mandyvandeven.bsky.social

Discover the four funding practices they prioritized in this article by me, Chiara K. Cattaneo, Jody Myrum, and Erin Lynn Williams in @npquarterly.bsky.social:
nonprofitquarterly.org/how-to-fund-...

This was not simply a theoretical exercise; it was a demonstration of what can be achieved in a 90-minute session with folks that have the wisdom and experience to be decisive about 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝗽𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗲𝗱.

Earlier this year, Elemental, Our Collective Practice, and Constellations Fund facilitated an activity that asked 50+ movement communicators and narrative practitioners to 𝗰𝗼-𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗮 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺𝘀.

As foundations reconsider their strategies and redesign their approaches to narrative grantmaking, we encourage them to 𝗮𝗱𝗼𝗽𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿, 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗴𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 that reflects what the field knows to be most necessary and effective."

How to Fund Like a Narrative Strategist | Nonprofit Quarterly | Civic News. Empowering Nonprofits. Advancing Justice. Adopting funding frameworks designed by narrative strategists can build the movement infrastructure that makes progress toward a liberatory future possible.

"When experts on narrative power building are centered in funding discussions and decisions, the practice of grantmaking can look radically different from what we see today...

nonprofitquarterly.org/how-to-fund-...

How to Fund Like a Narrative Strategist | Nonprofit Quarterly | Civic News. Empowering Nonprofits. Advancing Justice. Adopting funding frameworks designed by narrative strategists can build the movement infrastructure that makes progress toward a liberatory future possible.

How to Fund Like a Narrative Strategist nonprofitquarterly.org/how-to-fund-... @mandyvandeven.bsky.social

Immerse yourself in the collective observations, experiences, and imaginations of people working across the philanthropic sector. And tell us what you think — comments are welcome!

Each contributor centers their inquiry on a specific narrative that has been embedded in philanthropy's design. They illustrate what became possible when they revised flawed assumptions and took simple, practical steps toward a vision where we are all flourishing.

This series invites you to engage your imagination and consider propositions for how to release the inherited habits that do not serve us and embrace the opportunity that's before us to practice the future today.

What becomes possible when philanthropy adopts the narratives we need to build the world we long for?

cep.org/blog/the-myt...

Beyond individual trade-offs: what if funders focused on what they can do, rather than what they can’t? | Funders Collaborative Hub Despite increased levels of grant-making, foundations face soaring demand and are painfully aware of their limitations as individual institutions. Thinking collectively can enable funders to contribut...

As part of Elemental's “The Myths of Philanthropy” series, Jim Cooke/Association of Charitable Foundations explores the limitations of individualism and how acting collectively can enable funders to contribute to more ambitious goals.

www.funderscollaborativehub.org.uk/blogs/beyond...

...Faced with the trade-offs of responding to rising demand with finite resources, individual funders may be painfully aware of all the things they can’t do. But thinking collectively, and working in an ‘ecosystem aware’ way, enables each funder to focus on what they can do.”

“People often think about funder collaboration in terms of formal structures for pooling funds. While formal approaches can bring significant benefits in some cases, they are not always needed. All forms of connectivity play an important part in fostering an effective funding ecosystem...

To learn more about current unionization trends in the social justice sector, join this online briefing with Neighborhood Funders Group, Beyond Neutrality, Ford Foundation, and Amalgamated Foundation on June 23rd: nfg.org/events/union...

Belaboring the change: what if funder organizing learned from worker power building? | Funders Collaborative Hub By reimagining their role as 'funder organizers', those who work in philanthropy can build the power that’s needed for lasting transformation, write Leanne Sajor and Neda Said.

As part of Elemental's “The Myths of Philanthropy” series, Leanne Sajor and Neda Said of Neighborhood Funders Group explore what worker power building could look like in philanthropy to move funder organizers together toward a common goal.

www.funderscollaborativehub.org.uk/blogs/belabo...

While organizing philanthropic workplaces is not revolutionary work, it is one way to leverage our influence in a sector with few formal systems of accountability, and to demonstrate our commitment to worker organizing and power building in a way that supports funder organizing more broadly.”

...While many in philanthropy fund organizations that advocate for worker’s rights, rarely does it occur to them that an answer to their own struggles might be found in worker power building within their own institutions...

Belaboring the Change: What If Funder Organizing Learned from Worker Power Building? | The Center for Effective Philanthropy The authors argue that worker organizing within grantmaking organizations offers a path to improving funder relationships with movements.

“As any labor leader knows, where there is a common set of workplace complaints, there is an opportunity for worker organizing — and though it may not be their first inclination to say so, funders are workers...

cep.org/blog/belabor...

The Future is Ours to Make: What If Solidarity Was the Blueprint for Philanthropy? | Funders Collaborative Hub All over the world, Black feminists are fighting to preserve hard won gains and freedoms. It’s time for more people in philanthropy to follow their lead by being equally visionary and creative in how ...

As part of Elemental's “The Myths of Philanthropy” series, Vanessa Thomas/Black Feminist Fund explores the value of funder adopting operational practices that reflect the understanding that our liberation is bound together.

www.funderscollaborativehub.org.uk/blogs/the-fu...

This means resourcing creatively and in a plethora of ways, including investing in narrative and base building strategies, land back campaigns, and capital costs."

...This is not a time for anticipatory obedience or passive adaptation. It's past time for funders to step up and invest in Black feminist movements with the urgency and abundance required, funding expansively and beyond the limiting binaries that feel comfortable and safe...

...Contending with this truth enables us to situate our work in philanthropy as an act of repair, not a benevolent act of generosity. We can take on a role that recognizes our healing is interconnected, and we have a moral imperative to work together in relationships of real solidarity...

The Future is Ours to Make: What If Solidarity Was the Blueprint for Philanthropy? | The Center for Effective Philanthropy Vanessa Thomas argues that philanthropy must operate within a framework that is rooted in repair and meaningful solidarity with movements.

“Philanthropy must be understood as deeply intertwined within political, economic, and cultural structures, and we must acknowledge how charitable giving often serves to sanitize the ill effects of these systems...

cep.org/blog/the-fut...

Join me to talk about philanthropy, resourcing narrative power, and building movement infrastructure at the launch of Liberation Stories: Building Narrative Power for 21st Century Social Movements.

www.linkedin.com/events/73387...

Solidarity Leadership: What If Philanthropy Encouraged Collaboration Rather Than Competition? | Funders Collaborative Hub The three co-founders of Closer Than You Think share what they learned about collaboration and competition as foundation leaders - and why these lessons are so important in a time of uncertainty and r...

As part of Elemental's “The Myths of Philanthropy” series, explore what becomes possible when funders operate in ways that encourage leaders to collaborate rather than compete.

www.funderscollaborativehub.org.uk/blogs/solida...

...If there was ever a time to emulate nature and build a more functional, ‘leaderful’ funding ecosystem, this feels like it.”

...Even when resources are seemingly scarce, with some funders retreating and others behaving with a ‘survival of the fittest’ mentality, we remember the many examples from nature that show how competition increases vulnerability because it reduces one’s capacity to withstand environmental stress...

Solidarity Leadership: What If Philanthropy Encouraged Collaboration Rather Than Competition? | The Center for Effective Philanthropy What would happen if funders prioritized collaboration - amongst themselves and nonprofit partners - over competition?

"Our working relationships and friendship over the years have honored the uniqueness of our paths. We value each other’s expertise and networks and know the power of aligning our collective energies to flow together, to turn the tide, and to nurture new possibilities...

cep.org/blog/solidar...

Change is a Process: What if philanthropy had the courage to take its cues from nature? | Funders Collaborative Hub Inspired by nature’s ebb and flow, the Constellations Culture Change Fund set out to apply experimental practices that are critical for resourcing narrative change, write Erin Lynn Williams and Ilegva...

Discover more in Erin Lynn Williams and Ilegvak's contribution to Elemental’s The Myths of Philanthropy series: www.funderscollaborativehub.org.uk/blogs/change...

...It will take generations for alternative narratives and regenerative ways of being to take hold, so investing for long durations is imperative. We know philanthropy is capable.“