This blog post is a continuation of the conversation between the Packard Foundation’s Carlin Johnson Politzer and Solidaire Network's Rajasvini Bhansali about the work of Solidaire Network and what Bhansali and her team have gathered about the importance of partnership and trust in philanthropy and movement building. Read Part 1 here. 

As part of the Packard Foundation’s commitment to racial justice and equity, we have joined with Solidaire Network in providing $20 million to the Black Liberation Pooled Fund, which allocates grant funding to primarily Black-led multiracial organizations around the country working for social change. 

Please note: the interview has been edited for length and clarity. 

Politzer: Talk about giving beyond the check. It’s really approaching this work and this grantmaking in a holistic way and thinking about the grantee beyond the dollars that are being sent to them. The next phase of funding from the Black Liberation Pooled Fund is centered on the idea of investing in the Black movement ecosystem. Can you talk a bit about what you mean by Black movement ecosystem and some of the elements of that work?

Bhansali: Yes, this is where my heart really soars, and I feel really excited. If there’s one thing we have seen a tremendous amount of in the last several years, it’s been the power of Black genius and Black creativity — not only in resisting racism, White supremacy, and oppression, but also in the midst of it, creating a future that actually liberates all of us. Many of the ideas that are being gestated in Black communities all around the United States are incredible solutions that the world needs. And they’re intersectional. They are in fact, solutions that handle the climate crisis, solutions that make livelihoods and sustainable economies possible, solutions that actually work at the intersection of gender justice and democracy preservation.

By showing up responsively and in right relationship — which means not extracting knowledge from the communities that we seek to serve but being a partner — we trust that, when they articulate their needs, that it’s based on a process of community assessment.

Read the full article about supporting social justice movements at The David and Lucile Packard Foundation.