Giving Compass' Take:

• Nonprofit Quarterly profiles the NoVo Foundation and its Radical Hope Fund, which will give grants to big ideas intended to transform society.

• Listening to constituents has always been at the heart of the NoVo Foundation's work. What can other organizations learn from this example?

• Here's why listening is the heart of impact measurement.

NPQ has written in the past about the NoVo Foundation’s constituent-centric approach to funding. Over the years, they have lived out their philosophy of being guided by those most affected by the challenges societies face today. NoVo’s mission — to foster transformation from a world of domination and exploitation to one of collaboration and partnership — is common sense for those who are committed to mutuality but rare among foundations. They have asked themselves tough questions, such as, “Can philanthropy support the transformation of society?” Now, they are looking to support transnational movement building with the launch of the Radical Hope Fund.

Radical hope is one of NoVo’s core values. The Radical Hope Fund will award $20 million over four years, and the minimum award amount will be $250,000 for one to four years, reflecting NoVo’s commitment to supporting big ideas. In a recent interview with NPQ, NoVo’s executive director Pamela Shifman said,

We believe that in a time of darkness and division, there must also be room to dream…This moment calls for creativity and innovation grounded in the wisdom of those, past and present, who have transcended regressive politics…I think it’s incredibly important to respond to the immediate situation, but in the moment that we’re in right now, we also need to think about how to build the movement that we need for transformation.

Though this may all be music to a potential grantee’s ears, for NoVo’s part, it is pretty straightforward. It is simply listening to the field: grantees partners, institutional partners, nonprofit organizations, and groups that are not grantees. Shifman noted,

This is a moment of incredibly beautiful and brilliant activism that is so inspiring. We are hoping to be able to lift that activism up and provide support to allow activists to go deeper, to be as creatively bold and visionary as possible in this moment. So many of our grant partners are leveraging this opportunity to make huge change.

Read the full article about the NoVo Foundation's Radical Hope Fund by Cyndi Suarez at nonprofitquarterly.org.