Across the sector, there is growing confidence in collaborative, equitable and systems-focused approaches to funding. But there is much less understanding of what it actually takes to make these work - particularly when funders with different mandates, constraints and views of systems change try to work together.
Building a more effective and equitable funding ecosystem requires more than shared resources or aligned strategies. It requires investment in the governance infrastructure, shared learning and convening capacity that allows funders to hold tension, adapt over time and support collective change without forcing everyone into a single definition of what success looks like. Those are harder and less visible investments — and they are often the ones that get skipped.
This online session draws on independent research by Institute for Voluntary Action Research into Propel, a long-term funding collaboration involving funders, equity partners and community-led organisations. The research surfaces practical learning on the limits of alignment alone and highlights the potential of pooled funding to create different conditions for equity, consistency and power‑sharing within a funding ecosystem. IVAR will also share learning on the role of equity partners can play when they are embedded in assessment and decision‑making, alongside the risks of extractive or under‑resourced approaches to equity expertise. Finally, the session will explore a multiplicity approach to systems change, demonstrating how long‑term funding can hold different forms of contribution - organisational stability, structural action and delivery‑to‑influence - without forcing a single definition of impact.
The session is designed for funders who are working collaboratively or thinking about doing so, and will include space for discussion and reflection alongside the research findings.