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Public Knowledge
Knowledge should be accessible to all.
Knowledge is alive, ever-changing. Passed on through writing, photographs, audio, and emerging forms, knowledge is pervasive—but fragile. It survives when it is collected, preserved, and shared. Our Public Knowledge grants support the work of the institutions and community groups that strengthen our cultural record by preserving, recording, organizing, and making knowledge accessible to the public in libraries, archives, and other settings. Through this work, we can build a more informed, engaged, and fair society—and ensure that vital voices and stories endure.
Who we support
Through grants to eligible recipients, we support:
- Archives and libraries engaged in creating, preserving, and making accessible cultural and scholarly records.
- Organizations working to address gaps in the historical record and to increase public access to knowledge.
- Collaborative projects focused on creating and sustaining technology and infrastructure to preserve and share knowledge.
Our staff seek out and get to know innovative leaders, scholars, librarians, archivists, and culture bearers before inviting them to submit a proposal for funding. Most Mellon grants are made through these invitations.
Grantmaking in focus
Patricia Hswe
Program Director, Public Knowledge
Program Director, Public Knowledge
“For me, public knowledge means ensuring that knowledge access and production are treated as public and social goods ... for purposes that matter to people.”
August 15, 2025
PEN America Receives $1.4 Million From the Mellon Foundation to Support America’s Public Libraries
Washington State University
Designed with Care: Mukurtu Provides Ethical Tools for Archiving and Preservation of Indigenous Heritage
Mellon Voices
Defining Public Knowledge with Program Officer Patricia Hswe
We support the work of knowledge bearers who are creating an informed and engaged society.
About our grantmaking process