Letter from the Editors

As PEAK celebrates its 25th year, we reflect on what brought us here: you.

In this issue, we celebrate the journeys of accidental technologists and process pioneers who led critical, formative work to make grantmaking more efficient, more effective, and ultimately, more equitable.

To help tell PEAK Grantmaking’s story, we’ve asked members of our community to share their own career experiences; to explore how they are moving within the field to grow their skills and assert their leadership; and to delve into all the ways that they have risen up as leaders of change to push, pull, and sometimes drag the field forward.

Their stories and insights testify to the importance of building networks and connections to provide support as mentors and peers. We hear over and over about the importance of advocating for yourself at work, carving out your own path, and with it, a path forward for philanthropy. Our community—one we often hear is one of the most inclusive and welcoming in philanthropy—has nurtured a circle of emergent learning where anyone who is concerned about improving practices can find help in the form of a co-conspirator, a friendly ear, a policy sample, or a resource.

Today, the PEAK community is bigger and more diverse than ever, engaging an ever-widening array of philanthropic professionals. Each new member makes our opportunities to learn richer, our enthusiasm for peer sharing deeper, and the way forward clearer.

As we reflect on all the progress we’ve made to date, we look with anticipation to the journey ahead and to where another quarter century of growth and partnership can lead us.