When democracy is compromised, so are the norms and systems we rely upon. Making the promise of democracy a reality for everyone is our common bond. Reflections on philanthropy, funding, and shared growth.
Elizabeth Alexander
Elizabeth Alexander, president of the Mellon Foundation, reflects on how America’s creatives have shaped our complex cultural history and can build a better future for the next generations.
Jennifer Ching
Jennifer Ching, executive director of North Star Fund, reflects on the power of daily, local-level advocacy. By addressing community-specific concerns and our shared future, she argues that democracy locally can inspire people to pursue change at a mass scale.
Sarita Gupta
Sarita Gupta, Ford’s vice president of U.S. Programs, reflects on how economic inequality erodes American democracy, and calls for building a fairer economy that centers and broadens workers’ rights.
Troy Jackson
Troy Jackson, co-founder and executive director of UNDIVIDED, calls for the Church to unite across racial and political divisions. By doing so, the Church can strengthen democracy and become a powerful force for hope, justice, and dignity.
Noorain Khan
Noorain Khan, Ford’s chief innovation officer, shares that a healthy democracy requires a thriving civil society, which depends on resilient nonprofit organizations. These groups are essential for collective action, enabling people to pursue shared causes and amplify individual power.
Rickke Mananzala
Rickke Mananzala, president of the New York Foundation, advocates for hyperlocal democracy, urging philanthropy to ensure public systems serve the common good and empower citizens to shape our future.
Roy Swan
Roy Swan, Ford’s Mission Investments program director, calls for “patriotic capitalism”: investments that prioritize the common good, widen opportunity, and expand worker ownership.
