The Southwest Folklife Alliance has always understood the role of “funder” as more than just “financial supporter.” Rather, the organizations, agencies, and individuals who support our work do so because they recognize that culture is infrastructure — that the traditions, knowledge systems, and creative practices of everyday communities are foundational to a region’s health, equity, and sense of itself. We view these relationships as partnerships and we hold them with care.
Why Fund SFA?
SFA is the only regional traditional arts organization serving the U.S.-Mexico border corridor, with relationships extending from Anthony, New Mexico to the Tohono O’odham Nation. Our work reaches artists, communities, students, and researchers across Arizona and beyond through programs that are rigorously documented and community-driven. We have a strong track record of fiscal responsibility, transparent reporting, and delivering measurable impact — and we approach every funder relationship as a genuine partnership, not a transaction.
To discuss funding opportunities or request a meeting with our leadership team, contact Managing Director Jocelyn Retamoza Gonzvar at jocelyn@southwestfolklife.org or call 520-621-4046.
Get info and resources in our Media Kit
Sponsorship opportunities
Sponsor Tucson Meet Yourself
Tucson Meet Yourself is one of the longest continuously running folklife festivals in the nation, drawing 90,000 to 150,000 visitors over three days each October to downtown Tucson for its free offerings. Festival sponsorship places your organization in direct relationship with the diverse communities that make Southern Arizona thrive, and with the hundreds of artists and culture bearers whose work the festival celebrates. Sponsorship packages range from presenting-level opportunities to community exhibitor participation. We work with sponsors to create visible, meaningful recognition.
Support OTHER SFA Programs
SFA programs offer funders many ways to support arts and culture, community development, education, economic empowerment, disability justice, and heritage conservation. Current program areas seeking support include Tucson Meet Yourself, the Master-Apprentice Artist Award, Loom Network, Disability Cultures Folklife, the La Doce Center for Cultural Organizing, BorderLore, and the Folklife PAR Network. We welcome both project-specific and general operating support, and we are happy to work with funders to align investments with their priorities and our community’s needs.
Deepen Impact with Civic & Government Partnership
SFA has a long history of partnership with public agencies at the local, state, and federal levels. We partner to advance community cultural development, historic preservation, neighborhood planning, and artist support. We serve as Arizona’s State Partner for Folk & Traditional Arts and bring a folklife lens to civic initiatives ranging from community design processes to public health programming. If your city or agency is working on a project that intersects with cultural equity, heritage, or community organizing, we welcome the conversation.
Past and current partners include:
Collaborate with Us
SFA’s work is strongest when it is collaborative. We actively seek partnerships with cultural nonprofits, tribal organizations, community groups, educational institutions, and social service agencies who share our commitment to equity, cultural vitality, and community self-determination. If your organization is doing work that aligns with ours, we are always interested in exploring what we might build together.
Contact us to organize a collaboration.
Past and current partners include:
Let’s Build Something Together
SFA is a nimble, deeply connected organization with the trust of communities and the rigor of an institution. We bring our full selves to every partnership and hold our relationships with funders and collaborators to the same standard of reciprocity and respect that guides all of our work.