Happy Holidays!!

I hope you all had a joyful Christmas yesterday, your Kwanzaa celebrations are underway, and the holiday season is treating you well and covering you with love!  

We have some announcements coming in the new year, but wanted to make sure we connected with you here before we closed out the year to express our immense gratitude for you, your support, your feedback, and your love! The first half of this year was a bit of a doozy for us, but with a community like you, we were able to make it to the other side and we are deeply grateful for you!! 

We’ll be on sabbatical in January planning out our path forward with this newsletter and will share those updates in the new year. Sending you love, light, and peace for the new year ahead!! 

💚

Amy & Bryan

📓Funding Activism

Perfectly timed after a wild election season, a collection of scientists, founders, activists, and funders gathered at the 3rd annual Data For Black Lives Conference. 

The Conference:

Set in Miami at the Perez Art Museum, Founder Yeshi Milner, designed the conference to be the perfect mixture of Black Joy with the DJ set parties, Black History with the Black History of Miami tour, and Black Imagination with a robust program culminating at the intersection of critical issues like health, economic justice, climate, and governance. 

The Speakers:

Speakers included heavy hitters like Ruha Benjamin (I gushed over her last year here and here), Samuel Sinyangwe (activist, data scientist, and policy analyst focused on solutions to end police violence), and your boy Bryan Lattimore! 

On the panel, Funding Data Activism, Bryan and his fellow panelists gave a thorough overview of the funding landscape and the nuanced approaches to access capital. 

Moderated by Sadé Dozan, panelists included: 

• Lili Gangas: Chief Tech Community Officer at the Kapor Foundation, a private foundation working at the intersection of racial justice and technology.

• Nneka Nwaifejokwu: Senior Director of Strategic Partnerships at Grantmakers for Girls of Color. She comes to this work from her background as a researcher, understanding the importance of data in resourcing and fundraising for marginalized communities.

• Jeri Rayon: Founder of the Black Donors Project, a participatory action research project that explores black donors who give to the arts and its intersections. She is also the program manager for the Sabbatical Fund at the Women of Color in the Arts.

• Bryan Lattimore: Founder of Marble Design Studio and The Greenroom Guide is an experienced entrepreneur, philanthropist, and cultural change agent, Bryan is a world builder, leveraging his skills in creative culture, influence, marketing, technology, data, and storytelling to make a positive impact in communities.

Let’s dive into a look at the funding landscape…

The Future of Movement Funding: Challenges and Opportunities

The panel started with a critical discussion examining the current state of philanthropic funding, highlighting systemic gaps, and exploring innovative solutions for more equitable resource distribution in movement-building work.

TLDR:

1. Show up where the money is - identify local family office summits, conferences, or business gatherings and be physically present.

2. Document your unique value with both stories and stats - create a compelling narrative that shows how your deep community connections reduce investment risk while filling critical data gaps.

3. Build civil rights and community empowerment into your funding pitch from the start - don't treat them as add-ons, following NAACP's example of integrating digital rights into their new renter’s fund from day one.

Here’s a deeper look…

1. The Funding Landscape is Highly Fragmented but Rich with Opportunity 

The landscape consists of three main sectors…

• Private Sector: Corporate philanthropy is evolving, with Fortune 25 companies now looking at 2-3-year strategic plans for community impact. Family offices represent a significant but often overlooked funding source – as Bryan noted, many of these offices have substantial capital ($100M+) but lack clear deployment strategies.

• Social Sector: This includes fellowships and nonprofit re-granting organizations. Bryan shared a personal experience of receiving his first $10,000 from a nonprofit, highlighting how these organizations often serve as crucial entry points for new initiatives.

• Public Sector: While government funding exists, it's often overemphasized by newcomers ("a lot of folks who don't know about the landscape are like, I'm trying to get a grant from the government"). Understanding all three sectors increases funding opportunities.

There’s a generational shift taking shape as the landscape is experiencing significant leadership transitions…

• Ford Foundation: Darren Walker retiring next year

• California Endowment: Dr. Ross recently retired (August announcement)

• Family Offices: Many experiencing generational wealth transfers with new decision-makers. This shift presents opportunities for organizations to help shape new funding strategies and priorities.

There’s also a cultural shift at hand as there is a marked change in how influence flows…

• Past: Celebrity endorsements were the primary drivers

• Present: Expertise and deep knowledge are increasingly valued

• Future: PhD holders and subject matter experts are gaining more influence in funding decisions

A Practical Entry Strategy: 

"I just pulled up and sat in the lobby staring people down, like, where your money at?" While humorous, Bryan highlights an important truth: being proactive and present in spaces where funders gather is crucial. Many family offices are actively seeking guidance on deployment strategies, creating opportunities for organizations to position themselves as thought partners rather than just grant seekers.

2. There's Not a Scarcity of Funds, But a Scarcity of Imagination

There’s a problematic pattern where:

• Risk assessment can be highly skewed in philanthropy leading to many Black-led organizations being capped at small grant amounts ($25-50k) due to the perceived risk.

• This reflects a limited understanding of what "risk" and "investability" mean in different contexts. The issue isn't a lack of available funds, but rather how we imagine their deployment.

• Traditional venture capital frameworks often have "low product market fit" with movement work.

A Practical Model Innovation: 

"Different types of money can be a fit for various projects that we have." Organizations should explore multiple funding types rather than trying to fit all projects into traditional grant or venture capital models. By reimagining possibilities and building collaborative networks, organizations can access more resources and create sustainable funding models.

• Build Collaborative Networks: Partner with complementary organizations to pool resources and increase impact. Create shared service models that reduce individual organizational costs while increasing collective reach.

• Develop Multiple Revenue Streams: Don't rely solely on grants. Create earned income opportunities through consulting, training, or products that align with your mission.

• Challenge Traditional Risk Assessment: Present clear impact metrics and community engagement data. Demonstrate how your organization's deep community connections reduce traditional risk factors.

3. Data Gaps Perpetuate Funding Inequities

Let’s start with some facts…

1. Less than 0.5% of philanthropic dollars go to women and girls of color

2. Even less goes to trans girls and gender-expansive individuals

3. This lack of funding correlates directly with a lack of data collection

Nneka’s work with Grantmakers for Girls of Color came to be when realizing that the lack of tracking perpetuates funding inequities:

• No comprehensive data exists for certain demographics

• Existing tracking systems often miss intersectional identities

• Current metrics often fail to capture community impact

• Historical data collection focused on deficit metrics

• Limited transparency in funding decisions

Research opportunities to capture include:

• Study funder behavior and decision-making

• Track actual dollar flows to specific communities

• Document the impact of funded initiatives

• Create new metrics for success

• Build community-driven research models

A Practical Data Strategy

"How are we flipping the script and shooting our gaze at folks with the money?" Organizations should focus on both collecting their impact data and advocating for greater transparency from funders.

4. Innovation in Funding Models is Critical

This isn't just about finding new ways to distribute money – it's about fundamentally reimagining how funding can address systemic issues while protecting community rights and interests.

Technology and Civil Rights Integration: The NAACP's new renter’s fund exemplifies this evolution. Rather than treating civil rights and technology as separate concerns, they've created a model that integrates both from the ground up. This approach moves beyond traditional "audit and check" models of ensuring civil rights compliance. Instead, it places digital rights and civil liberties at the center of technology development.

A Practical Example: 

When developing new technologies or platforms, organizations should consider questions like:

• How does this technology protect user privacy?

• Does it address accessibility concerns?

• Are we collecting and storing data ethically?

• How does this tool empower rather than exploit communities?

A Practical Integration Strategy 

Lili suggests we begin to "Center digital rights in the technologies being developed." Organizations should consider how their work intersects with civil rights, environmental justice, and technology access from the start, not as an afterthought.

5. Infrastructure and Ecosystem

Here’s a crucial perspective shift offered by the panelists: view nonprofits and community organizations as entrepreneurs and innovators in their own right. This means moving beyond traditional program funding to invest in:

• Technology infrastructure that allows organizations to scale

• Data systems that capture community impact

• Training and capacity-building programs

• Collaborative platforms for resource-sharing

• Long-term operational sustainability

A Practical Infrastructure Strategy 

"We need to make the imagination of what is possible real and spend time in that." Organizations should develop comprehensive infrastructure plans demonstrating how backbone support enables broader community impact.

Much 💚

Amy