Advancing Solutions That Close Disparities

• The Challenge
• Promising Practices
• Benchmarks

BENCHMARKS OF PROGRESS

One challenge facing philanthropy is to evaluate its effects or benefits. There is great demand for techniques that assess impact, measure results, or mark progress. An approach that fits the theory of action in this project is to gather evidence that shows progress on the different pathways.

Each of the benchmarks below is linked to Challenges that need to be addressed, using Promising Practices.  Making progress on this pathway, along with the other pathways, is thought to be connected to the overall goal of “improving the bottom line” of disparities reduction.

In other words, you can give your philanthropy high marks for progress achieved on this pathway when you see signs that…

• Promising solutions for furthering social justice and closing disparities or gaps in racial equity are gaining more support.
• The model of philanthropy practiced here is more likely to look upstream in search of good solutions than used to be.
• More people in positions to be helpful are wanting to advance effective solutions to problems of justice and equity.
• Past work intending to address disparities or injustice is being recognized and re-introduced for consideration.
• Resistance or inertia to moving good ideas along is decreasing or less effective.
• Good ideas coming from the African American community are more likely to be considered than before.
• Ideas that are moving along are more likely than before to be seen as win-win solutions.

This page updated 19 August 08