Philanthropic Collaboratives Resources
Philanthropic collaboratives that channel resources from multiple donors to nonprofits and community-based organizations are on the rise. These vehicles—which often include stakeholders beyond philanthropy—collectively deploy at least $4–7 billion per year globally. While many donors are bullish on the impact potential of collaboratives, they also seek tighter strategic alignment with their own goals and greater clarity on how to evaluate impact. While interest in forming collaboratives is high and barriers to starting them are low, some donors and fund leaders wonder if their supply exceeds demand. Such a bubble, they fear, could duplicate existing social change efforts and reduce their overall impact.
Our research in recent years has highlighted the great potential of fund collaboratives to unlock and deploy even more philanthropic resources to advance social change. Indeed—when executed well, they offer donors the chance to multiply the impact of their giving efficiently and effectively. Further, collaboratives are often guided by leaders with strong knowledge of the topic at hand – and most have charted a course that differs from traditional philanthropy, tilting toward equity and justice, field and movement building, and leaders of color.
Additional Reports, Articles, and Tools
Releasing the Potential of Philanthropic Collaborations
Philanthropic partnerships are having their day in the sun. Their impact could be even greater with a clearer path to investing in collaborative funds and a shift in donor mindsets.
How Philanthropic Collaboratives Measure, Evaluate, and Learn
By starting with strategy—and considering three levels of impact—collaborative funds can build measurement, evaluation, and learning processes that help them become more than the sum of their grants and grantees.
How Philanthropic Collaborations Succeed, and Why They Fail
When executed well, funder collaboratives can drive tremendous results—greater results than funders generally believe they could attain by working alone.
Want to Fund in the Global South? Philanthropic Collaboratives Can Help
A range of collaborative funds working in the Global South are driving outsized local impact across issues while staying rooted in equity. Here's how they're doing it.
Are Funder Collaboratives Valuable? A Research Study
Increasingly, foundations and wealthy donors are forming collaboratives that, they hope, will produce results for society beyond the reach and capacity of any single funder. But do collaboratives really deliver?
Value of Collaboration Research Study: Literature Review on Funder Collaboration
A review of collaborative-focused materials encompassing academic research papers, practitioner blogs, published articles and reports, as well as syntheses of field-specific research.
Four Pathways to Greater Giving
To help wealthy individuals achieve more with their philanthropy, The Bridgespan Group, with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, explored what impedes giving to social-change efforts and how four pathways could potentially double the flow of funding to initiatives that could benefit millions.
Centering the Grantee Experience: A Path to Differentiation for Intermediary Funds
This report from The Center for Effective Philanthropy asks two main questions: how do grantee experiences with intermediaries differ from those with originating funders, and what can we learn from intermediaries that grantees rate highly?
Regional Insights
India:
The Growing Momentum Behind Philanthropic Collaboratives in India
How philanthropic collaboratives in India are evolving their post-pandemic roles and practices to help solve enduring social and environmental challenges.
Philanthropic Collaboratives in India: The Power of Many
Why and when Indian philanthropists and other stakeholders collaborate, and how they overcome the barriers to amplifying social impact.
Africa:
Philanthropic Collaborations in Africa and Their Unique Potential
Philanthropic collaborations in Africa are forging innovative ways to take on the continent's biggest challenges.
Thematic Insights
Giving together to advance racial equity in the United States
Given the overwhelming need, there is significant opportunity for philanthropic giving to advance racial equity.
Giving together to strengthen American democracy
A brief for organizational and individual funders committed to building and protecting a fair, inclusive, and multiracial American democracy.
Giving together to address gender inequality
As threats to humanity mount, funding girls’ and women’s collective efforts to solve these problems can offer the holistic solutions required.
Collaborating Towards Kindergarten Readiness at Scale: A Funder Group Case Study
After two years without settling on investments, a funder group altered course and worked together to fulfill two ambitious big bets on strengthening the field of early childhood.
