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Opening the 9th Foraker Leadership on April 14, President/CEO Laurie Wolf called for nonprofits to reach deeply and explore ways to better support their missions through collaborations. Below is a transcript of her remarks.
To know Foraker is to know our Nonprofit Sustainability Model. This is not a recipe but rather a way of making the right decisions for your mission, so you keep moving toward success. We know this is a journey and not a destination, and as board and staff stewards of your mission, we hope that your collective decision making leaves your mission in a better place than you found it.
As we look through the lenses of sustainability, we could have encouraged you to simply focus on your own core purpose and values and your own people and money. But every mission is bigger than a single institution and partnerships are the source of our greatest strength. While some may embrace a mindset of scarcity as we compete for people, money, power, or other resources, we stand firm that true growth and impact come when we commit ourselves and our organizations to strategic partnerships.
Our theme this year is Better Together: Partnering for Good. With this in mind, we will explore effective partnerships – as teammates working together within an organization, as nonprofits collaborating for a shared vision, and as partners with businesses and government.
Collaboration is not just our Summit theme but is a way of being that we hope you carried into this room, and you will carry with you long after you leave as you continue doing the good work of serving Alaska.
The way that Alaska’s nonprofits and tribes are centered in our communities means we are the nexus of these essential relationships. Federal, state, and municipal governments, for-profits, and donors are in our orbit as we find new, long-standing, and effective ways to make Alaska work.
Of course, in the last few months, our federal partnerships have been deeply shaken, and the sector has become a target, not an ally, to many. We know that this is neither efficient nor practical as Alaska’s economy relies on each of us to do our part.
I am going to be honest. Our sector is facing a pretty difficult set of circumstances that are likely to get worse before they get better – and we are not alone. Hundreds of government agencies we partner with are also being dismantled without a strategic understanding of the impact on human life, our environment, or our economy. We know this is happening to many nonprofits, too. At the same time, we see some who are hopeful about the possibilities of these changes. And I am sure some would strongly disagree with both these views – such is the nature of democracy. We can do things that feel and impact people in very different ways.
Mostly, however, as I listen every day to the stories of human impact and watch the increase in legal actions to protect people and the work we do, the only thing I know for sure is what I knew when all of this started – the nonprofit sector, if not every institution we know, will look different before this is all over.
As we walk into these next two days, I invite you to stay extra curious and to listen. I invite you to take in the hard news and sit with it for as long as you can before moving to the next thing – not to stew in it, but to recognize it for what it is and to honor the hard parts. I also invite you to remain encouraged, not with some false sense of promise, but with a realism that keeps reminding you that your work matters today, and it will matter tomorrow.
Today, let’s focus on “what’s next” and “to what end.”
Together let’s imagine a future where it easier to access support, easier to navigate compliance, easier to get paid on time for the work we do, easier to fund operating expenses, and easier to focus on what matters the most in our missions. How would our partnerships be stronger? This Summit is where we can start those conversations, even in small ways.
What if we can find the courage and the moments to work together to imagine the future we want to build, rather than struggling for what we had that we are losing anyway? Why not be the voice for what we want that is even better – to thrive and not just survive?
The future is made by those who show up, let’s dig in deep together. Our facilitators are all also ready to meet the moment with you.
Now more than ever, let’s embrace an abundance of knowledge, energy, and ideas.
SO, ARE YOU READY?!
Let’s collaborate together for good.