Rethinking Philanthropy: Community-Led Design for Sustainable Impact

Despite decades of philanthropic investment, persistent community challenges reveal that traditional models often fall short of creating lasting change. This panel explores how Community-Led Design can catalyze place-based, community-driven impact by reimagining systems and fostering sustainable, equitable outcomes.

Panelists from The George Foundation, Upstream Thinking, and Access Health will share real-world examples of how a bold, community-led approach transforms service delivery. Faced with complex local needs, The George Foundation made a “big bet” by partnering with Upstream Thinking to engage vulnerable community members and frontline staff across multiple agencies. This collaborative design process uncovered key opportunities for systemic improvement—insights that could only emerge from community engagement.

One transformative outcome was the overhaul of the application, administration, and delivery of philanthropic services in the housing and homelessness sector. The new, streamlined informational system, now managed by Access Health, enables all community agencies to allocate resources more effectively while reducing burdens on tenants, landlords, and staff.

Join us to discover how shifting to a Community-Led Design model not only addresses deep-rooted challenges but also creates place-based impact that empowers communities to drive their own sustainable futures.