There are no limits to what philanthropy can accomplish in this world if we dream big, take risks, and set aside our egos so we can truly find ways to work collaboratively.
“That’s ridiculous,” some of you may be thinking right now. “Philanthropic dollars are a drop in the bucket. The best we can hope to do is to fund effective programs and improve as many lives as we can.”
The truth is, that kind of small-ball thinking is horsepucky, and we need to abandon it if we want to truly transform and improve our nation and the world. There is an urgent need, right now, in 2017, for foundations and high net worth donors to invest serious money in organizations on the frontlines of transformative social movements.
Think back 20 years ago, to 1997:
- Gas was $1.22 per gallon.
- Arne Carlson was Governor here in Minnesota.
- The Lion King musical debuted on Broadway.
- And the Spice Girls had a song at the top of the charts.
Did anyone in this room believe in 1997 that in less than 20 years marriage equality would be the law of the land? It didn’t seem remotely possible.
Full marriage equality for same-sex couples seemed very, very far off.
But then, in 2000, leaders of the Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund, a California-based philanthropy, began thinking about how the foundation could best support work to advance rights and dignity for gay people.
The Haas Jr. Fund made a $2.5 million investment in 2001 in the Freedom to Marry campaign. At the time, it was the largest investment ever made by a foundation in the history of the gay rights movement.
That investment got the ball rolling. And in 2003, the Haas Jr. Fund, recognizing that it couldn’t possibly win this campaign alone, helped form The Civil Marriage Collaborative, which included a handful of committed, like-minded funders from across the country.
It took visionary leadership and trust to make this funder collaborative work.
These funders, working together for the next dozen years and in deep partnership with the movement organizations, accomplished what was once unthinkable.
It wasn’t always easy. Changing society is tough work. Even as the campaign secured many wins, they also had to deal with serious setbacks. But the funding partners stuck by each other and their grantees, keeping their eyes on the prize and building momentum by winning an increasing number of state victories. And on June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court ruled and made marriage equality the law of the land.
It was a great day, and the culmination of a very long campaign in which funders and nonprofits worked together to make our society a little more fair and just.
I’m sure everyone in this room has a story about how this ruling has impacted your life. For me, I got to attend the wedding of my sister a little over a year ago, right here in Minnesota.
And here’s some more good news. These same philanthropic strategies work just as well for creating bold changes at the local and state levels.
In 2010, a group of California funders launched a collaborative. The goal of the California Civic Participation Funders is to support nonprofits to strengthen civic participation in communities of color and among other underrepresented populations. The funders involved all focus on different issues – some on health, some on immigrant rights, others on criminal justice or women’s rights – but they know that having robust civic participation from groups that have traditionally been marginalized is essential if they want to see success on any one issue. So they decided to work together to boost civic participation in four counties.
They worked in deep partnership with their grantees, and helped grantees collaborate with each other, rather than compete for funding.
Their work is paying off.
Last summer, citizens of San Diego passed an Earned Sick Leave and Minimum Wage Ordinance. The minimum wage went up to $10.50 immediately, and it just went up again on January 1st to $11.50 per hour. San Diego is not known for having progressive policies, and no one would have guessed they would enact this kind of ordinance. But with years of sustained investment by these funders, a new reality became possible. Thousands of families will benefit as a result.
I’ve been studying this stuff for years, and I want to offer up 6 things to keep in mind if you want to maximize impact:
1. The first thing you have to do is invest heavily in advocacy, civic engagement and community organizing. That is where the leverage is in philanthropy. Rigorous research shows that for every dollar invested in nonprofit advocacy, community organizing and civic engagement, families and communities get 115 dollars back in benefits. The Public Welfare Foundation, based in DC, tops NCRP’s list of funders who invest heavily in these strategies.
2. Second, you need to use targeted strategies, even when you have universal goals. To help everyone in your community, you need to employ a different strategy to reach the Latino community than you use to reach Whites or African-Americans. You may also need different strategies for women and men. Be intentional. The Lumina Foundation, based in Indianapolis, does this well. Their goal is universal – to increase college attainment rates in the U.S. – but they use different strategies to reach different groups.
3. Also vitally important is that you provide multi-year general operating support. Big changes don’t happen during one-year grant cycles. Research has shown that multi-year flexible support leads directly to effectiveness and impact. It builds trust between the funders and the grantees. In 2015, the Ford Foundation announced it intends to double its commitment to providing this kind of long-term general support. What would it take for you to double the amount of general operating support you provide?
4. The fourth key is to collaborate with other funders, and help your grantees collaborate, too. None of us, not even the Gates Foundation, has enough money to solve the biggest, thorniest problems on our own. We’ve got to work together if we want to have impact. Coalitions are needed to achieve statewide or significant policy reform.
5. We also have to invest in long-term movement leadership. People drive social change. When we invest in the leadership of social movements, it has profound and lasting benefits. Leadership by and mobilization of marginalized communities is essential to success. And burnout of movement leaders can cripple a campaign. The Levi Strauss Foundation runs a terrific leadership program for social justice leaders in the San Francisco Bay Area.
6. My sixth piece of advice is that you give special attention to issues of race and gender. The presidential election campaign made it abundantly clear that racism and sexism are still huge problems facing our society. Effective philanthropic strategies recognize that fact and work to promote greater equity. The W.K. Kellogg Foundation has been a national leader on this, if you’re looking for an effective model.
We don’t have any time to waste. There are huge challenges facing society. Big change is possible, and philanthropy has an important role to play.
We just need to dream big, take risks, and work collaboratively. When we do, we all benefit.
Aaron Dorfman is president and CEO of the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP). Follow @ncrp on Twitter.
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