Inaugural launch of the Philanthropy and Social Movements Funder Lab

Friday, January 21, 2022

Recognizing the increased awareness within philanthropy of the role and importance of social change movements in today’s society, Building Movement Project (BMP), with the support of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, invites professionals from grantmaking institutions to join us for the inaugural Philanthropy and Social Movements Funder Lab between February and June of 2022.

What is the Philanthropy and Social Movements Funder Lab?

The Philanthropy and Social Movements Funder Lab is an opportunity for philanthropic professionals to learn more about contemporary social movements and the needs of movement leaders while exploring approaches to initiate and sustain investments in social movements at their philanthropic institutions.

The lab is an extension of BMP’s Move The Money project, which provides a set of resources for grantmaking institutions to foster their support of social movements. The 2022 funder lab will be a structured learning and community-building opportunity to delve deeper into the values and practices identified in Move The Money.

Who is the Lab for?

This lab is specifically designed for people within philanthropy who are seeking to learn about, discuss, plan and execute strategies that will lead to more meaningful and strategic investments in the organizations, leaders and networks that are sustaining movements for social change.

We invite professionals from a range of grantmaking institutions to apply, from small family foundations and donor-advised collaboratives to corporate and well-established national foundations. Participation in all sessions of the lab is required, and there is no cost to participate. We encourage pairs of participants from the same organization (such as a senior leaders and a program officer) to join, given that institutional change often requires people at various levels of leadership to be involved from the starting point.

Below are the sessions and dates:

Welcome Session – Tuesday, February 15th, 2022 | 1pm – 2pm ET/10am-11am PST

Session 1 - Tuesday, March 8th, 2022 | 1pm – 3pm ET/10am – 12pm PST

  • What are Social Movements? What do Movement Leaders Need?

Session 2 – Tuesday, April 12th, 2022 | 1pm – 3pm ET/10am – 12pm PST

  • What could be Philanthropy’s Role in Supporting Movements?

Session 3 – Tuesday, May 10, 2022 | 1pm – 3pm ET/ 10am – 12pm PST

  • Shaping Philanthropy Practice and Overcoming Barriers

Session 4 – Tuesday, June 7, 2022 | 1pm – 3pm ET/ 10am – 12pm PST

  • Individual and Collective Commitments and Next Steps
For full details of the lab, please read the attached FAQ.

How can I participate?

Please let us know if you are interested in participating by completing this information form by January 31, 2022. We have 15-20 slots available and plan to reach out to participants in early February.

If you have questions or wish to participate:

Please reach out to Deepa Iyer, BMP's Director of Strategic Initiatives at diyer@buildingmovement.org if you have any questions.

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