Grassroots

  • We believe that there is untapped creativity and innovation that lives within Black communities around the world. Our communities know what we need but our visions are still underinvested in. We have to find creative ways to fund the community labor that goes overlooked and undervalued.

  • We work to build a bridge of support between the pre-seed stage (ideation, research, questioning) and seed stage (experimentation and piloting) for Black visionaries. Giving birth to a new idea, especially one focused on social justice, requires immense financial and personal sacrifice. There are many amazing, genius Black people around the world who have transformative ideas but don’t have the safety net that would help them to take the leap on their idea. We invest in new ideas during their most vulnerable stage: the very beginning as someone is curious, asking questions and problem-solving.

  • We invest in people over products/outcomes. We trust that when we support people that there will be fruit. We recognize the importance to be able to explore, experiment, make mistakes, pivot, and change ideas as a part of the process to imagine new futures. 

  • We believe that no matter how well-designed a program or initiative is, it is ultimately the people behind the program who create change. Therefore, we must care for the people who care for our communities.

  • We disrupt the historic practice of undervaling and underpaying Black labor, including intellectual labor and the labor of serving your community. We challenge ourselves and others to raise the standard on what it means to support the Black grassroots visionaries who are on the ground doing the hardwork of transforming our communities and healing our democracies.

democratic

  • We cultivate the seed of leadership and creativity that lives within each and every person. We work to democratize who is elevated as a visionary and what ideas get the chance to grow.

  • We build on the legacy of our ancestors who put self-determination at the heart of Black freedom movements. Self-determination not only requires Black leadership but it requires that Black people have decision-making power throughout institutional structures. We experiment with models of participatory democracy at every level of our work.

  • We collaborate with innovative funders on democratizing the processes for how resources get into Black communities and to Black changemakers.

black-led

  • We create networks, systems, and relationships across the African Diaspora so that the collective power of Black people grows at the local, national and global level

  • We celebrate grassroots Black thought and create spaces for the interdisciplinary incubation of ideas: bringing together artists, activists, researchers, educators, scientists, technologists, land nurturers, and more to inspire each other and build knowledge collectively

  • We elevate Black leadership and Black genius by working to dismantle the racial funding gap

    • According to data collected by Echoing Green, Black-led early-stage nonprofits received 76% less unrestricted funding than their white-led counterparts. 

    • Less than 2% of philanthropic dollars in the US goes to Black communities.

    • In the US, 92% of foundation presidents and 83% of foundation full-time staff are white.