Connection
This current social and political climate has served to reinvigorate groups committed to social justice and equity to investigate stronger ways to offer support for immigrant rights and Latinx organizations.
North Carolina Collaborative for
Building a healthy, inclusive and strong infrastructure to promote equitable outcomes for all North Carolinians
What we’re learning in the first years of our participatory process
Written by Yazmin Garcia Rico
Please join us for a funders lunch and learn conversation regarding key learnings (thus far) on our path towards bringing participatory grantmaking to life for NC’s Latinx community. Friday, October 30th, 12-1:30 pm. Click below for more information and to register for this event.
Latinx population
in NC
US-born citizens
Median age of NC Latinx population
Projected population for 2035
This current social and political climate has served to reinvigorate groups committed to social justice and equity to investigate stronger ways to offer support for immigrant rights and Latinx organizations.
Real transformation requires a combination of strategies that focus on the short-term urgent needs for safety and stability, but also look to foster strategies towards building a more just and inclusive future where all members of our community can thrive.
These types of problems require working in strong collaboration within and across sectors to maximize the breadth and impact. This is the work we are bringing to life together via the NCCSLC.
In 2018, a group of North Carolina funders engaged in a planning process which established local control of the Funders’ Collaborative which had previously operated under the umbrella of Hispanics in Philanthropy. This group of foundations, who had already made significant investments in the flourishing of NC’s Latinx communities, wanted to continue collaborating to more intentionally and equitably direct their resources. Thus, the NC Collaborative for Strong Latinx Communities was born.
In 2020, we established a fund of $2 million from 8 NC-based foundations with a national match from Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees. In the spring of 2020, a portion of these funds were distributed via a COVID-19 rapid response grantmaking cycle.
Building upon the good work that has happened in our state over the last decade to build the capacity of Latinx-led organizations, the next evolution of the NCCSLC engaged participatory grantmaking as a vehicle for building individual and collective power.
Given that no one understands better the current pressures and opportunities for action than the people on the front lines, participatory grantmaking shifts decision-making power by creating infrastructure that explicitly centers the perspectives and wisdom of the Latinx community.
In late 2020, the NCCSLC conducted its first participatory grantmaking cycle which resulted in 2-year general operating support grants for 29 groups from across the state. To learn more about our process, click here.
The following foundations support the work of the NCCSLC. In the near future, our work will be led by a 12-member Unifying Council that has representatives from the various regions of our state.
We are working together to pool resources and to provide the support that will enable us all to be whole human beings.
The work of the NCCSLC has been inspired and shaped by many brilliant minds. Below are just a few resources that we have found to be instrumental in our efforts.
This suite of GrantCraft resources addresses this gap by exploring the what, how, and why of participatory grantmaking—an approach to philanthropy that cedes decision-making authority to the very communities affected by funding decisions.
The Trust-Based Philanthropy Project reimagines traditional funder-grantee relationships. We work with foundations to create a philanthropic ecosystem that is trust-based.
Created with input from a number of participatory grantmakers, the guide shares challenges, lessons learned, and best practices for engaging in inclusive grantmaking.
This article, first published on July 9, 2019, comes from the summer 2019 edition of the Nonprofit Quarterly as part of a cluster of articles on the subject of accountability to stakeholders.
If you have questions about the Collaborative or want to learn more about how to get involved, please reach out!
© North Carolina Collaborative for Strong Latinx Communities 2020. All Rights Reserved.
Designed & Developed by Tarryn Designs
