Good evening, everyone:

My reactions/feedback to proposed grant recommendations must, I’m sure tip into the mildly-to-deeply annoying spectrum, particularly since they’re aimed in the direction of folks who give so much thought and care to every grant recommendation. But your responses to those incursions are invariably deeply thoughtful and illuminating – they not only help me understand more clearly the relationship of the recommendation to program strategy, but they also sharpen the articulation of purpose we are conveying to our trustees.

I wanted to use one recent response as illustrative: from Jessica B.

I had asked our Environment team's Jessica Boehland to help me understand more clearly the continued relevance, and importance, of our support for the Center for Earth, Energy, and Democracy’s efforts to convene a coalition of environmental justice and national organizations working to elevate grassroots voices and leadership with key decision makers. In such a fraught and regressive time on matters of national environmental policy, I wondered if other forms of environmental organizing might be more beneficial.

Jessica acknowledged that there is a legitimate concern about the extent to which the Center – and so many other national environmental organizations – can recalibrate to meet the chaos and destructive forces of the moment.

She then noted three reasons why the Environment team believes that this particular grant in emblematic of why maintaining our relationships with organizations like the Center is so vitally important. These three strike me as having direct and compelling application across all our program teams.

First, fortifying mutually reinforcing relationships between national actors and place-based organizations..

Jessica notes:

I’m sure you’re aware of the long history of discord and distrust between the environmental justice (EJ) community and more mainstream environmental organizations. Historically, large, national environmental organizations have been well funded to pursue agendas and strategies that have been developed with little understanding of, let alone collaboration from, EJ communities. These approaches have often had unintended negative impacts on those communities, leading to frustration, distrust, and missed opportunities for partnership. [The Center created an Equitable and Just National Climate Platform] with the explicit intention of building trust and deepening collaboration among the leadership of EJ and national environmental organizations. [That platform] remains the only national mechanism through which EJ and national environmental leaders come together to align on a vision and path to meaningful change. . .  We believe it is vital to maintain the infrastructure that supports the maintenance and deepening of these relationships.

Second, supporting place-based work. .

Jessica writes:

Because EJ organizations working in specific communities represent the heart of the [the national coalition], this grant also advances work and collaboration at the local level [by providing] and  [coordinating] more effectively with EJ organizations working in other parts of the country.

And third, maintaining a commitment to building a shared national vision.

In an observation that seems to encapsulate how Kresge hopes to both respond and build for the future, Jessica says:

Although the federal policy environment will remain hostile to climate action and climate justice for at least the next three years, we believe it is critical that the climate community continue advancing a national vision of ambitious and equitable climate action – one that is grounded in the lived experience and progress of local communities. We can’t afford to wait for the federal prospects to look more promising to begin shaping the next generation of national policy priorities –especially if we expect those priorities to be rooted in racial justice and reflect meaningful collaboration among EJ and national environmental organizations.

This is so very thoughtful and compelling. Thank you, Jessica

Rip

Rip Rapson (he/him/his)

President and CEO

The Kresge Foundation

www.kresge.org

248-643-9630

rrapson@kresge.org

Thanks for helping us thinking about the best approach here.        –Jessica

Jessica Boehland

Senior Program Officer – Environment

The Kresge Foundation

www.kresge.org

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