Giving Compass' Take:

• Jeanne Bell reports that a convening hosted by Justice Funders proposed a philanthropic "Green New Deal" to progress climate and environmental issues. 

• Is the philanthropic Green New Deal an appropriate way for you to reach to your giving goals? 

• Learn more about the Green New Deal. 

It is an auspicious time to be introducing a Just Transition-informed guide. Newly-elected Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has, with the introduction of the Green New Deal (GND), brought climate change and the necessary economic transitions to address it into the broad public discourse with a renewed energy. As the Climate Justice Alliance has commented:

The GND is the first time in many years that a proposal of this type has been presented by a number of members of a major US political party. It proposes to tackle climate change and inequality simultaneously, while revolutionizing conditions for workers. It is a much-needed aggressive national pivot away from climate denialism to climate action with large-scale federal legislative and budgetary implications.

Thus, this philanthropic framework built around Just Transition arrives in a different context than it would have even six months ago. The opportunity and even pressure for philanthropy to change practices to support an economic transformation that can save future generations is greater than ever.

As Kawaoka-Chen noted in her opening remarks, Resonance joins a body of recent philanthropic self-critique, including the works of Anand Giridharadas, Rob Reich, and Edgar Villanueva. Clearly, at least among progressive philanthropies, the felt dissonance between legacy practices and urgent challenges such as income inequality and climate change is intensifying. That dissonance is, of course, what Resonance is meant to replace. In fact, Justice Funders invokes the language of music metaphorically across its work. In 2015, they published a report called The Choir Book: A Framework for Social Justice Philanthropy. Their community of practice for philanthropic change agents is called the Harmony Initiative. And, last month’s convening began with acclaimed vocalist Tossie Long leading the room in a three-part rendition of the Ben E. King song, “Stand by Me.” The challenge, Justice Funders argue in their latest publication, is that “funders are not singing the same song, in the same key, let alone in harmony” (Resonance, introduction).

Read the full article about the philanthropic "Green New Deal" by Jeanne Bell at Nonprofit Quarterly.