A Guide for Building Strong Communities and a Free and Fair Democracy
All Funders Can Be Civic Funders offers a practical framework for grantmakers working in any issue area—from health and education to faith and community development—to deepen and amplify their civic impact. Drawing on more than two decades of PACE’s work with funders, the guide introduces the Civic PACT: four practices for building stronger communities and a free and fair democracy (Participate, Anchor, Connect, and Transform). It also includes a self-assessment tool and companion resource for boards to help funders put these practices into action.
All Funders Can Be Civic Funders makes the case that vibrant civic life is foundational to nearly everything funders care about, and that every foundation, whatever its mission, has a role in strengthening it. Rather than treating civic philanthropy as a separate field, the guide focuses on how funders approach their work. At its core is the Civic PACT (Participate, Anchor, Connect, and Transform), four practices that help foundations expand participation, invest in communities, foster connection and belonging across lines of difference, and shape a better shared future.
The guide is also honest about the real tensions funders face in this work, and offers ways to navigate them thoughtfully.
Practical tools, including a self-assessment and a board companion, help staff and trustees recognize the civic impact they already have and identify concrete ways to deepen it.
Civic culture is expansive, and knowing where your work fits within it is vital to strengthening it. PACE is building an interactive tool to help funders map their role in the civic culture landscape and find the gaps in their communities. We’ll launch it at our December 3 Virtual Conversation: All Funders Can Be Civic Funders, along with a deep dive into the guide. Register here.
Are you interested in learning with peers? PACE’s Civic Culture Funders Lab is a learning space that helps funders connect the dots between culture, community, and democratic resilience while exploring how to support both immediate needs and long-term renewal. This cohort is designed as a flexible, peer-driven space for sensemaking in an emerging and rapidly evolving field. Learn more here. Contact Siri at siri@pacefunders.org if you are interested in joining the Lab.
Whether you are new to civic philanthropy or have been investing in this work for years, PACE is here to help.
If you would like to become a PACE member, learn more here or please email info@pacefunders.org to get started.
