

By IFIP Staff
Since the implementation of our strategic framework, IFIP’s global community is growing. This includes Indigenous-led funds that are shaping the thinking on ‘Indigenous and Intercultural Philanthropy’. These funds are led by and for Indigenous Peoples. They signal the rising leadership of Indigenous Peoples in the funding community and play a critical role in supporting Indigenous communities globally. Indigenous-led Funds are vast resources of knowledge and skills and have tools that can amplify and increase the effectiveness of philanthropy to advance Indigenous Peoples’ priorities and rights. IFIP’s long- term vision is to provide a platform to support Indigenous-led funds (ILFs) with tools, research and exchanges as they strengthen and deepen funding and impact. This was the impetus of IFIP’s first two ILF gatherings, which is part of our continued collaboration to create more visibility around the leadership and impact of these groups.
The first ILFs’ global gathering took place as a pre-conference event before IFIP’s 2018 Global Indigenous Funders Conference in collaboration with the Mino Niibi Fund and the PAWANKA Fund. This historic event was the first time ILFs from across the world met to connect, dialogue, and build relationships with each other. There were 18 different organizations represented of the 34 that were invited. The gathering brought together established and new ILFs to dialogue and build relationships. A critical takeaway from the gathering involved identifying three connectors that define Indigenous-led and intercultural funding. First and foremost these funds are led by and for Indigenous Peoples. These funds prioritize empowering processes at the local level. Respondents indicated that grantmaking was not simply about giving money to a project; rather they are about supporting a process for the empowerment of the communities so they can change paradigms or shift power relations. These three connectors became the framing of the second Indigenous-led gathering, where we explored how to best support funds to empower processes from the local to a global level. The funds also dialogued about peer-to-peer learning exchanges and co -creating a roadmap of ILFs and deepening allyship in mainstream philanthropy.

Graphic Recording done by Jeska Slater during the Second Gathering of Indigenous Led Funds. Photo Credit: Rucha Chitnis