Public Affairs Commons^™

Raising The Bar: Improving How To Assess Evidence Quality In Evaluating Systems-Change Efforts, Marina Apgar, Thomas Aston, Mieke Snijder, Tom Zwollo

The Foundation Review

Facing the great scale of societal challenges, philanthropic organizations are increasingly calling for systems change. Evaluating systems change requires innovative approaches that respond to the complexities of such change in ways that support equity and multiracial democracy rather than undermining them.

A key concern in evaluating systems change is how to do so rigorously. Rigor has traditionally been equated with evaluative criteria such as independence and objectivity, and experimental methods and evidence hierarchies which sit uncomfortably with both complexity and equity. Yet when taking an alternative approach, many philanthropic organizations fear that without these standards, there are no standards at …

Forest For The Trees: Collective Accountability And Trust As Groundwork For Systems Change, Shaady Salehi, Pia Infante

The Foundation Review

Since 2020, trust-based philanthropy has gained momentum as a strategy to alleviate inherent power imbalances between funders, nonprofits, and the communities they serve. The cornerstone of the approach is a set of grantmaking practices, such as multiyear unrestricted funding and streamlined paperwork, that support nonprofit self-determination toward achieving impact goals.

At a deeper level, trust-based philanthropy is driven by core values that position funders as collaborators and supporters working alongside nonprofits to advance a more just and equitable society. This requires a radically different stance on accountability from conventional philanthropic norms. Rather than reinforcing a sense of one-way transactional accountability, …

Tfr 16.2 Full Issue

The Foundation Review

No abstract provided.

Executive Summaries

The Foundation Review

No abstract provided.

A Philanthropic Theory Of Systems Transformation For Advancing Equity In The Polycrisis, Michael Quinn Patton, Ruth Richardson

The Foundation Review

The term “polycrisis” calls attention to overlapping, mutually reinforcing, and potentially disastrous trends and crises that are interconnected, like climate change, increasing global inequities, widespread disinformation, pandemic dangers, the ravages of war, and pollution of land, air, and water. Vulnerable and marginalized populations are most directly affected by the intensifying problems that are manifested in the polycrisis.

This article, on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of The Foundation Review, invites readers to ponder the risks posed by the polycrisis and how philanthropy might look beyond business as usual to respond to those risks. We review the evolution of philanthropic …

What Practices For Shifting Power Are Core To Advancing Racial Equity?, Kantahyanee W. Murray, Ji Won Shon, Ashley Barnes, Natalia Ibanez, Karuna Sridharan Chibber, Janelle Armstrong-Brown, Elvis Fraser

The Foundation Review

Power-shifting approaches are increasingly being recognized as practical solutions funders can employ to amplify the voice and agency of grant partners and communities, especially those historically under-resourced and marginalized.

Informed by a literature review and interviews with funders, grant partners, and thought leaders, this article describes four common practices for shifting power to advance equity: embed a racial equity lens into the process to shift power; demonstrate a genuine commitment to communities; give grant partners the power to define success; and embrace an internal systems change orientation.

This article explores the capabilities, mindsets, policies, skills, and resource considerations needed for …

Editorial, Hanh Cao Yu

The Foundation Review

No abstract provided.

Advocacy And Bridging Strategies Are Failing On Their Own. Multifaith Nonprofits Embody Six Solutions For A Pluralistic Democracy, Allison K. Ralph

The Foundation Review

This article clarifies a strategic dilemma between bridging difference or advocacy strategies for funders and their grantees seeking social change in the context of polarization, putting it in conversation with social science research on intergroup contact theory, on which bridging strategies are based, and advocacy. Based on a set of interviews and surveys, this article explores how multifaith organizations embody strategies that navigate the contact/advocacy divide.

This article posits that multifaith organizations — those intentionally formed of people or institutions with different faith identities — embody six practices that avoid the false dichotomy of bridging and advocacy strategies: “dual identity” …

Seeding Impact: Shifting From Orchestration To Emergence, Marilyn Darling, Veena Pankaj

The Foundation Review

The 2016 Foundation Review article “Emergent Learning: A Framework for Whole-System Strategy, Learning and Adaptation” talked about what an emergent strategy promises — to create a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. Has this prediction played out in practice? Since it appeared in 2016, what has the growing community of Emergent Learning practitioners learned about what it takes to seed and grow impact?

This article addresses those questions, drawing on interviews with Emergent Learning Community members to illustrate what EL looks like in practice and how it is producing results that are emergent in nature. It …

Strategy For Now, Jara Dean-Coffey, Jill Casey

The Foundation Review

We are in a profound period of understanding who we are as a people, past and present. This applies to practices held as core to how society operates. If we are to thrive as a species, the present and future necessitate reimagining the structures, systems, and conventions that limit some and thus us all. This includes not defaulting to control, competition, and certainty as we navigate circumstances we created.

Amid growing desires to integrate and embody practices aligned with equity, emergence, and complexity, concepts and points of view that dominate business continue to lead conversations about strategy formation in philanthropy …

A Systems And Innovation Approach To Attune Grantmaking For Early Childhood To What Matters Most At The Point Of Service, Wally Patawaran

The Foundation Review

This article discusses how and why The JPB Foundation, a nationally focused private philanthropy in the United States, promoted multistakeholder innovations as it evolved its strategy for early childhood health equity. Through coordinated grantmaking, its cross-sector partnerships over the past decade shifted the science, clinical practice, and public discourse on early life stress.

Building on field learning and trusted relationships, JPB and its partners paved the way for a reimagined paradigm of care that brings ecosystem stakeholders together to overcome competing frictions inhibiting their mutual flourishing. Working collaboratively with grantees as their champion and thought partner, JPB formulated an agenda …

Enticing Institutions To Become More Inclusive And Responsive: Lessons From The Colorado Health Foundation’S Locally Focused Work, Douglas Easterling, Jehan Benton-Clark, Scott Downes, Phillip Chung

The Foundation Review

Equity-focused foundations have generally sought to change institutions, systems, and structures through advocacy, policy change, and community organizing — either on their own or by supporting activist organizations. This article examines an alternative philanthropic strategy: directly engaging and supporting the institutions that need to become more diverse, inclusive, and responsive to the communities they should be serving.

The Colorado Health Foundation has “enticed institutions” as one element of its Locally Focused Work effort, launched in four Colorado communities in 2017. With LFW, program officers actively seek to build supportive relationships with a wide range of community-based organizations and actors who …

Front And Back Matter

The Foundation Review

No abstract provided.

The Weight Of Power: Reframing Evaluation In Philanthropy To Amplify The Voices Of Communities Of Color, Martena Reed, Blanca Flor Guillen-Woods, Kantahyanee W. Murray, Dabney Brice, Ashley Barnes, Liza Mueller

The Foundation Review

Philanthropy’s current structure and practices perpetuate a relationship with nonprofits led by people of color that can keep foundations removed from the work and keep these nonprofits fighting to stay effective and sustainable. When equitable and responsive strategies to support grant partners are implemented, however, relationships and power begin to shift.

This article explores the complexities of philanthropy’s relationship with POC-led nonprofit and grassroots organizations as mediated by evaluation and reporting practices. By critically analyzing these practices and power dynamics within philanthropy, it aims to uncover the root causes of disparities and establish a basis for creating pathways toward greater …

Resourcing Transformational Strategies: How Funding With The Right Timescales, Places, And Relationships Can Advance Multiracial Feminist Democracy, Lauren Jacobs, Elly Matsumura, Rachel Rosner, Eric Wat

The Foundation Review

This article explores how philanthropy can support movement organizations and networks organizing for long-term power building that transforms who holds governing power. PowerSwitch Action, a network of influential regional advocacy and organizing groups in the U.S., draws on a recent evaluation that laid out key elements of its approach to the work to share learnings in hopes that they will benefit both other movement organizations and the philanthropic sector that provides critical backing to the field.

Specifically, the article identifies three recommendations for funders: 1) support long-term efforts to shift governing power rather than expecting quick victories; 2 recognize how …

Civic Education For Civic Leadership: Renewing Faith In Democracy, Ryan V. Weaver

eJournal of Public Affairs

Civic education and civic leadership are at the forefront of renewing faith in democracy on our campuses and communities. There is an urgent need for higher education to return to its historical foundation to fulfill the mission of democracy by educating students for democratic citizenship (Harkavy, 2006). Effectively integrating curricular and co-curricular civic engagement involves a balanced approach that is “both political and non-political” (Ehrlich, 2000, p. vi) to guide students to identify core values, develop civic knowledge, and build civic leadership skills (Finley, 2011; Hurtado, 2019). Civic leadership is an integral student learning outcome embedded within civic engagement praxis, …

Reliability And Application Of Data, Alex Brodersen, Katie Bass, Lina Traslaviña Stover, John Mccoy, Josie Gatti Schafer

CPAR Presents: A Data and Research Series for Community Impact

How Reliable Is Your Data? Ensuring Trustworthy Information for Economic and Community Growth To effectively utilize data for economic and community development, it must be reliable. Although data reliability is a statistical concept, it also includes building trust and understanding for data. This panel will delve into both the statistical and practical aspects of ensuring data reliability, featuring insights from experts in Nebraska. Attendees will gain valuable perspectives on how to verify and utilize data effectively in decision-making processes.

The Geography Of Demographic Change In Nebraska, Josie Gatti Schafer

CPAR Presents: A Data and Research Series for Community Impact

In this overview presentation of demographic and economic shifts in Nebraska, we utilize the most recent data available from the U.S. Census Bureau. Additionally, our analysis will explore key trends across various geographies, including places, counties, and regions, to examine how geography may contribute to explaining the demographic and economic changes. This approach offers valuable insights into the economic and community development imperatives for Nebraska.

Updates On Data Products From The U.S. Census Bureau, Josie Gatti Schafer

CPAR Presents: A Data and Research Series for Community Impact

No abstract provided.

Automation & Ai In Southern Nevada: A High Stake Game For Hospitality Workers, An Pham

Student Research

After a year filled with excitement around artificial intelligence, it’s easy to overlook that both AI and automation have already been present in various capacities. Thankfully, fanfare in AI and automation has come at a critical time as it shifts the focus from questioning whether machines will replace human workers to understanding when that will happen. In my paper, titled “Automation & AI in Southern Nevada: A High-Stakes Game for Hospitality Workers,” I aim to highlight both the disruptive consequences of automation and AI on the hospitality workforce in Southern Nevada and the importance of addressing these issues without delay. …