Kia whai wāhi mai te tini tangata ki te tukuoha

Moving to a participatory philanthropic approach

In 2021, ngā Kaikōkiri and the PMP Committee gathered to discuss whether there was interest in moving towards a participatory model of philanthropy, and if so, what a model might look like. Lani Evans, a PMP Committee member, had undertaken a Winston Fellowship enabling her to meet with radical philanthropists in the United Kingdom and North America. Her report, Participatory philanthropy, an overview (Evans, 2016), provided to Mahi Tahi (gathering) challenged funders to move towards a participatory practice model. As she pointed out, “philanthropy was always supposed to be the radical disruptor, able to take risks to innovate solutions. What are we waiting for?”

There was strong interest in ngā Kaikōkiri joining with the Committee to decide on the areas and aspects of upstream work to focus on, the selection and implementation of proactive and joint projects, and ways of building capacity and bringing other voices on board. They were interested, too, in deciding how to leverage more resources for this work.

While it was acknowledged the outcomes of moving to a participatory approach would be affected by how it is structured and “how it ends up looking” several benefits were identified:

Sharing power: Money is power. Sharing power is a further step in PMP’s journey towards trying to build a healthier, more equitable and effective ecosystem.

Te Tiriti o Waitangi based philanthropy: A participatory approach aligns with Te Tiriti o Waitangi principles and partnership obligations.

Enhanced decision-making and a better use of resources: While the Committee has considerable expertise and experience, ngā Kaikōkiri have the most proximate knowledge and experience of the systems they are trying to change and the communities they are working with. They are well placed to identify gaps, emerging issues, creative and innovative courses of action, and adaptations required in a changing environment.

Improving the funding process: ngā Kaikōkiri can bring their funding experiences to the table potentially enhancing the experiences of applicants and those funded and ensuring resources are provided at the right time and in the right way.

It increases ownership and accountability: while ngā Kaikōkiri contribute to the PMP vision, they felt making strategic decisions would further strengthen their sense of ownership of the project.

It is the right thing to do: It promotes diversity, equity, and inclusion in the process as well as the outcomes being sought. The move is evidence of PMP authentically shifting power by “walking the talk.”

It broadens knowledge and connections: Ngā Kaikōkiri have different networks and connections, which would allow PMP to identify new initiatives.

Overall, the move towards a more participatory philanthropic model was seen by Mahi Tahi participants as building a stronger, and more resilient funding and decision-making system, which would better support ngā Kaikōkiri both individually and collectively.

He wero – Challenges

The Mahi Tahi III participants also identified a number of challenges.

Authenticity: an early concern at Mahi Tahi was the authenticity of the proposal to move towards greater participatory philanthropy. There is often a reluctance to share power in an authentic way. Consultation was acknowledged as not necessarily indicative of meaningful partnership or participation. Although these concerns were largely allayed at the event by those with experience of PMP and its funding approach, the next steps, including implementation, will be critical if they are to be put more fully to rest.

Who might participate: along with ngā Kaikōkiri, tamariki and whānau with lived experience from the communities ngā Kaikōkiri are working with were identified as key voices. It was pointed out there needs to be consideration of their perspectives, including if and how they might be engaged and “looked after” by the process.

Conflicts of interest: there was some concern that grant-making may result in conflicts of interest, particularly for ngā Kaikōkiri receiving funding. There was also a reluctance to participate in decisions that would involve allocating amounts of funding to each other and other groups, particularly when the resources become more limited when the money is close to being spent down. It was pointed out that there are already mechanisms in place to deal with conflicts of interest.

Resource intensive: there was concern about what might be expected of ngā Kaikōkiri. They are already undertaking challenging, time-consuming work. While it was acknowledged that participating in decision-making would enable ngā Kaikōkiri to have more active input into the strategic direction of PMP and how the resources might be allocated, it was also recognised that a more active contribution would potentially require a more active time commitment than philanthropic organisations normally require and “you would have to lock in some space to enable that to happen.” ¹

Speed of decision making: a further challenge was the speed in which a participatory approach might operate. While much of the PMP decision-making takes place at quarterly meetings, there are times in which agility is required. Any changes would need to incorporate the ability to make timely decisions.

Lasting approach: it was noted the participatory approach would need to be embedded in PMP’s structure so that future Committee members understand the kaupapa and implications. There have been a number of changes in membership of the Committee. It would be important to ensure that changes in membership could not result in the Committee being able to change the approach unilaterally.

So how will this impact the impact of PMP? We are early on our learning journey. It is acknowledged that the work towards a more participatory model is a “welcome starting point.” We are unsure how it might unfold. There are still questions which will need to be considered in progressing this work. A sub group has been appointed to move this work forward.

Article by Alex Woodley

PMP Participatory Philanthropy Mahi Tahi - Sharing Power, Creating Impact together Mahi Tahi 3 - A deep dive into funding strategy ideas & Participatory decision-making process