The Resilience Fund
The Resilience Fund is a survivor-led, trust-based direct cash assistance program run by Polaris, the national nonprofit best known for the U.S. National Human Trafficking Hotline. It provides unrestricted monthly payments of up to $500 (up to $9,000 total over 18 months) to adult survivors of human trafficking living in the U.S., alongside referral pathways addressing five core systemic barriers (mental health access, legal representation, debt/credit repair, financial inclusion, and social support). The inaugural cohort of 24 survivors, nominated by a survivor-led Advisory Council, began receiving payments in 2023 and continued through March 2025. A planned second cohort was delayed indefinitely as of Polaris's last public update. The program is funded through private philanthropic donations to Polaris, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
Human trafficking survivors, guaranteed income, unconditional cash assistance, national program, survivor-led design, National Human Trafficking Hotline referral pathways
Headquarters
- Organization Name
- Polaris
- City
- Washington
- State / Province
- District of Columbia
- Country
- United States
Contact
- Phone
- +1 202 790 6300
- Social media links
Status & Funding
- Organization status
- Active
- Program status
- Inactive
- Application status
- Timed
- Number of recipients
- 24
- Funding type
- Nonprofit, Philanthropic
Benefits
- Currency Type
- Fiat
- Currency
- USD
- Total Amount
- 9,000 USD
- Avg. Per Month
- 500 USD
- Payment frequency
- Monthly
- How long the program lasts
- 18 months
- Benefit details
Recipients receive up to $500 per month in unrestricted cash for up to 18 months (up to $9,000 total), which they may use however they choose. The inaugural cohort of 24 survivors began disbursements in 2023 and continued through March 2025, at an average enrollment household income of roughly $17,000/year. A planned second cohort of 24 additional recipients (targeting 48 more survivors total) was announced for 2024 but delayed indefinitely as of Polaris's last public update. Polaris also connects recipients to referral services addressing mental health, legal, credit/debt, financial inclusion, and social-support barriers. Specific payment/disbursement mechanisms (e.g., direct deposit, debit card) could not be independently verified from official sources.
Eligibility
Overview
- Eligibility details
Eligible recipients are adult (18+) survivors of sex or labor trafficking living in the United States. The inaugural cohort was not selected through open public application but rather nominated by the Fund's survivor-led Advisory Council, prioritizing trust-based, low-barrier selection. Polaris had been designing an application and selection process for a second cohort intended to reduce bias and prioritize survivors facing the most systemic barriers, but this was never confirmed as launched. As of the program's last public update, Polaris stated it was not accepting applications and directed those seeking help to the (now separately operated) National Human Trafficking Hotline for referrals, noting the Hotline itself cannot provide direct cash assistance.
Demographics
- Minimum age
- 18
Geography
- Countries covered
- United States
- Residency of Target Geography
- Yes
Participation
- Research / data sharing
- Required
- Research / participation requirements
Polaris published a Mid-Program Evaluation (Feb 2025) analyzing the inaugural cohort's outcomes after nine months of disbursements, focused on financial autonomy, trust, and systems barriers. Separately, Notre Dame's Wilson Sheehan Lab for Economic Opportunities (LEO) is partnering with Polaris to design a larger randomized controlled trial (RCT) of the Resilience Fund model, reportedly intending to randomize up to 1,000 eligible survivors into treatment/control groups to measure effects on safety, economic stability, housing, mental health, credit, debt, and education; this expanded RCT phase's launch/timeline could not be independently confirmed.
Application Process
- How to apply
There is no public open application; the inaugural cohort of 24 recipients was nominated by the Fund's Advisory Council in 2023. Polaris announced it was designing an application/selection process for a second cohort but stated it was 'not currently accepting applications' as of its last public update, directing questions to resiliencefund@polarisproject.org.
- Selection process
Inaugural cohort recipients were nominated by the Resilience Fund's survivor-led Advisory Council (composed of leaders from survivor-led organizations such as the National Survivor Network and Survivor Alliance). A selection process for a second cohort was being designed to eliminate bias and prioritize survivors who experienced the most systemic barriers, but no confirmed launch of this process was found.
