M. Gabriela Alcalde, MPH, DrPH’s Post

👏 👏 👏 "Funders need to be attentive to the way that the systems they’ve created can tempt them back to prior default thinking—for example, providing relatively small, single-year restricted grants while collecting extensive amounts of information. Those defaults show up in the structure of grantmaking systems, board write-ups, and data priorities. For example, grantmaking systems could be built to prompt unrestricted, multiyear grants by default, and ask a program officer to justify a change. Board agendas could summarily stop including time to discuss individual grants and instead devote time to discussions of community needs and strategies for addressing them." 👏 👏 👏

As part of the White House Year of Evidence for Action’s Evidence Forums, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and Stanford Impact Labs gathered university, government, and nonprofit leaders to identify ways to build impact-oriented collaborations between government and academic institutions. Below are the key issues that participants raised when asked about the biggest problem facing their community, state, or country. https://lnkd.in/e3W8xuci

Experts convened in London to navigate the complexities of Measurement, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) in philanthropy. This summit highlighted the challenge of quantifying long-term scientific impact, advocating for mixed-methods and nuanced evaluations. As we refine MEL practices, we're reminded that understanding our impact is as crucial as the funding itself. https://lnkd.in/gzM6xh2E

From the start, we set out to build a different model, one that would catalyze change by shifting power to smaller, community-led organizations as the experts. Five years in, we’ve come to learn that the most valuable lessons come from the unscripted moments and go way beyond the grantmaking process. More in our latest blog! https://lnkd.in/g3B3HQFy

During the pandemic, a school official shared in a video: "Lately, I've had many, many individuals come up to me while I'm grocery shopping to share their opinions on what we should be doing differently." While I empathize that 2020-2021 were years with unique challenges around community engagement, I think we can also agree: A community engagement strategy that relies on chance encounters at public locations is not the ideal way to build trust. In my post below, I share of a client who truly is dedicated to designing a community engagement strategy to build trust. It's such a cool and rewarding process to *get* to design an ideal engagement strategy - that it's motivated me to write my next blog some of the most effective community engagement strategies. - Strategies that are relational, not transactional. - Strategies that reduce bias. - And strategies that focus on opportunities for co-creation of solutions. But before I start the blog, I'm curious. ➡️Do you find that most of the organizations with which you work have an opportunistic style of community engagement? ➡️Or, are you seeing a lot of good examples of intentional community engagement by organizations? Thanks for sharing.

Curious about what we do at #WilderResearch? Check out our research library to read about projects and topics we’ve researched. #NationalReadingMonth

It's finally Conference Girl Summer! Kicking off summer conference season with The National Energy and Utility Affordability Coalition (NEUAC) in the best city :) If you're attending, please join me on Thursday morning for "Putting the Knowledge in Technology," a session exploring how members are using data and technology to improve service and access to assistance for limited income households, and what more we could do if we worked together. You can weigh in on whether NEUAC should stand up a data and technology working group! On Friday, dreams come true, I'll be moderating a panel called, "Improv and Advocacy." YES, AND, it's sold out. This conference is so much fun and each year I learn so much. If it wasn't on your calendar this year, add it for 2025. https://lnkd.in/gzPzhzp2

Multi year funding is so important for the sustainability of the sector, it provides security and enables charities to focus on what they do best. Making the same organisations submit so many applications for small amounts of short term funding is not going to achieve the impact or systemic social change required. I also would like to see funders push beyond 3 yr funding cycles and consider 5 or more as a norm.

Multi-year funding is key for small charities, it allows for strategising and stability to do the long term thinking #multiyearfunding

As a lifelong learner, meeting and learning and laughing with colleagues is uplifting and rejuvenating. Take a minute to laugh with a colleague it makes the journey more meaningful. Parent Institute for Quality Education (PIQE) #piqestrong #leadershipdevelopment #nonprofitleadership