An In-Person Workshop on Navigating the Funding Landscape for Criminal Justice Reform

We were invited to facilitate an in-person workshop for a major funder, Just Impact Advisors, at their first convening since the pandemic, bringing together leaders from across the criminal justice reform movement. The goal was to provide a pragmatic, open, honest, and empathetic session that helped leaders navigate a dramatically shifted funding landscape which is filled with a relatively small number of funders who care a lot about the issue. Many of them can be considered major donors, and understanding what these funders are looking for helps leaders understand how to best “pitch” their organizations.

We focused on equipping these leaders with the tools to understand current funding trends, take best practices from across the nonprofit sector, and apply those lessons to the unique challenges of criminal justice reform. The session emphasized the importance of clarity in aligning organizational priorities with fundraising strategy, while also offering actionable insights into how to leverage time—perhaps their most precious resource—most effectively.

We created space for candid conversations about the awkwardness of fundraising and its built-in power imbalances, the realities of resource constraints, balancing vision with operational capacity, and shifting dynamics in the post-pandemic world. Leaders left with a stronger understanding of how to make strategic decisions, from resource allocation to relationship building, ensuring their fundraising efforts were aligned with their day-to-day operations and long-term goals.