Effies®, An Awards Program to Recognize Effective Uses of Philanthropy to Advance Social Justice and Racial Equity

JustPhilanthropy.org announces...

The Effies®

An Awards Program to Recognize Effective Uses of Philanthropy to Advance Social Justice and Racial Equity

Current readers of JustPhilanthropy.org know that its “Pathways to Progress” illustrate the use of philanthropy in closing the many gaps or disparities in how society works – and doesn’t work, typically favoring some groups over others. It celebrates philanthropy that tries to improve the chances for groups on the short end of these disparities, whether in Health or Education or Arts, or in Youth or Aging, or Neighborhood and Community Development, or other defined arenas affected by philanthropic, governmental, and private practice.

The purpose of The Effies® is to recognize and publicize excellent examples of this kind of philanthropy – philanthropy that aims to upgrade key policies and practices so as to level the playing fields and make our systems work effectively and more fairly for all.

Awards will be made to recognize excellence in each of these categories:

Best use of philanthropy to strengthen a philanthropic organization’s ability to address issues of justice and equity

Best use of philanthropy to create constructive conversations that lead to greater momentum in addressing issues of justice and equity.

Best use of philanthropy to advance promising gap-closing ideas and solutions along the road from inception to successful implementation.

Best use of philanthropy to strengthen the relationships, networks, and leadership necessary for moving promising solutions along.

Best use of philanthropy to increase the resources needed – financial, human, technical – and to allocate them smarter to reduce disparities.

Best use of philanthropy to increase justice or equity by drawing on multiple pathways – preparation, discussion, solutions, leadership, and resources – putting them all together in ways that stand to decrease measured disparities.

By “philanthropy” we mean to cast a very wide net. In our work to date, we have found it unnecessary to distinguish between foundations and nonprofits, intermediaries and civic groups; the term “philanthropic organizations” includes all these. For working definitions of social justice and racial equity, and for excellent examples already at work in the field, see JustPhilanthropy.org

Awards Criteria and Process

To enter, please write up your example in no more than a page. Identify the full name of the organization doing the work, its URL and contact information, and your relationship to that organization (it can be your own). Send to StevenEMayer@justphilanthropy.org Examples submitted by June 1, 2009 will be considered.

Entries will be judged by members of the Pathways to Progress Project Team.

Submitted examples of effective philanthropy will be judged on:

1. How well it describes the nature of the inequity or injustice being addressed, and the opportunities for intervening and remedying the problem;
2. How well it illustrates one of the Pathways;
3. How well it makes clear the connection between actions taken and progress made toward remedying the problem.

“Extra credit” will be given to submissions describing:

1. How the big-picture inequity or injustice addressed can be monitored in publicly-available data of some kind.
2. How your organization learns from its efforts, improves them, and helps others learn as well.

The awards are those of recognition. Winning examples will be publicized to the full JustPhilanthropy.org mailing list, described in a special article for the website, and incorporated into the Pathways to Progress. While the reward may not be immediately financial, this recognition should help winners gain good will, partners, and support.

Directors of regional associations, affinity groups, or informal networks - please note how easily this award program could be adapted to your region’s or members’ interests. Interested in co-sponsorship? Please reply.

The Effies® is registered to Effective Communities LLC. The Effies®, Pathways to Progress, and its website JustPhilanthorpy.org, are projects of Effective Communities LLC