 2003 |
$800,000 |
- The Purpose Prize™: Americans Leading with Experience
Marc Freedman, Founder and President
Civic Ventures (San Francisco CA) - This
grant helped launch a major initiative, in partnership with the Atlantic
Philanthropies, to invest in a generation of individuals in the second half
of life who are marshalling their accumulated experience to tackle some of
America's most urgent issues. The annual Purpose PrizeTM awards
$100,000 each to five social entrepreneurs age 60 or older who are creating
innovative programs to improve their communities.
|
January 2005 |
$4,352,891 |
- The Emergence of Biological Complexity
Professor Derek Burke, Former Vice Chancellor
University of East Anglia (Norwich UK)
Dr. Jonathan Doye
Department of Chemistry
University of Cambridge (Cambridge UK)
Dr. Ard A. Louis, Royal Society Research Fellow
Cambridge University (Cambridge UK)
Professor Simon Conway Morris FRS
Department of Earth Science
University of Cambridge (Cambridge UK)
Professor Graeme Barker FBA, Director
McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research
Head, Department of Anthropology
University of Cambridge (Cambridge UK)
Professor Chris Scarre, Deputy Director
McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research
University of Cambridge (Cambridge UK) - This
grant initiated a Request for Proposals [RFP] program to stimulate and sponsor
new empirical research and theoretical insights directly pertinent to the
'great debate' over the emergence of increasing biological complexity. The
scope of funded research ranges from the biochemical level to the evolution
of life, and the emergence of society and culture.
|
March 2005 |
$3,584,147 |
