Giving Compass' Take:

• Allen Smart, writing for PhilanTopic, shares his observations from his experience working in southern philanthropy and discusses how to connect funders to communities in need. 

• Smart says, "The culture and history of the South is not a single story." How will this point help illustrate to philanthropists the importance of research and listening to community stakeholders working on the ground? 

• Read about the ways to change grantmaking in the South from the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy. 

As someone who has shed plenty of blood and tears after almost twenty years living and breathing Southern philanthropy, I am thrilled with the deep and committed work of Grantmakers for Southern Progress and the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP) on the, "As the South Grows" series of publications. The writers — Ryan Schlegel and Stephanie Peng — spent a great deal of time outside the walls of their offices to capture the authentic voice of residents of six Southern sub-regions that have had small to middling philanthropic investment over the years.

The following observations come from a same church/different pew perspective of someone who has spent the bulk of his professional career trying to get philanthropic activity connected to local champions in a way that makes sense to funders and communities alike:

  1. Large regional or national funders increasingly want long-haul relationships.
  2. Funding grassroots organizations and activists is not the only way for philanthropy to support change.
  3. Align funder strategy and agenda with relationship-building, inclusion, and equity.
  4. Those who speak loudest are not always the right grantees.
  5. Funding existing work is the right strategy in Southern philanthropy. Funding new work is the right strategy in Southern philanthropy.
  6. The culture and history of the South is not a single story.

I am heartened by what is a deeply felt portrayal of Southern communities and leaders that are ready to move the region (and country) forward, and the specific direction with respect to the kind of help they need. It's a great shorthand listening tour for those unable to visit these communities in person.

Read the full article by Allen Smart about southern philanthropy from PhilanTopic