Aimee Cunningham

Ambiguous vs Clear in your #Fundraising #Appeal (1); #Strategy 4 the #Nonprofit #Professional (2); Accelerating Giving (3); #Video Storytelling (4) + : https://ow.ly/yef650SAFF7 https://ow.ly/YcGz50SAFF6 https://ow.ly/5lvm50SAFF4 https://ow.ly/Lp3H50SAFF5

1

Beloved Community: Funders, partners, neighbors, allies and friends. Thank you for your support, attention and engagement with the Richmond Rapid Response Fund (R3F) over the last 4 years. It is with mixed emotions I write to share that we have decided to sunset the R3F. It was an honor to lead and be a part of an initiative rooted in and led by the community. We hope that the work done and lessons learned will be able to inform the collective transformative work happening in Richmond and another partner will be able to implement a guaranteed income program in Richmond. In times of crisis and uncertainty we witnessed our community come together to support individuals and families within Richmond. Led by community and government leaders from the City of Richmond, The RYSE Center, EdFUND West, Richmond Promise, and FIERCE Advocates (formally BBK), the Richmond Rapid Response Fund (R3F) was born on May 5, 2020, driven by a community-centered process. The R3F team coordinated with partners from the West Contra Costa Cares Coalition to further connect families with a resource and referral network for ongoing needs and support. The aforementioned organizations have long-term, trusting relationships in the community, which made it possible for us to act quickly in response to COVID-19 and beyond. There are many reasons an initiative might consider sunsetting, including that we are one of the longest lasting pandemic responses and have accomplished our mission to provide rapid response support, while aware recovery will need a cross sector long-term sustained equitable effort. Changes in the funding landscape make guaranteed income, community oversight and direct cash harder to fundraise for. With a fund intermediary structure that relies on external financial management, there may be other organizations better positioned to continue the work. Given the infrastructure of this initiative with 1 staff member, 1 fellow and a Community expert panel and the departure of key leaders from the Core Team, we accomplished a lot! However, given that capacity we are sunsetting to allow resources, including lessons learned to support other bodies of work. I'm so very grateful for how this work has engaged across agencies and issues and to have shared impact with you all. For folks who’d love to keep in touch, please find me at [email protected]. I am more than happy to stay in community thought partnership and community solidarity with the collective and shared work and appreciate leads for next steps including roles and projects. In healing justice and solidarity, jessica travenia

78

1 Comment

I have been asked, why are you so afraid? Why do you think things are going to be so different for others? (Others are those communities and individuals who are not natives to the US, non-white, and/or not male.) This is why, and this was before the elections. Philanthropy, we need to do better! Be bold! Diverse and independent nonprofits are critical for a thriving democracy—just ask anyone who has worked in promoting democracy abroad. You begin with building the independent sector, then the judicial, and finally, the electoral and government. #Nonprofits #Democracy #IndependentSector

6

Are you struggling to secure funding for your upcoming projects or needs? Don't wait until the last minute - involve your Program staff early on to ensure a successful and timely grant proposal. Read on for tips to coordinate Grants with program launches, and ensure you have necessary staff bios/resumes, so you have that competitive edge in your grant applications. https://lnkd.in/eZMNG9n7 #nonprofitgrants #fundingopportunities #programmanagement

5

I have been fortunate to spend most of my career serving social impact -- as a healthcare worker, as a teacher, as a nonprofit leader. I also have formal business training and I live under capitalism and recognize its influence in all things. In any business venture, for profit or nonprofit, it's necessary to understand who else is already doing the thing. They are competitors and collaborators, and often they are both. What I appreciate about social impact business is the emphasis on collaboration. I love what Cameron Dearlove wrote about nonprofit duplication this week. I hear this all the time, and if you are in nonprofit work I'm sure you have as well. The thing that I would add to Cameron's thoughtful take on this, is the importance of collaboration and support in a system that is underserved. I see a trend that funders--from government to foundations--are looking to support coalitions instead of single entities. To Cameron's point, variety and niche service at the grassroots level is a good thing. This is a targeted universalism approach. Smaller grassroots organizations provide a zoomed-in view of specific community need. Coalition building zooms out, elevates the collaborative message, allows for sharing of resources, and moves everyone together towards the same universal goal. Lovely. Thank you for sharing, Cameron. #agefriendlydesign #targeteduniversalism #collaboration #innovation #nonprofitleadership

12

12 Comments

📢 A call to action for philanthropy: "We don't need you pretending that you don't have the power that you have." -Maurice Mitchell of Working Families Party at this year's Northern California Grantmakers annual conference. 💡 The theme of this year's conference was Imagine and Act. I had the opportunity to learn from some of the most powerful speakers I've ever heard, alongside colleagues from Tides and hundreds of other practitioners in philanthropy. My biggest takeaway is that if we want to truly shift power in the field, we need to come to terms with the fact that the billions of dollars harbored in philanthropy are not ours to control. It is impossible to amass that much wealth without extraction; therefore, we must see it as our duty to return assets to the communities to whom they have always belonged. Doing so requires us to shift our mindsets and our practices. Luckily, there are resources like Movement Generation Justice and Ecology Project's Just Transition framework to help us along the way.

31

1 Comment

How can foundations and grantmakers be more intentional about sharing power with communities directly affected by systemic racism and health inequity? A new @RWJF case study provides a behind-the-scenes look at our $5 million participatory grantmaking initiative, Building Local Alignment. Review how we worked to cede decision making control to outside experts and what lessons have emerged for our foundation and other funders as we seek to advance equity. Check it out today! #CommunityPower #EquityInAction #ParticipatoryGrantmaking https://bit.ly/3YdySRr

83

Sounds like an amazing #vacancy to work on the intersection of systemic #riskassessment and #nature. I love their explicit wording: "ASRA is founded on a set of principles including non-human sanctity. Incorporating nature into #riskanalysis is not merely a matter of #environmental #stewardship or human self-preservation. #Naturecentric approaches attribute intrinsic value to all living organisms and ecosystems, independent of their utility to humans. This perspective recognizes the #interconnectedness of all life forms and the importance of preserving the integrity and health of other #species and #ecosystems for their own sake, and not just as a resource for humans. This approach involves evaluating the impacts of human activities on #biodiversity, #habitat #connectivity, and #ecological #processes."

5

Thank you SGR for a wonderful webinar on Servant Leadership today. Tim Gleason, City Manager of Decatur shared his philosophy and success stories and wow, were they inspiring! If you don’t know what servant leadership is, here is a great definition: “A servant-leader focuses primarily on the growth and well-being of people and the communities to which they belong. While traditional leadership generally involves the accumulation and exercise of power by one at the “top of the pyramid,” servant leadership is different. The servant-leader shares power, puts the needs of others first and helps people develop and perform as highly as possible.” - Centre for Servant Leadership Here are some examples shared today of what it could look like: - Take time to be with each other - When people need help, show up for them - Care for your co-workers, avail yourself to them - Prioritize the culture > “Culture eats strategy for breakfast” “This is not just about the 25-30 working years, it’s about the end of the career. I want someone to know they have been valued. In retirement, I want people to reflect back on what they achieved and be proud.” - Tim G. In short, servant leaders believe that their success is the success of others. How can it help you? Well check out this amazing win... Within a short period of being back at Decatur, Tim and his team have wrapped up two bargaining agreements ahead of schedule. These agreements had been stuck in multi-year battles previously. He also spoke of the trust and closeness of the culture throughout the pandemic and how that supported innovative, effect work during and after. Do you know a servant leader? Do you want to celebrate them? If so, do so below. I'd love to celebrate alongside you.

1

1 Comment

We are in a child care crisis in America. Few communities have enough quality, affordable programs to serve families in need of child care. The situation is especially challenging in rural communities, like those where Save the Children works. This survey by Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Voices shows that the crisis is getting worse - with 2/3 of rural small businesses reporting that their communities lack enough quality, affordable child care programs. Working families cannot fix the child care crisis on their own. Child care providers cannot fix the crisis on their own either. There are a number of policies that have bipartisan support that would turn this situation around. It’s not that we don’t know how to fix the situation - we lack the political will to get the job done. Our failure to act is leaving working families in impossible situations and a generation of children behind. https://lnkd.in/ebQwJkuG

4

Funding opportunity to support self-care through a sabbatical program. These sabbatical grants, offered by the Meyer Foundation, are designed to promote deep rest by enabling organizers, frontline staff, senior staff, and executive directors of organizations to take a step away from their jobs, rest, and engage in activities that will renew their mind, body, and spirit. This opportunity is particularly valuable for frontliners, organizers, directors, researchers, and other dedicated individuals who face daily challenges, whether in the field (online or offline) or in their offices, within their home countries or in exile. Their work is crucial for reclaiming space, fighting for better regimes, and advocating for the economic, social, political, and cultural rights, especially for those who need to fight representing groups/communities that lack of representation and/or are under constant attack. The philanthropic sector asks its partners/grantees about their strategies’ sustainability, robustness and resilience. These are critical considerations for making financial decisions with potential field-wide implications. When evaluating how to allocate resources for building and reinforcing mechanisms that provide safety and security, it’s crucial to assess how effectively the chosen strategies impact the protection ecosystem, how they address key levers of change, and strengthen weak points. However, it is equally important when doing those evaluations, actors in the philanthropic sector implement a holistic view of their partners/grantees’ conditions — how effectively they can build and implement strategies, and whether they have the necessary support (including and) beyond just financial resources. Programs like sabbaticals, which offer time for rest and renewal, should inspire the philanthropic sector. By providing such opportunities, we not only support individual well-being but also contribute to the overall sustainability and resilience of the protection ecosystem. Find more information about the sabbatical grants here 👉 https://lnkd.in/ehiP5Cmq #funding #fundingopportunity #philanthropy #protection #humanrights #activism

11

In a time when democracy faces unprecedented challenges, the State Infrastructure Fund is a beacon of hope, channeling donor dollars and optimism into safeguarding democratic processes across the United States. Our latest article on Inside Philanthropy explores how this fund is strategically mobilizing resources to support state-level initiatives that protect and strengthen democracy. #SarahHenry reports: How the State Infrastructure Fund is addressing threats to democracy Strategic initiatives supported by the fund at the state level The role of donor collaboration in driving impactful change Tagging The Overbrook Foundation CENTER FOR CIVIC POLICY John P. and Anne Welsh McNulty Foundation #DemocracyProtection #SocialImpact #StateInfrastructureFund #CivicEngagement #DemocraticResilience #DonorCollaboration #VotingRights #FairElections #DemocraticProcesses #PoliticalInfrastructure #DefendDemocracy #PhilanthropicImpact #InsidePhilanthropy #Philanthropy

3

*i got this information below from the Multnomah County Joint Office of Homeless Services Facebook and I’m sharing here* A new report from Portland State University’s Homelessness Research & Action Collaborative (HRAC) indicates that alternative shelters provide better outcomes for people experiencing homelessness than traditional, congregate shelters. The research, conducted by HRAC on behalf of Multnomah County’s Joint Office of Homeless Services (JOHS), analyzed the cost, participant experiences, and client outcomes in village-style and motel shelters as compared to more traditional congregate shelters. The study found that motel and village shelters, which provide private living spaces that support the autonomy, dignity, and safety of clients, led to better experiences and more positive outcomes than congregate shelters. This work will inform the implementation of the JOHS Community Sheltering Strategy and support the knowledge base of effective shelter models among homelessness services funders and providers. Read the full report at https://johs.us/reports/

1

#DRGTip: How to Build Donor Engagement Programs Your Gift Officers Will Love How do you build donor engagement programs that your donors and gift officers will love? DRG's Jan McGuire and Colton Withers discuss what should be included in your donor engagement plans (and what shouldn't). #DonorEngagement #GiftOfficers #NonprofitStrategy #DonorRelations

6

The five-year plan of board engagement to fund raise very accurately reflects my experience mobilizing boards. I like the article's practical approach.

3