Trust-based philanthropy means something different to black women nonprofit leaders. We are often not trusted out of the gate because of bias due to our intersectional identity. We are often questioned about our decisions — and we are often treated as if we are not enough. If trust-based philanthropy is, in its essence, about shifting the power dynamics between funders and grantees and building genuine relationships with grantees, then black women nonprofit leaders stand to gain significantly by its practice. The example MacKenzie Scott has set in her giving brings this home.

The Whitman Institute coined the phrase “trust-based philanthropy” as they received feedback from their grantees about how they were making a difference through their grantmaking and building real relationships with organizations. Their grantees were calling on them to share with other funders how they move with such intention. They answered the call by creating “The Trust-Based Philanthropy Project” in which the participating foundations committed to “center equity, humility and transparency; recognize the power imbalance between funders and grantees, and work to actively rebalance it; and deeply value the quality of relationships, and honor how we treat others on the path to winning on our issues, as much as the act of winning itself.”

In 2020, Mackenzie Scott shocked the country when she moved in a similar vein by committing to a personal giving pledge in which she stated in her pledge letter, “My approach to philanthropy will continue to be thoughtful. It will take time and effort and care. But I won’t wait. And I will keep at it until the safe is empty.” She created Yield Giving which is named after a belief in adding value by giving up control. According to Mackenzie Scott’s Yield Giving website, her first set of 116 organizations that she gave a total of a little over $1.6 billion dollars was made up of 91 percent of racial equity organizations run by leaders of color, 100 percent of LGBTQ+ equity organizations run by LGBTQ+ leaders, and 83 percent of gender equity organizations run by women, bringing lived experience to solutions for imbalanced social systems. This is so powerful! Mackenzie Scott knows what it means to give with intention to organizations led by people from marginalized communities.

As a black woman leading an organization committed to racial and gender equity, it hits different when a donor makes it clear that they trust you, and backs that up with action. In 2020, I received an email asking for a 15-minute call. I was told it was about a philanthropist who is interested in contributing to our organization, only to find out that it was someone from Mackenzie Scott’s team informing me that we were the recipient of a large unrestricted financial gift — a gift of a size our organization had never seen before in its history

Read the full article about the power of trust-based philanthropy by Vanessa McDowell-Atlas at The Center for Effective Philanthropy.