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PEAK Grantmaking

Reimagining Grantmaking

About this issue

Learn how to take the lessons from 2020a year marked by escalating racial and health inequitiesto move beyond short-term change, challenge philanthropy’s long-held notions of risk, trust, and equity, and chart a better way forward by transforming our practices.

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What's Inside

Letter from the Editors

What a year it has been, with the profound impact of the pandemic on our lives, our work, and those we serve.

We are grieved by the escalating racial, economic, and health inequities and outraged by leaders who continue to exacerbate those inequities. And we are driven to increase the impact of our work at PEAK, and the work of philanthropy, to create a more just and equitable world.
Have we ever felt so keenly aware of the imperative for philanthropy to get it right – to bring the full measure of our resources and know-how to meet the challenges of the moment?
Hundreds of grantmakers have quickly pivoted practices to respond to urgent and growing community needs – by loosening or eliminating restrictions on grants, reducing the burden on nonprofits, increasing transparency in decision making, committing to listening to communities that are least heard, and supporting policy and advocacy efforts.
Where do we go from here? How do we take the lessons of this critical time and move beyond short-term, incremental change to truly reimagine grantmaking?
A movement is rising, spurred by the dawning recognition that powerful declarations are powerless, unless bold words are followed by bold action.
In this edition, we amplify the voices and programs of some of the changemakers who are challenging philanthropy’s long-held notions of risk, trust, and equity, as they chart a better way forward through transforming their grantmaking practices. Listen in as they challenge you to do the same.
Betsy Reid and Melissa Sines
Coeditors, PEAK Grantmaking Journal

 

Guest Editor Notes

Guest editors Jane Ward and Christina Yoon share their thoughts on on the importance of boldly and courageously committing to more equitable grantmaking.

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Anonymous

You have the power to decide where $100 million of your organization’s funding goes. What do you dare to do?

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CEO:CEO

Taking a Bold Stand at the Weissberg Foundation

PEAK’s Satonya Fair talks to Weissberg Foundation’s Hanh Le on how they are operationalizing trust-based practices and recommitting to racial equity and justice.

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By the Numbers

Grantmaking Practice Changes: For the movement, or just for the moment?

Results from two major surveys fielded in 2020 reveal how grantmakers changed their practices in response to our national crises and how these changes might result in long-term shifts.

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Roundtable

A Conversation on Risk, Trust, and Equity in Philanthropy

Adin Miller, Dana Kawaoka-Chen, Maya Winkelstein, and Nicole Campbell delve into the idea of risk, how it can undermine trust- and equity-based practices, and how we can reimagine the concept for the betterment of the sector.

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Anonymous

What bold move do you wish your organization would make, but is too cautious to undertake?

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Because Change Can’t Wait: A grantmaking redesign shifts power at Stupski Foundation

Stupski’s Glen Gailich, Gwyneth Tripp, Lalitha Vaidyanathan, and Sacha Thompson share how they reimagined their grantmaking processes to build trust and better face emerging challenges.

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Stories From the Field

In the PEAK tradition of peer-sharing and learning, we asked 15 members of our community to share how they are evolving practices—highlighting ways that the conventional wisdom of “how to make grants” is being upended amidst crisis, upheaval, and uncertainty. Through these stories, four themes emerge:
  • The imperative to share power through trust-based philanthropy approaches;
  • The urgency for philanthropy to raise its voice through (and by supporting) advocacy;
  • A dedication to funding racial and social justice initiatives; and
  • Questioning philanthropy’s characterization of their investments: “What about the other 95 percent?”
As you read these reports, consider the possibilities should philanthropy change its notions of risk, trust, and equity. We hope you, too, will be inspired to reimagine grantmaking’s role for the future.

 

Stories From the Field

Going All in to Train Advocates

Bolder Advocacy’s Tim Mooney shares how they help make advocacy easy and accessible for nonprofit and foundation leaders—moving them from cautious to courageous.

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Stories From the Field

Challenging Racism With Action

Amber López Gamble provides an inside look at The California Wellness Foundation’s racial equity journey and how they evolved their funding approach to focus on systems change and justice.

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Stories from the Field

Standing Up For Justice

How did a white-led family board make the decision to focus on racial equity? Surdna’s Jonathan Goldberg tells their story.

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Stories From the Field

Listening and Acting With Urgency

Andrea Garvey shares how the Schott Foundation for Public Education adapted streamlined its processes to quickly get funds to existing and new grantees during a crisis.

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Stories From the Field

It’s All About Trust

Learn how the Trust-Based Philanthopy Project is reenvisioning funder-grantee relationships as true partnerships–and according to Shaady Salehi, this movement is quickly gaining momentum.

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Stories From the Field

Sharing Power Across Generations

The Walter and Elise Haas Fund decided to center its strategy on power sharing. Suki O’Kane, Pui Ling Tam, and Anna Hernandez explore the unexpected outcomes that improved their grantmaking.

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Stories From the Field

Why We’re Tripling Our Grants

Once the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation had a sense of how severely the COVID-19 pandemic would reshape society, they knew it was time to get creative with their grantmaking. Christine A. Mayers recounts how the organization pivoted to create opportunity amid despair.

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Stories from the Field

Leveraging the
Other 95%

McKnight’s Stephanie Duffy explains how to approach impact investing so that it achieves social impact and bottom-line returns.

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Stories From the Field

Trust Is Our Work

Angelina Pienczykowski sheds light on how building trust with grantees has propelled the Tinker Foundation’s work.

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Stories From the Field

Lifting Restrictions

Borealis Philanthropy was focused on reducing grantee burden before COVID-19—and Maya Thornell-Sandifor tells how the pandemic prompted them to adopt even more equity-centered practices.

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Stories From the Field

Supporting the Engineers of Systems Change

For the James Irvine Foundation, systems change by fostering partnerships with grantees and other grantmaking organizations. Kimberly Canfield shares how they approach relationship building to maximize their impact.

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Stories From the Field

Listening, Learning, and Adapting

The Barr Foundation pivoted its operations to best meet a moment of crisis, and as Kerri Hurley writes, continuing to adapt will continue to be central to success as we emerge from the pandemic.

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Stories from the Field

Removing Barriers, Building Trust

“Grants managers have a vital role in creating and managing systems that can either build trust or build barriers to trust,” writes General Service Foundation’s Elaine Mui, who outlines the ways that her organization has leaned into its values to center grantees.

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Stories From the Field

Betting Big on Advocacy

Investing in policy advocacy isn’t a go-to for many large foundations, but as Wendy Elliott of the Alliance for Early Success writes, it can be a key to effecting large-scale change.

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A mural in NE Portland honoring Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and Breonna Taylor. Artist: Christian Grijalva. Photo credit: Tojo Andrianarivo
A mural in NE Portland honoring Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and Breonna Taylor.
A mural in NE Portland honoring Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and Breonna Taylor. Artist: Christian Grijalva. Photo credit: Tojo Andrianarivo
Stories From the Field

Centering Justice in Our Work

The philanthropic sector needs to show up differently if it’s going to truly be about effecting change, says Meyer Memorial Trust’s Kaberi Banerjee Murthy. Learn how Meyer is taking a hard look at its work using a racial equity lens to better serve the people of Oregon.

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Are you ready to embrace risk and transform your practices? Use this checklist to set your vision into motion.

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Starting with Risk

Emily Goulding of nonprofit design lab Amplifier shares her organization’s origin story and what she learned about successfully embracing risk to make big, lasting changes that can move the sector forward.

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PEAK Community

What’s new and notable from PEAK Grantmaking – from exclusive member benefits, to member news, events highlights, and what’s ahead.

How Our Community Is Meeting the Moment

Sara Sanders reflects on how the PEAK community is rising to respond to multiple crises by reimagining grantmaking.

PEAK Community

We shine a light on the many facets of PEAK’s vibrant network of grantmaking professionals, featuring member news, board election updates, chapter event highlights, and by welcoming new members.

PEAK Programs

Learn what’s new and notable around PEAK and how you can tap into a growing array or member-exclusive resources to support your work.