The Power of Long-term Operational Funding
Under the right circumstances, the impact achievable by providing substantial, multi-year operational support to a promising Social Impact Infrastructure Organization (SIIO) can be enormous. This story involving the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation and the Worldwide Initiative for Grantmaker Support (WINGS) clearly demonstrates this point.
The Mott Foundation provided WINGS with annual operating support for nearly 24 years. Today, WINGS is a global network of philanthropy support and development organizations with over 200 members across 58 countries, reaching an estimated 100,000 professionals in government, philanthropy, nonprofits, and civil societies.
WINGS is arguably the largest global network of networks with members such as Council on Foundations, Philea, Candid, GivingTuesday, TechSoup, and AVPN. It’s particularly vital in the Global South and remote regions, offering a connected network. After 24 years of support and hard work, WINGS is prepared to engage with government agencies on development at the local and national levels.
Paving the Way with Research
WINGS has become a primary repository for scholarly and actionable research, covering advocacy, creating enabling ecosystems, building infrastructure, establishing community foundations, and more. WINGS’ research informs its vast network of changemakers, boosting the efficacy of advocacy and philanthropy support organizations worldwide. WINGS actively contributes strategies to enhance cross-border giving on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, the Global Partnership on Effective Development Cooperation, the European Union’s Policy Forum on Development, and other global conferences and summits.
A Moment of Uncertainty and Triumph
In the Spring of 2020, WINGS had an enormous responsibility, being at the center of the action and working with many organizations during the brutal first wave of the Covid-19 crisis. They were a small team trying simultaneously to find time to prepare for an important project with the European Union (EU). Because of steady funding from Mott and others, combined with last-mile support to increase human resources, WINGS had the bandwidth to work with the EU. As a result, it received the largest grant in its history: 1 million Euros. This victory led to additional funding from other sources, and in 2022, WINGS became the first philanthropy organization to sign a Framework Partnership Agreement (FPA) with the EU. This 5 million Euro partnership will run for four years, prioritizing 32 countries. In 2020, WINGS had a staff of 6; today, the organization has a team of 20.
A highlight of WINGS’ achievements was the birth of the #PhilanthropyForClimate movement — a pledge by over 600 foundations to address climate change. The movement calls on all foundations, regardless of their mission, status, or geographic location, to include climate considerations in their operations, endowments, programs, and more.
WINGS, through its network of members, advocates to bilateral development cooperation partners so funds can be distributed more equitably. Development aid is most effective when local actors control their projects’ design, implementation, and monitoring with sufficient long-term and unrestricted resources to innovate. Realizing this, USAID has committed nearly USD 1.6 billion to localization, with other agencies following suit.
Discussion
Undeniably, the Mott Foundation’s steadfast funding yielded enormous results that could pay off for decades. However, it’s valid for funders to wonder, “What if it hadn’t paid off?” Game-changing progress necessitates the courage of risk-taking philanthropists. While this might be intimidating, funders may gain inspiration by reflecting on a venture philanthropist’s mindset: In venture capitalism, one triumphant investment can significantly outweigh multiple failures, and in philanthropy, the success rate is arguably higher. Furthermore, under the right circumstances, even modest grants can drive exceptional results, as shared in the stories found in this section of our website.
The Mott Foundation deserves a lot of credit for its 24 years of consistent support to WINGS, playing a crucial role in its transformation. Nevertheless, the journey wasn’t solitary: a myriad of other contributors supported WINGS, both financially and otherwise. As the adage goes, “It takes a village.” WINGS stands as a testament to this, being a global village of changemakers acting on different aspects of the polycrisis we must collectively address.