Weekly Reads—November 8, 2024

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

“In moments of great uncertainty, it can be easy to freeze. However, as the pandemic taught us, funders have a crucial responsibility to support nonprofits to weather moments of rapid change and continue to serve communities effectively for the long term. … In the coming months, funders will need to balance agility, consistency, and attention to equity. All of which require preparation. To help funders consider how best to act in moments of political uncertainty and change, we can learn from 2017.” [more]
Kevin Bolduc, The Center for Effective Philanthropy

“Our analysis [in our report Sounding the Alarm: Nonprofits on the Frontlines of a Polarized Climate]… finds that many organizations addressing issues that make the headlines today are contending with negative consequences such as reputational damage, threats to organizational safety, and funding reductions. As a result, groups are being forced to make or consider program changes and shifts in how they characterize their work. Additional funding losses are also widely anticipated, with groups pointing to state and federal legal rulings, expected policy changes and the upcoming elections as direct and indirect influences.” [more]
Building Movement Project

“Philanthropy’s commitment to democracy must be consistent and enduring. We know that some philanthropies will not have the same amount of funding available next year as they did this year. We know some shifts in philanthropic priorities are inevitable. But philanthropy’s priorities cannot be achieved without a healthy democracy, and our democracy cannot be healthy without philanthropy’s sustained commitment.” [more]
Laura M. Chambers, ABFE

“Philanthropy must do differently to do better. We must get out of our silos. We must stop acting independently and unilaterally. Our movement partners demand a higher level of coordination and cohesion from us. Let us move from performing our values about justice and equity toward embracing discomfort, curiosity, and risk. That is where the real transformation happens.” [more]
Mónica Córdova, The Funders’ Collaborative on Youth Organizing, and Lisa Owens, Hyams Foundation, for Stanford Social Innovation Review