DOI
10.9707/1944-5660.1694
Key Points
Editor’s Note: This article, first published in print and online in 2016, has been republished by The Foundation Review with minor updates.
This article argues that a foundation’s internal culture is critical to achieving large-scale social change, but that efforts to build a changemaking culture too often are left out of strategy conversations.
While there is no one culture that suits every foundation, a particular set of characteristics must be present in those that seek largescale social change: a focus on outcomes, transparency, authenticity, collaboration, racial equity and inclusion, continuous learning, and openness to risk.
This article offers insights into why culture can be challenging for foundations to address and maintain, examines cases of successful culture change at foundations, and offers advice for foundations that aspire to it.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Celep, A., Brenner, S., & Mosher-Williams, R. (2024). Internal culture, external impact: How a change-making culture positions foundations to achieve transformational change — With 2024 prologue. The Foundation Review, 16(1). (Original work published 2016.) https://doi. org/10.9707/1944-5660.1694
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