Last week, philanthropist and author MacKenzie Scott announced donations of more than $1.5 billion to 116 organizations, including Echoing Green. We are incredibly grateful to have received this transformational, unrestricted gift of $10 million in support of our mission.
Over the last three decades, Echoing Green has helped build a global social entrepreneurship movement that places equity, sustainability, and justice at the core of its impact. At a time when the fissures in these systems are widening, we are steadfast in our belief that supporting solutions designed by those closest to the problems is essential for creating opportunities for all people to thrive.
This movement has staying power: our diverse community of over 800 Fellows has long been sowing the seeds of change needed to transform inequitable systems. We are proud to see organizations started and led by lifelong leaders from the Echoing Green community as recipients of these grants, including GirlTrek, Last Mile Health, Transgender Law Center, One Acre Fund, and Share Our Strength/No Kid Hungry. The catalytic gift to Echoing Green allows us to sustain our support to our ever-growing community of Fellows and deepen our shared impact in service of building an equitable and inclusive society. It’s vital work, and we are thrilled to continue accelerating change by supporting social innovators long into the future.
We have seen firsthand how systemic oppression along the lines of race, class, gender, and geography determines who gets the funding and the trust to develop solutions for their communities—much of our work is to dismantle these barriers. The runway and flexibility provided by Scott’s unrestricted donation send a powerful signal about the impact philanthropy can have on supporting solutions that our communities need and want.
It’s an honor to be a part of this transformational moment in philanthropy. Scott’s approach to changing inequitable systems is a powerful model for funding social change. It’s because of donors like Scott that Echoing Green will meet this moment while sustaining its long-term work of finding and connecting leaders with the most promising ideas—and doing everything we can to make sure they succeed.
