Alma García MSW, LSW’s Post

For funders, being effective means being impact driven and focused. By identifying achievable outcomes, deploying an investment strategy and measuring progress, philanthropy can play a meaningful role in advocating for communities that have been marginalized. https://bit.ly/3W5LXfn

What if funders, foundations and philanthropists opened up the same kind of space around issues that's needed for communities to connect and realise what's possible? Modelled funder collaboration across issues, approaches and engagement that the social sector is increasingly asked to undertake to maximise maximise impact? Engaged with their grantees with mindfulness, consideration and clarity in the way that VCSE organisations endeavour to engage their beneficiaries? Can you imagine what kind of world would be possible if funders led with their humanity? https://lnkd.in/eiGxfyzz

Shifting power to build deeper partnerships with grantees allows funders to invest more strategically by assuming more nuanced and relational roles. Learn how trust plays a part in redefining how philanthropy can support communities that have been marginalized. https://bit.ly/3XpGgtK

Wanting to invest in solving the big problems of our times? Then, don't think you've got the answer! Those you want to invest in are the ones who have the answers. So give yourself a break and be an effective enabler. Simply put your money in the pot and trust that good things can happen ... and will ... if you trust and enable all the way... through "continuous collaboration across sectors". "The funder’s role is to create and sustain the conditions through which stakeholders can generate their own solutions" "Instead of making choices for other people, philanthropists must learn to empower individuals economically and politically to make choices for themselves and then celebrate their successes to inspire others, thus opening a far more pivotal role in fast-tracking widespread, lasting social and environmental progress." Thank you Sarah Griffiths for sharing this article with me. https://lnkd.in/e4p2bQcX #Regenerative ... ... #Funding ... #Investment ... #Philanthropy

I'm catching up on news from being away with my wife, but I thought there were some fascinating insights here. The bigger question I think it worth grappling with, and that I plan to explore more deeply here over the next few months, has to do with the intertwined nature of capitalism and philanthropy and how *both* can be a force for equity and for good in the world. #buildingimpactpartners #forwardthinkingphilanthropy https://lnkd.in/e2d-J6Ww

🌱 Building Power in a Post-Philanthropic World 🌱 As we close out National Co-op Month, it’s time to reflect on how funding structures impact grassroots movements. In their recent article, Zac Chapman and Nairuti Shastry explore how movements can gain independence by leveraging multiple funding strategies: working within, without, and against traditional philanthropy. They discuss powerful examples, such as Seed Commons The Drivers Cooperative, and PODER Emma, showing how co-ops and mutual aid groups thrive without relying on conventional, extractive funding. Instead, they’re crafting resilient, community-centered economies through non-extractive financing and grassroots support. 🌍 Read more about the transformative potential of these funding strategies: https://hubs.li/Q02W1PXw0 #CoopMonth #SolidarityEconomy #NonExtractiveFunding #WorkerCoops #CommunityWealthBuilding

Last year, the The Lankellychase Foundation made a decision to relinquish control of its assets in order to allow money to flow more freely towards social justice work. In the below article their CEO, Julian Corner starts to paint the picture for how they reached this both applauded and criticised decision. The Foundation wanted to reimagine how wealth, capital, and social justice can coexist for the benefit of all life. The Board felt their traditional charitable model for promoting separation and control was leading to inefficiencies in addressing complex social issues. They wanted to focus on the concept of interconnectedness and the need to dissolve separations in order to achieve more effective, life-affirming outcomes, deepening community integration, in the hopes to create a more interconnected approach to addressing social challenges. A takeaway question from the article for funders to consider "Instead of predictability, hierarchy and division, what if we leaned fully into interdependence, mutuality, community, entanglement?" https://lnkd.in/egFP_Pbx

How wealth, capital and social justice can coexist for the benefit of life ..a most interesting article

In this piece from The Chronicle of Philanthropy, researchers summarized how philanthropic organizations--and nonprofits in general--can communicate more effectively: 1. Tell better stories about how funding decisions are made. 2. Explain organizational goals using simpler language. It's no secret that that the nonprofit sector often struggles to explain our work without jargon or wordiness. Have you seen strong messaging in the field? Tell us about it in the comments. Thanks to HRiA's Lindsey Carver for sharing this timely article.

We should be providing more significant, more flexible philanthropic funding to leaders closest to the issues. It will help them and their work and improve life for all. There are also all sorts of obstacles that hold funders back from taking the leap and making bold, catalytic investments in underrecognized leaders. Unconscious bias is one of them. Chicago Beyond's Mirror Tool counteracts unconscious bias. Learn more about our journey to develop the Mirror Tool in Liz Dozier's recent contribution to the National Center for Family Philanthropy (NCFP), and consider utilizing the Mirror Tool to address bias during decision making. #NoticeDifferently