Alexandra Fiorillo (she/her)

In addition to community foundations, we are considering a small number of United Ways. Spread the word! We think the SDGs will be particularly useful as a vehicle for place-based racial equity work in the new environment we are heading into...

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There is something beautiful about empowering movement participants to allocate funds and design programs. Participatory Grantmaking is poised to transform our approach to funding, but it also touches on a concept we are always chasing. Time: This process is time-consuming and must be considered when pursuing true participation. We need to reassess our relationship with the concept of time in movement building, embracing slowness and accepting that for powerful ideas like Participatory Grantmaking to be effective. https://lnkd.in/g9B7GyAH

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Good points. Trust does not mean being hands off. If anything because monitoring is always a source of lessons for others but also because trust should go both ways. Trust your grantees; but also grantees should trust their funders. There is an unhelpful narrative dominating the field that argues grantees always know better. Nobody always knows better. A funder, even one far away from the “field”, can be a great source of ideas, insights, skills, etc. They ought to; they ought to be more than a wallet. The problem lies in funders thinking they always know better and not letting their grantees be responsible for their choices.

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🏗️Sustainable Development Spotlight! Last week, I kicked off a six-week series spotlighting practitioners and community leaders working in equitable and sustainable development. These testimonials, gathered by the International Society for Urban Health (ISUH) team, feature inspiring stories from around the globe of changemakers working to build healthy spaces, improve infrastructure, and drive health equity. Check out our latest spotlight–it might even spark an idea for your community! Vibrant public spaces are essential for ensuring the social, physical, and economic wellbeing of residents. When designed as attractive, welcoming gathering places for people of all ages, these spaces can foster social interactions, support the local economy, improve resident health, and more. Drawing on examples from Bogotá, Colombia, Gil (Guillermo) Penalosa Penalosa of 8 80 Cities shares about the power of building equitable and inclusive spaces, like parks and public facilities, and how these spaces can transform urban areas. Learn more about equitable city planning and explore other stories on community-led health equity initiatives: https://lnkd.in/eZsuT9bf

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2023 #Fundraising Report (1); #SocialMedia & #Online #Fundraising (2); #Trust Based #Philanthropy (3) + Donor-Grantee #Power Imbalances & #Nonprofit #Democratic #Leadership (4): https://ow.ly/1yEe50RyQne https://ow.ly/MeOp50RyQnb https://ow.ly/T3mO50RyQn6 https://ow.ly/7Iez50RyQn5

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Many nonprofits struggle to meet fundraising goals, and a key reason might be their approach. Traditionally, fundraising focuses on the "ask," potentially neglecting the experience of potential donors. By shifting the focus to facilitating philanthropy, nonprofits can create a more rewarding experience for donors and increase support. Thoughts? #Philanthropy #NonProfit #Fundraising

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TLDR ;) Too Long (but) Definitely Read! I'm so excited to tell you about what we are building now at Fields of View, with support from Indian School of Development Management (ISDM) 's CDSSI Fellowship. Introducing *drum roll* E-QLT! * EQLT is a simulation tool that takes 100+ variables of a household into account, to assign a Social Protection Score to them. Below 300 and the household is vulnerable. So, we can identify the most vulnerable households in our communities, identify how exactly they are vulnerable (to health risks, to climate risks), and do targeted interventions. * We can simulate the effect of schemes and benefits on the Social Protection of a household. So, we can see which households a direct cash transfer, for example, will make more secure, and which households it will make more vulnerable. We can identify the exact basket of schemes and benefits tailored to the need of every household to lift them out of vulnerability. But that's not even the most exciting part! For the first time we are building EQLT as an open public data platform, that any CSO can use to do targeted interventions in their communities. If you are interested in using EQLT or knowing more, write to us on [email protected] #socialprotection #poverty #simulator #vulnerable #marginalised #schemes #benefits #data #opendata #platform #sumulation #tool #digitaltool

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Struggling to monitor gender outcomes in complex settings? E.g. no baseline data? ↳ Use "complexity-aware"methods like Most Significant Change to gather real stories from women, highlighting progress and unexpected gender impacts without needing baseline information. Or wish to uncover hidden gender impacts? ↳ Outcome Mapping tracks subtle changes in behaviour and relationships, ensuring you catch the gender outcomes that traditional methods might overlook. Scroll through the document to learn more. _________________ 🔔Join the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Academy where you get practical help to have gender responsive M&E systems https://lnkd.in/epqEsMF6 #GenderResponsive #MonitoringAndEvaluation #ComplexityAware

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🌍 Developing Non-Profit Programs in Partnership with Community: Shifting Power for Lasting Impact 🌍 As non-profits working to address the climate crisis and advance the circular economy, true transformation begins with partnership—working with communities, not for them. To create programs that are equitable and sustainable, we must first confront and shift the power dynamics that often exist between organizations and the communities they serve. ✨ Here’s what meaningful partnership means to me: 1️⃣ Power Sharing & Co-Creation: The community holds the expertise and knowledge of their own experiences. True partnership means recognizing this power, inviting them into the decision-making process, and co-creating solutions together. It's about building programs that reflect the unique needs of those most impacted by climate change and environmental injustice. 2️⃣ Trust & Transparency: Power imbalances can undermine trust. By being transparent about our goals, resources, and limitations, we create a foundation for open, honest collaboration. Trust is built when communities are engaged from the beginning, not as an afterthought, ensuring their voices guide both the vision and the outcomes. 3️⃣ Equity & Inclusion: Addressing the climate crisis and transitioning to a circular economy requires centering the voices of those most affected by these issues—often Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities. True inclusion means breaking down systemic barriers and ensuring that these communities have the power to shape solutions that work for them, ensuring climate justice is at the heart of all efforts. 4️⃣ Shifting Toward Sustainability: Solutions that are developed in partnership with community are more resilient and adaptable. When we center local expertise, we craft programs that not only tackle immediate needs but also have the power to drive long-term, systemic change in the fight against climate change and towards a more sustainable, circular economy. 5️⃣ Redistributing Resources: Climate and environmental justice require us to think critically about resource distribution. Non-profits can act as bridges, redistributing resources and wealth into communities that have been historically marginalized. But this must be done in a way that empowers—not imposes—so that communities themselves lead in shaping the future. As we continue to build programs addressing the intersection of climate, equity, and the circular economy, it's essential to remain committed to power sharing and community-led development. This approach not only shifts the dynamics of power but creates lasting, equitable change that drives both environmental and social justice. 🌱 #ClimateJustice #NonProfitLeadership #CircularEconomy #CommunityPartnership #EquityInAction #BelovedCommunity #PowerShift #CollectiveImpact

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🫵🏻 NGO leaders: This is a worthwhile survey for you to fill in. I did it myself, as one of many Humentum Associates who were invited to do so. It is worthwhile because it makes you consider what your actual organizational policies are concerning equitable and resilient operational capacity. It is worthwhile because you will help create a benchmark to assess your org against. And finally, because Humentum will send you some useful freebies in return. I hope you will!

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The learning is hot at #ImpactPS24 The Impact Partners Network gathers folks that work in the social sector ecosystem to innovate new approaches and use the power of community to drive solutions for us / by us. #nonprofits #nonprofit #philanthropy #impact #collaborativeLearning Aimee Cubbage and Mandy Kutschied, SHRM-SCP shared knowledge about #eq and #emotionalIntelligence (in the Multiverse) Self awareness Self regulation Intrinsic motivation Empathy Social skills Leaders who have empathy outperform those without by 40% ☀️ Rubin Singh of OneTenth Consulting explored the unique technology challenges facing nonprofits today … and why tech implementations fail and how we can do better. NTEN and Institute for the Future Great technology requires great people. Sam Adiv and Sam Dorman remind us in their session: “Collaborative Greatness”: Building Thriving Client-Partner Alliances This summit brings together an incredible collection of humans. We don’t need dreamy data or cutting edge tech stacks. We need collaboration and strategic alignment. First. (#downwithRFPs) Institute for Nonprofit Practice Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP Global) Garvin Maffett, Ed.D. Julie Michelle Morris Technology Association of Grantmakers Salesforce Microsoft Nonprofit Leadership Alliance LinkedIn for Nonprofits BPOZ Brand Leadership Three Little Birds Agency

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Great work here from Josh Lerner and People Powered. I wrote a paper for University of Sussex Science Policy Research Unit in 2000 called the two wave theory of public participation. Essentially arguing that we had two major waves of democratic innovation one driven by the civil rights movements starting in 60s; and a second driven mainly by the environmental movement getting momentum in the 80s and 90s. That's clearly an over simplification. What I really like about Josh's shift from waves to ecosystems is it better describes how we need to think about democratic innovation now and it's essentially contextual nature.

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Sharing this with my network as I know many of you are interested in Impact Investing.

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“In the context of philanthropy, what does it mean to adopt a trust-based approach? One way to understand this might be to ask what the alternative is: if relationships between funders and grantees are not based on trust, then they must be based on other mechanisms that are aimed at providing a degree of certainty – such as contractual obligations, carefully-defined grant criteria, short-term funding cycles and demands for measurement and reporting.” When we talk about trust-based philanthropy as an equity strategy, people often talk about resources—who has money and time, how to move money, how to preserve time, etc. The passage above points to TBP as aligned with what feminist philosopher Miranda Fricker has coined epistemic justice. When philanthropy seeks certainty in the form of contractual obligations and quantitative measurement, it’s perhaps evidence and example of both hermeneutical and testimonial forms of epistemic injustice. This may seem abstract, but it’s actually core to our shared humanity: how we know what we know about the world, who decides what counts and knowing and what is known, the ability to contribute to our collective understanding of what is known and to be recognized as a knower. Philanthropic institutions that wish to move toward a trust-based approach may say they seek to disrupt received wisdom that philanthropy “knows best.” Often I think this is something we say without fully appreciating the gravity of “knowing” not merely as a prerequisite for changing resource flows but as itself a site of justice or injustice. As this author of this article argues, trust is its own end. These are my half-formed Friday morning thoughts, and you should definitely take the time to read the article.

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The tide may be turning when it comes to large-scale giving in Africa. Bridgespan's new research finds that significantly more large gifts from non-African funders are now predominantly going to African NGOs - a stark contrast to the longstanding giving patterns on the continent. Is the landscape of large scale giving in Africa fundamentally changing?

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Out today: Futures Philanthropy: Anticipation for the Common Good https://lnkd.in/drXWJdCG Just been listening to the authors discuss this. It's worth a look. Of the risks identified to philanthropy, one of the identified risks is the conservatism of boards and risk aversion - which is hugely interesting for me and Dr Beth Breeze OBE as we are working on a project called 'Moonshot Philanthropy' that is characterised by an ambitious risk appetite. #philanthropy #futures #foresight

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The Equitable Evaluation Collective (EEC) a collaboration between ChEW and The Social Investment Consultancy (TSIC), has been working hard over the past year and we are excited to announce the launch of our new report! "Evaluation as an Ecosystem: Cultivating Equity in the Garden of Transformation." Join us for a virtual event on October 9th from 1-2:30 PM (UK time) to explore key findings and discuss how to foster equity in evaluation practices. This event is open to professionals working in evaluation, funding, and research, as well as individuals with lived experience and those interested in creating an equitable evaluation sector in the U.K. Why Attend: - Gain insights from the "Evaluation as an Ecosystem" report - Engage in meaningful discussions with fellow professionals - Explore strategies for creating a more inclusive and just evaluation ecosystem - Network with others passionate about equitable evaluation Sign up here: https://lnkd.in/e3BPe7Gh #EquitableEvaluation #SocialSector #Evaluation #ReportLaunch #CharityEvaluationWorkingGroup #TheSocialInvestmentConsultancy #Community #Research

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ICT colleagues, take this survey to help the good folks at NetHope get a better sense of how organization are budgeting and investing their resources.

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