Arts Funders Sharing Power: Participatory Grantmaking and Our Field

The grantmaking sector, particularly funders focused on justice and liberation, seek ways to support and partner with committees that are overlooked, underserved, and undervalued. While this is not a new concept, we are encouraged to see more funders discuss how and why they are leaning into participatory grantmaking as a strategy to further this aim while examining questions of who can activate power around resource distribution. In a 2019 article published by Inside Philanthropy, we learn more about the sector’s response to the concept from Foundation Center (presently, Candid), and others. Now three years later, what has changed? What are the benefits of power sharing practices, such as participatory grantmaking, and what are the narratives that we need to shift, or dismantle altogether, in order to practice more equitable grantmaking?

Join GIA on August 23, 2022 to hear Geoffrey Banks (John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation), Vu Le (Nonprofit AF), and Celeste Smith (The Pittsburg Foundation) discuss not only the programs they are implementing and have piloted to keep participatory grantmaking practices at the forefront of their operations, but also the ways their work is serving to shift narratives around funding strategies and partnership.