How do you define equity and how much emphasis do you place on advancing equity within your organization and through the grants that you make? How diverse is your board and staff, and how inclusive are you of other perspectives in your decision-making around grants, governance, and overall policy?
This Content Collection includes a variety of perspectives and tools for addressing REDI issues within your organization, including a collection of customized Checklists, Quizzes, and Self-Assessment Tools for boards and staff.
Interested in learning more about this topic alongside your peers? Consider signing up for a current or future cohort of NCFP’s Racial Justice Learning & Action Network.
Start Here: Defining Equity
Can We Agree on This Simple Definition of Equity?
Article
Equity has been like coconut water. It’s all over the place. It’s flavored with pineapple, sometimes with chocolate. Everyone is drinking Equity; it’s on websites, in conference themes, and in those “word-cloud” thingies. Given how pervasive it is, it’s weird that we don’t seem to have a common, universally-accepted definition…
What the Heck Does “Equity” Mean?
Article
A clear definition of equity would seem paramount to galvanizing philanthropy into action around this increasingly used term—but the field is only beginning to explore what it really means. In this piece, pubslished in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, our content partner Kris Putnam-Walkerly (with the help of co-author Elizabeth…
Recent and Upcoming NCFP Programs
December 13, 2021
Racial Justice in Family Philanthropy Symposium
Registration is now closed. If you have questions, please email ncfp@ncfp.org. NCFP’s Family Philanthropy Racial Justice Symposium is a two-day virtual learning opportunity for family foundation board members, CEOs, senior staff, and next generation family members seeking to deepen their knowledge around racial equity frameworks and practices. Leverage Philanthropic Partners,…
March 31, 2021
Application Deadline: Racial Justice Learning and Action Network
The Racial Justice Learning and Action Network is an educational opportunity for family foundation trustees interested in advancing racial justice practices, both personally and professionally. Philanthropy has been slow to embrace equity and it is clear that effective and meaningful impact can only be realized with an active commitment to…
October 7, 2021
Actualizing Racial Equity in Philanthropy
What does accountability look like in philanthropy when doing racial equity work? How can foundation trustees leverage their positions to facilitate transformative action? Attendees at this salon will explore ways they can actualize their dedication to racial equity work at their foundation. As an equity consultant, Aiko Bethea will talk…
April 22, 2021
Leaning into Racial Justice with the Surdna Foundation and Andrus Family Fund
Amid a national reckoning with race and the pandemic, foundations are leaning into racial justice like never before. Yet many foundations are grappling with how to fund racial equity and the best way forward for their institution and grantees. In this Community Conversation, the Surdna Foundation and Andrus Family Fund…
Checklists, Quizzes, and Self-Assessment Tools for Boards and Staff
Grantmaking with a Racial Justice Lens
Report
In recognition of the complexity of these shifts and the evolution of the work, PRE has published Grantmaking with a Racial Justice Lens: A Practical Guide, to help foundation leaders understand what it means to move from racial equity to racial justice funding strategies, co-written by PRE Senior Fellow Rinku…
Grantmaking with a Racial Equity Lens
Report
This guide was developed in partnership with the Philanthropic Initiative for Racial Equity. Highlights Three tools for activating a racial equity lens Your Race/Your Role Questions to ask inside your foundation What’s in the Guide? What Is a Racial Equity Lens? For grantmakers and foundation leaders, using a racial equity lens…
Quiz: Where Are You in Your Equity Journey?
Tool
This assessment was created by CHANGE Philanthropy with questions from D5 Coalition and Philanthropic Initiative for Racial Equity tools. The results will inform where you are in terms of equity and give you curated resources to help you along in advancing equity in your foundation.
Project Implicit: Identifying and Testing Your Hidden Biases
Tool
Project Implicit is a non-profit organization and international collaboration between researchers who are interested in implicit social cognition – thoughts and feelings outside of conscious awareness and control. The goal of the organization is to educate the public about hidden biases and to provide a “virtual laboratory” for collecting data…
Is Your Foundation Leveraging the Power of Differences?
Tool
Based on extensive research and experience emerging from its Transforming Michigan Philanthropy initiative, the Council of Michigan Foundations has developed this discussion guide and assessment tool to help foundation leaders begin essential conversations about the power of differences and determine the level of their organization’s readiness for growth.
Racial Equity Impact Assessments
Tool
A Racial Equity Impact Assessment (REIA) is a systematic examination of how different racial and ethnic groups will likely be affected by a proposed action or decision. REIAs are used to minimize unanticipated adverse consequences in a variety of contexts, including the analysis of proposed policies, institutional practices, programs, plansand…
Social Justice Toolkit for Young People
Tool
Created by the Andrus Family Philanthropy Program, the goal of this interactive toolkit is to inspire and cultivate the next generation of social justice philanthropy leaders. By completing modules that cover topics such as racial equity, oppressive systems, and philanthropic traditions, young people will acquire the tools they need to…
Racial Equity Learning Modules
Tool
A growing collection of learning modules created by World Trust Educational Services in collaboration with other leading racial justice organizations. The project seeks to bridge the gap between inspiration and democratic action that supports racial equity. Designed for educators and trainers, these resources are designed to support others to drop…
Social Justice Philanthropy Terminology Guide
Tool
This guide focuses on developing a deeper understanding of both general and niche philanthropy-related terms. Some of the terms, such as diversity, equity, and inclusion are more general and applicable outside of the field of philanthropy. Other terms, such as charitable industrial complex, mission creep, and return on investment are…
Reports and Perspectives from Funders and Colleagues
Grantmaking with a Racial Justice Lens: A Practical Guide
Report
Movements have grown in their intersectionality, their sophistication and reach and many nonprofits and organizers have been actively contributing to their gains as well as being pushed themselves. Many funders and philanthropic infrastructure organizations have taken on the language and principles of racial equity in their changing practices. Yet so…
Guiding a Giving Response to Anti-Black Injustice
Blog Post
ABFE and The Bridgespan Group offer here a set of six principles, greatly informed by Black movement leaders and funders of Black-led social change, which can guide funders seeking to support racial justice and thriving Black lives in the United States.
Capital at a Crossroads: Redirecting Capital to Accelerate Racial Equity
Blog Post
This paper offers a synopsis of the evolution from community development and ESG investing to the emergence of investing explicitly with a racial equity lens, proposes a definition for racial equity investing, and presents emerging opportunities across asset classes for investors.
Why It Matters to Turn the Mirror on Ourselves
Blog Post
Our intention is to share lessons learned that have helped us grow our skills as philanthropists who seek to be more effective in changing the status quo. Our hope is that you might push yourselves in new ways, too—or teach us what has made a difference in your own journey…
From Words to Action: a Practical Philanthropic Guide to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Report
As communities worldwide are becoming more diverse, they are increasingly tackling the realities of systemic inequity. Philanthropy too must acknowledge its place in the context of transformative demographic changes. Addressing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) has been an ongoing challenge within philanthropy, and while there has been progress, it requires…
Why Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Matter
Article
Diversity, equity, inclusion. Nonprofit organizations use these words as they strive to become more diverse, yet many leaders are uncertain about the steps needed to turn dialogue – and intention – into action.
Catalytic Change: Lessons Learned from the Racial Justice Grantmaking Assessment
Report
The Applied Research Center (ARC) and the Philanthropic Initiative for Racial Equity (PRE) developed the Racial Justice Grantmaking Assessment following ARC’s 2004 publication of Short Changed: Foundation Giving in Communities of Color. That report documented, as recent reports have confirmed, decreasing grantmaking with clear racial justice impacts, as well as…
What We Mean by Equity at the William Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund
Article
Acknowledging that we are not living in a post-racist or post-poverty environment and learning how and why these issues exist today and continue to interfere with the fulfillment of human potential is a fundamentally key and critical part of the work that we are doing.
Putting Racism on the Table Video Series
Article
The term “racism” is powerful. It evokes images of the past, a time of black and white newsreels and overt, often violent, acts. The racism of today is subtle, often historically embedded in our institutions and sometimes presenting in biases of which we are unaware. In 2016, the Washington Regional…
The Case for Funding Black-led Social Change
Report
The country has long resisted grappling with its history of slavery and legacy of anti-Black racism, and with the impact they’ve had on the Black community. Today, the nation has an important opportunity to address this legacy. Philanthropy can play a pivotal role by reversing its under-investment in Black-led social…
Resolution & Transformation: Hate Has No Place in Our Work
Article
At Robins Foundation, our board and staff aspires to connect equity with transformational change for children and families across our region. We are reflecting on opportunities in our own organization. This includes our governance, our management and our process of funding. This includes raising our awareness and deeper understanding of…
Annual Report Message: Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (The Collins Foundation)
Report
2015 was an eventful year at The Collins Foundation. One of our board members announced his retirement, and we completed a major planning effort to incorporate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) more deeply into our organization and grantmaking. An overview of our plan appears later in this annual report.
You Can’t Fund Equity Without Sweat Equity
Article
Whether you are explicitly focused on social or economic justice, or if you focus on education, community development, the arts, or the environment, we at Quixote think applying an equity lens to your work is one of the most timely and mutually beneficial paths a funder can take.
How Can I Be 1% More?
Article
I believe that Quixote Foundation’s reflective practices allowed us to hold multiple truths while engaging in internal and often uncomfortable racial equity training. Our ability to do this work at every level of the organization made a tremendous difference in our final year of grantmaking and grantee engagement.
Even with Complex Histories, Families Have an Opportunity to Advance Equity
Article
Racial diversity and inclusion have been central to the grant making strategy at the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation for decades. In more recent years, the Foundation has deepened its engagement with racial equity. For David L. Neal, a family member and trustee at the Winston-Salem, N.C., family foundation, this focus…
Building Inclusion from the Inside-Out: A Brief Case Study
Tool
In this piece for the Stanford Social Innovation Review, Arabella explores its ongoing efforts—stumbles and all—to become a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace, in the hopes that others can learn from our experience as they work toward our shared goals.
Disability Inclusion in Philanthropy
Report
The National Network of Consultants to Grantmakers (NNCG) working paper is a starting place of learning for the Disability Inclusion Working Group and its colleagues of the National Network of Consultants to Grantmakers. Through the paper, we provide a scan of how the philanthropic sector has addressed disability inclusion and…
Making Systems Changes for Equity: A Conversation with McKnight’s David Nicholson
Blog Post
Courtesy of the McKnight Foundation The McKnight Foundation has implemented a new program devoted to equity and inclusion in our state. David Nicholson, program director of the Vibrant & Equitable Communities program, shares how that team is thinking about systems change and what they’ve learned so far. Q: As a…
A Generosity of Spirit: The Legacy of Black Philanthropy
Blog Post
Courtesy of Any Lane from Pexels As we approach the conclusion of Black History Month we are pleased to share a fresh look at the special role of Black philanthropy in the U.S. “African American giving is grounded in a collective sense of responsibility and obligation towards the community and…
Past NCFP Webinars
December 13, 2018
Building Bridges: A Conversation with NCFP’s New Fellows on Racial Equity
Are you breaking or bridging? We all have been affected by structural racism. NCFP’s own 2019 Fellows have dedicated themselves to getting proximate to the people, to the issue, to our families, to the field, and to thinking about how we have been impacted by racial injustice and inequity. From…
March 9, 2017
Equity, Inclusion, and Connecting with Community in Family Philanthropy
What does inclusivity mean for family philanthropy? How can we promote diversity, community engagement, and openness while retaining the family focus of our giving practices? This session will feature a conversation on strategies for connecting with community and building an equity lens into your grantmaking and internal operations.
October 8, 2015
Community Connections: Engaging Diverse Stakeholders in Your Grantmaking
What are the spectrum of options available to family foundations and funds seeking to engage diverse perspectives in their work? What are the benefits of doing so and how can you develop a strategy and plan that makes the most sense for your governance and grantmaking approach? And how can…
November 12, 2015
How Social Justice Giving Honors Our Roots and Strengthens Communities
This webinar, presented in partnership with the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, will explore strategies family foundations can take to engage more deeply in grantmaking that builds toward long-term social change. The webinar will draw from case studies highlighted in NCRP’s new Families Funding Change report, as well as the…
