Rooted: NFG Political Education Series
Session 4 - Values Aligned Investment Praxis
NFG’s Values Aligned Investment Praxis Group provides a dedicated space for foundation CEOs and Presidents to learn and experiment with a group of trusted peers who aim to shift their endowment investments into greater alignment with their institutional missions. An outgrowth of the Philanthropy Forward alumni network, the community of practice is focused on social movement aligned investing to support groups building community power. In its first cohort, seven foundation CEOs participated from May 2022 – October 2023 to:
- Build a shared definition of “values aligned investing” in context
- Support each other toward Board education and engagement
- Identify the right investment advisors
- Develop and implement values aligned investment strategies, such as: Carve outs, ESG screens and divestment, Program & Mission Related Investment (PRI / MRI), and shareholder activism and proposals.
- Activate new funders to develop investment strategies at the NFG Convening in May 2023 and at CHANGE Unity Summit in October 2023.
This year, NFG will expand the space to include CEOs, CFOs, CIOs (or others with similar levels of decision making authority and direct accountability for investment outcomes) from the broader NFG community. Additional areas that we aim to explore in our 2024-2025 Praxis Group include:
- Making catalyzing investments in grantees and communities
- Deal sourcing and co-investing for big impact
- Taking leadership from grantees in investment decisions and shareholder activism
- Together shifting the investment advising field
Learn more about the Values Aligned Investment Praxis Group at the upcoming webinar, part of NFG’s Rooted series, which will take place Tuesday, February 13th from 1-2:30pm EST. Participants will leave with:
- A list of strategic interventions to advance Values Aligned Investing including:
- educating and activating boards and investment committees,
- developing and adopting values-aligned investment policy statements and portfolio strategies
- identifying and hiring more values-aligned investment advisors
- Stories, tools and references from foundation leaders who are actively stewarding transformations in their own institutions
- More information about the Praxis Group, which will launch its next cohort on April 25, 2024. Foundation leadership interested in investment strategies that are aligned with NFG’s Theory of Change are welcome to join the group!
About the Rooted Political Education series:
NFG cultivates spaces of connection, strategy, and action to shift more philanthropic resources to community organizing. We are excited to share a political education series where funders can grow together as we build towards communities of color having the power to self determine. Join us for an intentional political education and funder organizing space to learn more about why philanthropy must do things differently, and how.
Community organizing is a mechanism toward resisting systems of oppressive power and fighting for self-determination so that communities have what they need to thrive. Movement is led by and for community, deeply rooted in culture and place, and pivots to meet unanticipated needs. NFG’s dedication to lifting the importance of community organizing is two-fold: organizing is central to creating change and shifting power, and also is immensely difficult, long-term work that is significantly underfunded by philanthropy.
Some philanthropic practices are shifting, with more funders trying to move in alignment with community groups. In this series, we’ll be sharing examples of philanthropic shifts and experiments toward better practice, with space to strategize together on how to grow these changes further. Additionally, we will continue to learn more deeply about racial capitalism and how the historic theft of resources from BIPOC communities continues to have ramifications today. It’s time for funders to do this work in our spheres and show up with deep solidarity (and resources) to support community organizing and movements. Join us to learn why community organizing, how funders can (and are!) moving differently, and how the historical underpinnings of racial capitalism creates a useful map for the culture shift needed for philanthropy.
Event Details
When
Feb 13, 2024
10:00 am - 11:30 am PT
Where
Webinar
Posted 01/08/2024 in