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What does it take to reimagine our financial structures so that social movements can thrive in abundant ecosystems rather than being starved for resources? In this episode, Zac Chapman and Nairuti Shastry from the New Economy Coalition (NEC) join us to explore the Solidarity Economy Funding Library, a powerful initiative that helps organizers access funding, investment, and fiscal sponsorship opportunities while fostering stronger relationships between movement organizations and funders.
Committed to advancing racial and economic justice through strategic collaboration and regenerative economics, Zac and Nairuti leverage their expertise to envision a more just economic future. They reveal how the solidarity economy movement provides real alternatives to capitalism, empowering communities to govern themselves through participatory democracy, cooperative and public ownership, and a culture of solidarity and respect for the earth.
We also explore the unexpected challenges and opportunities they faced while creating the funding library and how it’s currently being used to drive social impact strategies and radical economic transformation. Our guests share insights into organizing beyond traditional philanthropy and offer practical steps that listeners can take to support the solidarity economy movement. Whether you're an organizer, activist, or simply curious about alternative economic models, this episode provides actionable advice and inspiration to help you make a meaningful impact. Don’t miss this chance to contribute to a more equitable future!
Key Points From This Episode:
The distinct personal journeys that led Nairuti and Zac to this work. [0:02:21]
Important context for the Solidarity Economy Funding Library. [0:11:06]
Unexpected developments Zac and Nairuti encountered while compiling the library. [0:21:38]
How people are using this resource right now and how it will evolve in the future. [0:24:18]
Insight into the solidarity economy movement and who the funding library serves. [0:31:25]
Legal, political, ethical, and other challenges that keep our guests up at night. [0:39:26]
What you can do today to support the solidarity economy movement. [0:45:36]
Opportunities, collaborations, and achievements to be excited about right now. [0:47:57]
From civic engagement to civic participation to transformative collective ownership. [0:51:11]
Perspective on what organizing outside of and against philanthropy looks like. [0:53:27]
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Quotes:
“[The Solidarity Economy Funding Library] is a resource for organizers, activists, researchers, and anybody who’s looking to find funding opportunities that are going to expand and advance the solidarity economy movement.” — Nairuti Shastry [0:15:19]
“There’s an overrepresentation of philanthropy as a core funder of the solidarity economy – That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but – our movements have been defined by this philanthro-capture that restricts [how] folks are able to radically transform economic systems.” — Nairuti Shastry [0:22:05]
“[The solidarity economy movement] is a movement for instilling deep democracy at every facet of our everyday lives.” — Zac Chapman [0:33:03]
“What we’re seeing right now is this amazing intersection between the resist side of – social movements and the build side coming together in earnest and getting serious about [how we] collectively govern large amounts of resources.” — Zac Chapman [0:49:40]
“Through integrated diversity, we [become] resilient to threats and catastrophes – of capitalism and the business as usual economy.” — Kevin Bayuk [0:56:13]
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
Zac Chapman on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/zac-chapman-212b6359/
Nairuti Shastry on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/nairuti-shastry/
New Economy Coalition — https://neweconomy.net/
Solidarity Economy Funding Library — https://neweconomy.net/fundinglibrary/
Solidarity Economy Funding Library User Feedback & Engagement Survey — https://airtable.com/app9Y97UdCZ6ViM0b/pag3jaBy6XwWzZw9L/form
‘Will the Revolution Be Funded?’ — https://forgeorganizing.org/article/will-revolution-be-funded
Resourcing Agreements for Members, Staff, and Funders of the Solidarity Economy Movement — https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1yFxjEF1E3xfLbsXC5wW379U9QHQp1-24SoX9AtwNW-U/
Justice Funders ‘Just Transition for Philanthropy’ Spectrum — https://justicefunders.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Spectrum_Final_12.6.pdf
Participatory Grantmaking 101 — https://www.participatorygrantmaking.org/resources
Trust-Based Philanthropy Project — https://www.trustbasedphilanthropy.org/
Democracy Collaborative Community Wealth Building Framework — https://democracycollaborative.org/programs/cwb
RUNWAY Funder Manifesto — https://www.runway.family/investors#manifesto
Resource Generation Transformative Investment Principles — https://resourcegeneration.org/transformative-investment-principles/
National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy — https://ncrp.org/
Seed Commons — https://seedcommons.org/
Center for Economic Democracy — https://ced.samarastaging.dev/
‘Social Movement Investing: A guide to capital strategies for community power’ — https://economicdemocracy.us/social-movement-investing/
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