The Work
We work using a systems mindset. By strategically using philanthropy to target certain levers, we connect each area of focus to work with the whole.
The foundation of the fund is a philanthropic grant-pool which provides support for collaborative initiatives. This was born to reduce the culture of competition and duplicating workflows that the current funding systems generate. Simultaneously, the fund fosters collaboration in order for the network to share knowledge, resources, and capacity.
Built on the foundation and philosophy of collaboration, strategic areas of focus are targeted and developed. The first piece of commissioned work was the Finance Fund, where a programme of work is developing to redirect investments to a regenerative food system. The plan is to increase the fund’s workflows as the fund grows.
“The Farming the Future programme is enabling a fruitful collaboration to happen: the economic and supply chain expertise of the New Economics Foundation and the Soil Association will value and monetise the impact of Growing Communities’ work across the triple bottom line. The result will be a new and powerful way to articulate to consumers and policymakers the worth of agroecologically produced food sold in localised short supply chains and provide a timely boost to all our efforts to influence the National Food Strategy and Agriculture Bill (ELMs). We will also create and roll out a valuation toolkit across the Better Food Traders network enabling other ethically driven food distributors to do the same".
Julie Brown, Growing Communities
