Is it any surprise there is a trust gap between philanthropy and community? Too often, donors come into communities thinking they have all the answers, or make tokenizing and extractive attempts at “listening” to community needs. Even well-intentioned community engagement falls prey to harmful practices when the power dynamics at play aren’t acknowledged or interrogated. A paradigm shift is needed to not only heal these harms, but also to bring transformative results.
We’re grateful for the opportunity to share learnings and recommendations for centering community with the Fund for Shared Insight in our article, “Why Philanthropy Needs a Community Bill of Rights.” In it, we explore how philanthropy can work differently to start to earn trust in their communities by using the Community Bill of Rights as a bridge.
Katya sat down with Equal Measure President and CEO Leon T. Andrews, Jr. to discuss the five domains of wellbeing, the importance of sustained funding for systems change, and FFI’s closure this year.
Katya Fels Smyth speaks at the Rx Foundation on "How We Leave Matters: Navigating Endings with Intention." Watch the recording on the Rx Foundation's website.
Since 2021, the City of New London, Connecticut, has partnered with FFI to shift from business-as-usual to a vision for transformative change. Watch this video from a 2024 event where FFI joined the New London community to reimagine the future of the city.