An incredible panel of community leaders assembled on March 8, 2022, engaging in a robust discussion on what can be a complicated topic to approach – power and philanthropy.
Program Director for the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Charles Thomas, expertly guided panelists Laura Clark, President and CEO of United Way of Central Carolinas, Valaida Fullwood, Architect of South of Philanthropy and Founding Member of New Generation of African American Philanthropists, Jamall Kinard, Lakeview Neighborhood Alliance, and Principal at Conscious Leadership, and Una Osili, Efroymson Chair in Philanthropy and the Associate Dean for Research and International Programs at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.
Osili set the stage with highlights from the Women Give 2022 report utilizing “philanthrometrics” a blending of data and love of humanity to report on giving trends. The U.S. saw $470 billion in giving in 2020. The data demonstrated that we are witnessing a moment where women globally have never been as powerful as they are today. Osili elaborated that the vast resources women hold today show they are investing in grassroots organizations to help build power. Women are investing in people and using their voices and time with a call to action to become “all-in-givers.”
Founding member of New Generation of African American Philanthropists (NGAAP) Valaida Fullwood highlighted efforts focused on Black philanthropy and emphasized the power of narratives – how the stories we tell, the language we use, and having an authentic voice all lend themselves to establishing trusting relationships. She specifically highlighted tools that have been embraced by a local collaborative of funders (of which Women’s Impact Fund is a part). First, the Trust-Based Philanthropy model which seeks to address the power imbalance between funders and nonprofits. And second, NCRP’s Power Moves framework which describes how funders might build, share, and wield power with nonprofits.
Jamall Kinard with Lakeview Neighborhood Alliance and Conscious Leadership used his authentic voice describing how an initial baseball dream led to teaching, further leading him to visit students at home where he witnessed the barriers and systems that were preventing sustainable success in life. Kinard defined his work as being a community impact organization where individuals are making progress together. His call to action: “invest in marginalized neighborhoods.”
Laura Clark of United Way recognized her organization’s need to become more relationship-based, a shift from donor-centered to community-centric work. Clark noted that we should seek first to understand – assume you don’t know and challenge our risk-averse community. She shared the ways in which United Way has shifted its traditional funding structure to focus on neighborhoods and racial equity work. She spoke to the courage such commitment has taken, and the inherent risk involved in addressing power in philanthropy.
Power, the panelists said, is about trust, is “the ability to define the collective reality, “ and “when power is invisible, racism thrives.” They also leaned into a discussion of risk, noting that Charlotte can often be a risk-averse city, but that risk is required for this change work; we “have to name what is risky” and address it.
The evening closed with audience Q&A and calls to action from the panelists, including Knight Foundation’s Charles Thomas who encourage participants not to be afraid to build trusting relationships, to be humble, and to get proximate.
If you missed the event, the recording is well worth your time as you reflect on your personal philanthropy, as well as how WIF and other philanthropic institutions might respond.
