Giving Compass' Take:

• RSF discusses the collaboration that goes into their grant distribution process from the Women's Capital Collaborative, a fund that infuses dynamic, female social entrepreneurship with capital. 

• How does collaboration and inclusivity make the grant process easier and in some ways more successful? Can others who are not in Gifting Circles follow this model?

• Read about inclusivity and participatory grantmaking process in female funding collaboratives. 

At RSF, many women of various backgrounds and orientations have led and inspired our community. We see it fitting that the first grant distribution from our Women’s Capital Collaborative, a philanthropic fund that infuses innovative women-led social enterprises with diverse forms of catalytic capital, be a Shared Gifting Circle, a collaborative process for distributing grant funds that leverage community wisdom while building trust.

s part of our work to create more inclusive financial systems, we see shared gifting as an important way to shift the current power and influence structures in our communities and networks and provide greater access to capital for women entrepreneurs.

For this circle, we gathered a group of inspiring women who have either founded or are currently at the helm of a groundbreaking social enterprise. On the day of the gathering at RSF’s offices in San Francisco, participants were invited to read each other’s grant proposals and ultimately divide $150,000 among the groups participating.

Characteristic of most Shared Gifting Circles, we experienced an atmosphere of openness and inquiry. Many of the participants expressed the sentiment that simply having the opportunity to meet and learn about other organizations that benefit women and girls was a highlight of the day.

A key moment in the shared gifting process came when the participants were asked to share their funding decisions with the group. As each participant explained her own decision-making process and experience, many expressed a newfound appreciation for the perspective of being in the “funder’s seat” and making difficult funding decisions. One participant shared that the process helped her gain empathy and understanding for funders regarding the difficult decisions they have to make.

Read the full article about women's philanthropy by Jennifer Wolfe at Medium