The difference between core costs and project costs
Launch library · evergreen read
Core costs keep a campaign running day to day, covering things like basic administration, coordination and the ongoing costs of simply existing as an organisation, regardless of any specific project underway at a given time. These costs continue whether or not any particular project is currently active.
Project costs are tied directly to a specific piece of activity, easier for many funders to understand and support since the connection to a visible outcome is clear and easy to point to in a funding proposal. That visibility is exactly why project funding tends to be easier to secure.
Because core costs are often harder to fund, despite being genuinely essential to a campaign's ability to function at all, campaigns increasingly make the case for core funding directly, explaining clearly why sustained infrastructure matters just as much as any single visible project. Funders who understand this distinction tend to become especially valued partners.