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Born of our recent strategy development process, GCIR’s new theory of change reflects our evolution as a national philanthropic mobilizing organization that creates strategic opportunities to move money and power to immigrant and refugee communities and galvanizes funders to resource a robust immigration and refugee rights power-building ecosystem.
Join GCIR and our partners at Grantmakers in the Arts (GIA) for a 75-minute webinar that aims to inspire funders to imagine what is possible, and to move them to take action to help protect the freedom to move and stay.
Join GCIR for this peer-to-peer discussion session to learn about the challenges local leaders are encountering while addressing the needs of these newly arriving migrants. We will also explore the strategies currently being developed and refined for building strong response networks. It has become clear that – in addition to resources –communication, coordination, and adaptability are essential to a successful response. This session will provide an opportunity for participants to share their experiences and ask questions about strategies for welcoming and supporting new arrivals.
As a funder, what does it mean then to be attentive to the needs of immigrants and refugees within the context of a broader housing crisis? How can funding strategies contribute to better housing outcomes across a diversity of households? Join us for a discussion with immigrant justice field leaders from different cities to address these questions as we explore the intersection of housing justice and immigrant justice.
In the hands of justice-driven leaders, computer technologies hold significant potential for advancing the public good. Across the country, nonprofits are harnessing the power of AI and building innovative tech tools to bridge gaps in culturally responsive services while expanding their organizational impact. From accessible legal tools, to on-demand translation services, to tech-based workforce development, the movement for immigrant justice is leveraging technology in creative ways to transform and scale service delivery. In this discussion, funders will learn from talented innovators about the tools they have built and how philanthropic investments can catalyze this burgeoning field.
As our nation braces for an incoming presidential administration that poses an unprecedented threat to our nation and to our immigrant communities, GCIR remains steadfast in our commitment to advancing justice and belonging for all. Though this moment portends a volatile and difficult road ahead for the immigrant and refugee communities that have been relentlessly denigrated throughout this election cycle, we know that the philanthropic sector holds significant resources and positional power that must be leveraged now in defense and protection of communities under attack.
With the shift in our nation’s presidential administration and promise of tougher enforcement, organizations across the state of Florida are mobilizing and organizing to defend immigrant and other marginalized communities. Florida has been among the battleground states in the fight for immigrant rights with recent passage of SB 1718 and other harmful policies aimed to curb migration into Florida and stoke fear within communities.
What do we hope to accomplish? What will success look like? What will it take to get there? These are some of the questions I grapple with as GCIR’s Programs Learning Manager. My position is new, reflecting the organization’s commitment to proactive learning throughout our work. In a nutshell, I aim to support the team in building evaluative capacity, including through the design (and constant iteration) of ways of working that make it easy for people to engage meaningfully in learning processes.
As I reflect on what brings me to this work, I am reminded that these roots run deep. As a Puerto Rican brought up in the United States, I was raised with an awareness of our nation’s history of colonialism and at times violent intervention in Latin America and beyond. I saw how the U.S. government had fought to ensure that the political and economic arrangements in Latin American countries suited its own interests, while then abdicating responsibility for the resulting destabilization.
If you currently fund in, or considering supporting, rural communities and are interested in the intersection of rural issues with migrant justice, we invite you to join GCIR’s Resourcing Rural Belonging Community of Practice.
Against the backdrop of Women’s History Month and with the current multifaceted attacks on both gender and migrant justice, GCIR invites you to learn how philanthropy can support the economic empowerment of immigrant women.
The Transnational Strategy Community of Practice (CoP) is a learning space for funders to engage with migrant power-building and organizing efforts that extend beyond international borders.
In an election year when immigration is the top issue in the minds of many voters, these policies exacerbate xenophobic, anti-immigrant, and racist sentiments that further dehumanize and criminalize immigrant and refugee communities while also expanding state powers to detain, deport, and terrorize undocumented individuals. To respond to this moment, organizations are leveraging different strategies–from litigation to organizing–to prevent the implementation of these policies and create a more welcoming country for all.
Amidst travel restrictions and other government responses to the growing COVID-19 pandemic, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, as of March 17, 2020, temporarily suspended refugee resettlement departures—the actual travel of a refugee from their initial country of asylum to the country where they will be resettled. In addition to travel disruptions, the UNHCR cited concerns that refugees would be placed at a higher risk of contracting and transmitting the virus if they continued to travel as reasons behind their decision.
A statement by multiple Chicago-based foundations denouncing the Trump administration's proposed changes to the "public charge" rule.
GCIR's groups provide forums for grantmakers, no matter their size, location, experience, or funding priorities, to gather and learn from one another, collaborate on strategy, and maximize their impact.