Weekly Reads—February 17, 2023

Enjoy PEAK’s weekly roundup of timely insights from the grantmaking community and beyond.

“What we take as ‘normal’ in modern philanthropy is based on the fundamental, and frankly patronizing, assumption that the wealthy are best suited to distribute grants.” [more]
Kelley Buhles for Nonprofit Quarterly

“Smart funding and philanthropy need to design funding models that are particularly effective and suited to the new normal of crisis and volatility. This necessarily includes results-based funding models that will keep service providers accountable but not let them get burned while preparing for unexpected scenarios. By scaling these results-based funding models, we can drive impact and cost-effectively improve the lives of more people in poverty.” [more]
Dianne Calvi, Village Enterprise, Avnish Gungadurdoss, Instiglio, and Jeff McManus, IDinsight, for the Center for Effective Philanthropy

“Trust-based approaches may be new to many in the field, but they are long-held traditions for Indigenous people. Therefore, it is crucial to keep in mind the Native value of reciprocity in funding practices and relationship building. When philanthropy approaches Native communities with mutual respect and exchange in mind it results in being more intentional, thoughtful, and humble when interacting with the community they serve.” [more]
Native Americans in Philanthropy

“Those who care about the future of democracy in the United States will need to consider supporting local news organizations—in the same way that many people think about supporting their local arts and culture and other community organizations.” [more]
John Palfrey, MacArthur Foundation