The Executive Leadership Council (ELC)’s Post

Celebrating Community Engagement, Trust, and Black Joy at The Learning Tree Common Ground Gathering Day 2 🌟 On the second day of the Common Ground Gathering, we were inspired by the keynote discussion featuring Pamela Ross Ross and Mark Lewis. Their insights into philanthropy, trust, and the power of Black joy in community empowerment were truly transformative. Pamela Ross, formerly of the Indianapolis Foundation, emphasized the importance of investing in Black joy to create resilient and thriving communities. Mark Lewis, President and CEO of the Poise Foundation, highlighted the significance of developing grassroots Black power through collective resource mobilization. Key Takeaways: Trust and Power Dynamics: Building genuine relationships within communities. Racial Equity: Holding institutions accountable and addressing structural biases. Black Joy as a Catalyst: Investing in joyous initiatives to foster unity and reduce violence. Grassroots Empowerment: Harnessing collective economic power and educating the next generation. #Philanthropy #CommunityEngagement #CollectivePower #BlackJoy #Trust #SustainableChange #Commongroundgathering2024 https://lnkd.in/gK26R9MH

Shout out to Bithiah Carter and the Give Black Alliance team Angela Johnson. Please check out her article on the Boston Globe Business by Lauren Booker. Appreciate your leadership and your dedication and the years of mentorship in my career. Bithiah, you have always bean a dynamic and sage beacon of philanthropic change, always ready to uplift #BlackJoy and generosity. You are always looking for good partnerships, ways of informing and reshaping the narrative, and always passing knowledge to the community and how to leverage it for prosperity and community impact. Thank you! "Philanthropy, going back to its roots, its Gilded Age was seen as a place where you could use it for assimilation, if we will. It was used as a place — a tool of power — that created inequity, created divisions. The eugenics movement did that very well, and it was funded by philanthropy. When we think about the 20th century in particular, the idea of “you must conform to a certain way” was kind of the prevalent way of thinking. Philanthropy was thinking, not about how do we build from the assets that one has, but what’s wrong with you and how do we fix you? And we know that doesn’t work. As I think about the diversity of us, that is the strength of us, the diversity of not only our voices, our people, our thoughts, but that is the place where innovation happens." #philanthropy #legacy #future #wealth #generosity #BlackWallStreet #economy #reconstruction #innovation #systemicchange #ourtime #leadership #moves #boston #socialimpact #inequality #equity

Johane Alexis-Phanor, a fundraising and communications consultant specializing in Black-led movements, poses critical questions in her essay "Radical Philanthropy for Black-Led Movements: A New Asset-Based Approach to Fundraising." Johane challenges the distance between philanthropic institutions and Black communities, asking why foundations often operate outside the neighborhoods they serve. She reinforces that this physical and experiential distance perpetuates deficit-based philanthropy, which views Black communities solely through the lens of disparities, robbing them of agency and perpetuating a cycle of disinvestment. In response, Johane introduces S.M.A.R.T. Black Philanthropy (SBP), an asset-based model grounded in collaboration and Black traditions. SBP identifies six key assets within Black communities: people, culture, physical, intellectual, economic, and institutional. By recognizing and leveraging these assets, philanthropy can move beyond deficit-based narratives and invest in the transformative potential of Black communities. It's time to rewrite the narrative and invest in the inherent strengths of Black communities. Join the conversation and read Johane's compelling essay using the link. #Philanthropy #AssetBased #BlackCommunity #SocialChange #CommunityBuilding #Culture #Equity

🌟 Black History Month 🌟 underscores the pivotal role of philanthropy in advancing racial equity. It's crucial to acknowledge and address the persisting challenges that threaten the strides made in supporting Black communities. The recent consideration of race-based grantmaking as discriminatory is a stark reminder of the obstacles faced by the philanthropic sector. Such a ruling has the potential to roll back the significant progress achieved over decades. Let's unite to ensure that philanthropy continues to be a powerful force for positive change, breaking down barriers and fostering inclusivity in our collective pursuit of a more just society. Together, we can overcome these challenges and amplify the impact of our efforts during Black History Month and beyond. Ford Foundation William and Flora Hewlett Foundation Decolonizing Wealth Project #PhilanthropyForChange #BlackHistoryMonth #RacialEquity #DEI #plannedgiving #legacygiving 🌍✊🏽✊🏾✊🏿

Happy #BlackFutureMonth! As we kick off #BlackHistoryMonth today, Bridgespan's senior editorial director Cora Daniels asks: what if in addition to looking back, we also commit to ensuring a prosperous and healthy future for all Black people? She says "#philanthropy needs to play the long game when it comes to #RacialJustice." Read more on The Chronicle of Philanthropy https://lnkd.in/eieDgMda

Today we celebrate #BlackPhilanthropyMonth, a time to celebrate the brilliance and imagination that Black folks bring to philanthropy, this month’s theme is “Afro-Futures in Giving” Black women have been on the cutting edge of breaking down the traditional philanthropic paradigm and imagining new futures for Black communities. As we advocate for a just world, the voices of these Black women leaders continue to be a guiding light. https://lnkd.in/gTw3xvhe

The findings from this study highlight the content of philanthropic communications on racial equity, and their initial impact on the landscape of racial equity institutional; work in the United States. Racist communications and messages from philanthropic foundations subtly convey Black communities’ inferiority and perpetuate the idea that they need guidance from foundations, while also diverting attention from the realities of perpetual systemic racism. Anti-racist messages denounce institutional racism and police brutality, and promote efforts to address systemic racism. https://lnkd.in/dKJqg-Gm

During Black History Month, Philanthropy Should Focus on the Future While we can’t forget the past, a futurist approach ensures Black-led organizations can flourish for decades, not just a few years. --- Chronicles of Philanthropy By Cora Daniels "No more forcing Black-led organizations to live grant check to grant check. Nearly four years ago, research from Echoing Green and Bridgespan, found the unrestricted net assets of Black-led organizations were about 75 percent smaller than those of their white-led counterparts. This pattern doesn’t seem to have changed much since then. If philanthropy is truly committed to advancing equity and justice, then it needs to start funding this work like the massive re-imagining exercise it is. That doesn’t happen in one-year or three-year grant cycles with strings attached. One good example is The 1954 Project, a pooled fund specifically targeted to support Black leaders authentically. Its founders, philanthropists Liz and Don Thompson, understand that philanthropy has more assets to offer — including social capital, time, talent, knowledge, and physical space — than money. The 1954 Project draws significantly on the social capital of its principles and staff to support each grantee, or “luminaries,” as the fund calls them, including helping them find additional donors, potential board members, or other helpful connections. Liz Thompson has accompanied the luminaries to meetings or conferences to better serve as a champion and, when needed, has also nudged those connections to ensure they follow up on commitments." The burnout of Black lead organizations is real and harsh. Philanthropy needs to do more to lift ALL BOATS! DiCam Strategic Solutions

It is definitely not surprising where resources go. Black and racialized leaders do not receive dollars unless they are leading large organizations that are mainstream. And if they are racialized, it is more attractive if they are "youth". Many racialized leaders with lived expertise have raised this issue in conversations. Especially grassroots lived expert/consumer led organizations. And if there are funds, they are not funds that support the growth and wellness of said organizations - they are project based. There is often an expectation from funders that there must be humans volunteering and showcasing their burden of labour in numbers to receive funds - I do the opposite, I'd rather take on the burden and recruit people when there are funds so that they can be paid for their labour. Expecting lived experts to do things for free in order to 'deserve' funds is part of the problem. It is tough to get funding out here. I know this personally. “The backsliding of Black leadership and other underrepresented populations is exactly what we unfortunately expect to see in an era of attacks on the tools of Black power like affirmative action, like DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion), et cetera,” she said. ”It's a nonprofit space where disproportionately white leaders disproportionately receive resources from these white, ultrawealthy donors, while Black leaders from the most impacted communities are expected to often turn water into wine, using nothing but pennies on the dollar." #Leadership #Women #Black #Racialized #DEI #Diversity #Equity #Inclusion #Accessiblity #Disproportionality #Donors #Funding #Philanthropy

“It seems risk has been normalized as a good thing when it involves accumulating wealth, but it turns bad when it involves giving money away to accelerate social change. Instead, what if donors allow their giving to be guided by an asset-based approach that focuses on an organization’s strengths and potential. When it comes to advancing equity and justice, the only risk that matters is the risk of not giving.” As we begin Black History Month, this insightful piece by Cora Daniels featured in The Chronicle of Philanthropy emphasises the importance of adopting a 'futurist' mindset when supporting Black-led organisations. By providing long-term funding and addressing the historical underinvestment in BIPOC-led initiatives, donors can contribute to their sustainability. Failing to provide the necessary funding is the only risk that donors should avoid. https://lnkd.in/eSA_HpYa #shiftthepower #philanthropy #bipoc #blackhistorymonth #funding #grassroots #socialimpact