It’s Time We Fund Native Communities to Lead the Climate Fight
By Kristen Mejia
While many Native communities across the US are on the frontlines of climate change, it is not their only fight. Native leaders fighting for climate justice are also up against a pervasive, yet hardly acknowledged problem: the struggle for adequate and equitable philanthropic support.
Though climate change threatens the homes of over 560 tribes, very little funding is received by Native-led organizations. In fact, between 2002 and 2016 only one dollar was given in philanthropic funding for every seven Native people in the US – a vast underestimation of the problem, some scholars say, given that census data underestimates the Indigenous population. Our understanding of the true picture is further obscured by the fact that few of our philanthropic peers regularly disclose what portion of funding is directed to Native-led organizations or coalitions.
“Between 2002 and 2016, only one dollar was given in philanthropic funding for every seven Native people in the US.”
Based on 34 interviews with Native funders, grassroots leaders, and other experts, a recent report from the Equity Fund – Honoring and Resourcing Native Communities to Lead the Climate Fight: A Call to Action for Philanthropy – explores the severe underinvestment in Native communities within climate-based philanthropy.
On the Frontlines, Yet Still an Outsider
Too little has been done to break down barriers that keep Native advocates feeling like outsiders. This is not surprising given the US’s long history of colonization and violence against Indigenous Peoples and their land. But in the philanthropic world, the obstacles to access resources can pile up in insidious ways. For example, the CEO of a Native-led nonprofit recounts a time where, after working with a funder for 25 years, he found himself still having to defend his organization’s strategy and success. Meanwhile, a white peer met with the same funder in a bar, sketched out a three-year plan on the back of a napkin, and secured funding three months later. It took the Native-led nonprofit 18 months to secure funding from the same partner.
Geography and access are additional challenges for some Native communities. It can be near impossible for Native folks in rural areas with poor access to the internet, public transit, and even electricity to connect with outside funders. Carol Davis of Diné C.A.R.E. highlights how organizing in rural areas requires high travel costs, and that sometimes, making a “simple phone call” with a funder is just not that simple. Funding travel and related expenses that enable rural organizing is critical, not optional.
A Tokenized Budget Line Item, At Best
Even when Native-led groups are included in a fund’s portfolio, several groups reported that it can often feel ingenuine. Some interviewees reported that they often felt like “token Natives,” both as staff members and as grantee partners. Often, Native organizations will only receive short-term funding for a specific issue determined by a funder’s interests with little attention towards relationship- and trust-building. This makes it difficult for Native organizations to meet their own needs and plan for the long term.
In general, grantmaking culture and practices require a radical shift to substantially include Indigenous grantee partners. One way to start is to commit to the diversification of the funding world. A funder interviewee stated, “There are so many white people in these [decision-making] meetings and they just don’t understand the realities that Indigenous Peoples face… If institutions that are funded are white, how will they be held accountable to their grantee partners of color? This won’t happen unless you have program officers who are people of color and from Native communities.”
“Fund Us Like You Want Us to Win”
As Nick Tilsen from NDN Collective puts it, “Fund us like you want us to win!” Our report illustrates ways non-Native funders can support and build power for Indigenous-led efforts:
Focus on deep, multi-year, flexible funding: Almost all interviewed organizations reported they were under-resourced and under-staffed. Native-led organizations must be funded for the movement, not just for an issue.
Fund what is necessary to support local needs: From accessible transport and internet connectivity to cultural healing, there are a suite of factors that enable success depending on the community. Holistic and grantee-identified funding will not only support much-needed alternatives to land and resource extraction, but it will also nurture true partnership between Indigenous leaders and non-Native funders.
Build trust and accountability: On the margins for decades, Native organizations need active partners and co-collaborators, not passive funder allies. This means building trust and holding our organizations accountable to Native-led visions for correcting our relationship with Mother Earth.
An Open Invitation to the Philanthropy Community
The Equity Fund invites our philanthropic peers to join us in our ambitions to center Native communities in the fight for climate equity. It is time we, as a community, fund them to win – to win not only for climate, but also for the future generations of Native populations on the frontlines.
As one funder put it, “People need to recognize Native People aren’t just protecting land, water, and air for themselves. The work they are doing benefits all of humanity.” Indeed, funding Native-led efforts is, ultimately, a win for us all.
Kristen Mejia is a former program associate at the Equity Fund.
