Rainbow Research
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1974
- HeadquartersMinneapolis, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
Rainbow Research firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Rainbow Research
- Legal name
- Rainbow Research, Inc.
- Website
- https://rainbowresearch.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1974
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Rainbow Research industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Research and Evaluation Services
- NAICS
- Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (541720), Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)
- SIC
- Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Industry & Sector Research (Syndicated/Custom) (BPAHALAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- ESG, Sustainability & Impact Research (BPAHALAL), Education Policy Research Institutes & Think Tanks (EDADADAA), Think Tanks, Policy Research & Public Policy Institutes (BPAGAFAO)
Keywords
Where Rainbow Research is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Minneapolis
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Rainbow Research business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Foundation Grants and Funded Projects: Rainbow Research operates primarily through foundation grants and funded research projects from organizations including the University of Minnesota Institute on the Environment, Bush Foundation, Saint Paul and Minnesota Community Foundation, and Bigelow Foundation.
- Government Contracts: Government contracts and grants from state agencies (Minnesota Interagency Council on Homelessness), federal agencies (NOAA, Midwest Climate Adaptation Science Center), and legislative bodies.
- Professional Services and Consulting Fees: Fee-for-service evaluation and research consulting to county and state governments, school districts, community-based organizations, and foundations.
- Donations: The organization accepts donations through BetterWorld and GiveMN platforms as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
Rainbow Research product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Rainbow Research is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) research, evaluation, and capacity-building firm that delivers participatory, systems-oriented services to government agencies, foundations, school districts, and community-based organizations. Its core offerings span four integrated practice areas: Capacity Building, Environmental Justice, Evaluation & Research, and System Change, all grounded in social justice and decolonizing frameworks. The firm is staffed by multiracial, majority BIPOC research and evaluation professionals operating across local, regional, and national levels in the United States.
Product overview
Rainbow Research is a nonprofit research, evaluation, and capacity-building firm offering four integrated core service areas: Capacity Building, Environmental Justice, Evaluation & Research, and System Change. These services are delivered through participatory, systems-oriented approaches with a strong social justice focus. The organization works with government agencies, school districts, community-based organizations, national organizations, and foundations. No commercial software product, platform, or SaaS offering is described — the company provides professional research and evaluation services rather than a technology product.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Capacity Building Evaluation capacity building services that increase evaluation knowledge and skills for funders, grantees, and communities, enabling them to more effectively commission and use evaluations. Topics include evaluation basics, data collection design, analysis, and dissemination.
- Environmental Justice Environmental justice research and advocacy services spanning Decolonizing Nature-based Solutions, climate resilience for vulnerable communities, Indigenous-led co-management of natural resources, land justice strategy for BIPOC farmers, and anchoring the Environmental Justice Coordinating Council.
- Evaluation & Research Comprehensive evaluation and research services using both qualitative and quantitative methods, covering outcome and net impact evaluation, formative evaluation, developmental evaluation, systems approaches, strength-based and trauma-informed models, large group facilitation, and social network analysis across settings including education, public health, youth development, food systems, disability services, employment, and gender-based violence.
- System Change Systems and complexity-oriented evaluation approaches using Developmental Evaluation and Human Systems Dynamics to navigate complexity in social change initiatives, supporting rapid feedback cycles and real-time actionable information for multiple organizational levels.
Quantifiable outcome
- Established co-management paradigm with The Nature Conservancy toward traditional ecological knowledge influence on natural resources stewardship
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Rainbow Research
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Rainbow Research technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Rainbow Research partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA)corePartnership on press statements and advocacy at COP30 regarding financing implementation for the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA).
- Global Afro-Descendant Climate Justice CollaborativecoreDr. Grant is heading to COP30 working in support of objectives defined by this collaborative. Published the Global Afro-Descendant Climate Justice Collaborative Framework on race, racism and climate reparations in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
- CREATE Initiative (University of Minnesota)minorDr. Grant served as a Fellow with the CREATE Initiative led by social scientists at the University of Minnesota, conducting research on combating gentrification with ecologically-sound development without displacement paradigm.
- University of Minnesota Mni Sota Center for Weather and Health (MCWH)coreRainbow's Deputy Director and Indigenous Action Research Director attended inaugural engagement event at Minneapolis American Indian Center, engaging with nearly 40 community partners on extreme weather impacts on American Indian and rural communities.
- The Nature Conservancy (Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota)corePartnership on Minnesota Million Project for reforestation visioning. Rainbow Research staff member Joe Morales establishes and grows meaningful relationships with Native leaders and provides skilled facilitation for large-scale reforestation project with original caretakers of the land as key decision-makers.
- University of Minnesota Institute on the EnvironmentcoreFunded partnership for Decolonizing Nature-based Solutions project. Rainbow Research coordinated interviews and workshops to examine how NbS is being applied in communities and the public and private sectors.
- Midwest Climate Adaptation Science Center and NOAAcoreFunded project to boost climate resilience of climate-vulnerable communities in the Midwest. Rainbow Research interviews people leading environmental justice work in EJ communities across Minnesota and the Midwest.
- The Creative Advantage (CAIT)corePartnership in 2024/2025: Conducted focus groups and interviews with students, teachers, principals and arts partners to inform strategic priorities for the Arts plan.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Rainbow Research competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Insight Center for Community Economic Development: Research and policy organization producing community economic data and analyses to advance equity; similar equity-driven research orientation and social-change focus.
- Equal Measure: Philadelphia-based nonprofit evaluation and philanthropic-advising firm focused on equity-centered assessment for foundations and nonprofits; highly comparable social-justice evaluation mandate and funder client base.
- Innovation Network: Nonprofit consulting firm providing evaluation, capacity building, and learning services to foundations, nonprofits, and government; comparable mission, client mix, and method set.
- Spark Policy Institute: Evaluation and systems-change consultancy focused on social impact and collective-impact initiatives; directly comparable in systems-oriented evaluation work for foundations.
- Center for Evaluation Innovation: Specialist evaluation and learning firm serving foundations and nonprofits on strategy, advocacy, and policy evaluation; comparable funder-focused evaluation niche.
- PolicyLink: National research and action institute advancing racial and economic equity through policy research and partnerships; comparable equity-and-policy research mission and foundation/government clientele.
- Social Science Research Council: Nonprofit social-science research and capacity-building organization supporting rigorous, methodologically diverse, and equity-aware scholarship worldwide; comparable social-science research mandate and grant-funded model.
Broad incumbents
- Mathematica Policy Research: Large, well-established policy research and evaluation firm serving federal, state, and foundation clients across social, health, and education programs; broader portfolio but overlapping evaluation and policy-research function.
- NORC at the University of Chicago: Independent research institution conducting survey, evaluation, and policy studies for government and foundations; significant methodological and topical overlap in social science research and program evaluation.
- RTI International: Large nonprofit research institute delivering social, health, and environmental research and evaluation for government and commercial clients; comparable mission-driven research orientation, but with vastly greater scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Rainbow Research social profiles
Digital presenceRainbow Research financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Rainbow Research leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Rainbow Research funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Rainbow Research M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Rainbow Research
What does Rainbow Research do?
Rainbow Research is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) research, evaluation, and capacity-building firm that delivers participatory, systems-oriented services to government agencies, foundations, school districts, and community-based organizations. Its core offerings span four integrated practice areas: Capacity Building, Environmental Justice, Evaluation & Research, and System Change, all grounded in social justice and decolonizing frameworks. The firm is staffed by multiracial, majority BIPOC research and evaluation professionals operating across local, regional, and national levels in the United States.
Is Rainbow Research a public or private company?
Rainbow Research is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Rainbow Research founded?
Rainbow Research was founded in 1974. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Rainbow Research based?
Rainbow Research is headquartered in Minneapolis, United States, in the North America region.
How does Rainbow Research make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Foundation Grants and Funded Projects are the primary driver. The others are government Contracts, professional Services and Consulting Fees and donations.
Who are Rainbow Research's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Insight Center for Community Economic Development, Equal Measure, Innovation Network, Spark Policy Institute, Center for Evaluation Innovation, PolicyLink and Social Science Research Council. Broad incumbents are Mathematica Policy Research, NORC at the University of Chicago and RTI International.
Does Rainbow Research have an API?
No public API is recorded for Rainbow Research.
What industry is Rainbow Research in?
Rainbow Research's product category is Research and Evaluation Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHALAE, Industry & Sector Research (Syndicated/Custom), with a secondary code of BPAHALAL, ESG, Sustainability & Impact Research. Its NAICS code is 541720 and its SIC code is 8742.