Giving as a Way of Being: The Black Philanthropy Fund and the Black Canadian Fundraisers’ Collective

What began as a lunch among seven Black women fundraisers in the summer of 2018 has grown into one of the most quietly revolutionary forces in Canadian philanthropy. The Black Philanthropy Fund, a Community Advised Fund held at MakeWay, sits at the heart of the Black Canadian Fundraisers’ Collective (BCFC). Both are the work of a community that knows, from lived experience, exactly what is missing from the sector. 

We recently sat down with Nneka Allen, founder of the Collective, to hear the story of how this fund came to life, how it is transforming the fundraising profession, and why it represents something far deeper than a single financial vehicle. 

“Black philanthropy is ancient. It predates Western philanthropy. And the ways of being that make it up live in the bodies of Black people. It is the way we survive, the way we care for one another, the way we express generosity, the way we stay connected.” 

— Nneka Allen, Founder, Black Canadian Fundraisers’ Collective

 

A Gathering That Became a Movement 

Nneka Allen has been a fundraiser for 27 years. She often found herself being the only Black woman (or even woman of colour) in development teams across the organizations she served. 

What she observed over her career was consistent and troubling: Black fundraisers being underpaid, overloaded, and navigating workplaces that policed their bodies, their expressions, and their ways of being in the world. She began mentoring Black fundraisers in 2015, and found herself not just guiding these young professionals toward success but helping them survive, and in many cases, escape. 

That experience planted a seed. While serving on the AFP (Association of Fundraising Professionals) Toronto Board, Nneka volunteered to bring the organization’s draft strategic plan into her community for feedback. She gathered a group of Black women fundraisers. They shared their thoughts, but more than that, they found each other. 

“We found real community in our time together. And all of the women, at the end, were saying — we have to do this again.” 

— Nneka Allen, Founder, Black Canadian Fundraisers’ Collective

They did, again and again. By early 2019, the group decided it was time to give these gatherings a name and a purpose. The Black Canadian Fundraisers’ Collective (BCFC) was born, and its first order of business was to create a giving circle. 

 

A Fund Born of Culture 

The decision to create a giving circle was not incidental. For the founding members, pooling resources and directing them toward collective good was deeply consistent with their cultural values. They named it the Black Philanthropy Fund, and they knew from the start what it would support: the professional education of Black fundraisers. 

“Professional development is not always afforded to us. And in some instances where it is, we know we’re not getting the same level of support. We wanted to step in and create greater access.” 

— Nneka Allen, Founder, Black Canadian Fundraisers’ Collective

Grantmaking decisions are steered by the Collective and administered by a dedicated Black Philanthropy Fund circle within the Collective. This small, focused group is responsible for raising money, promoting the fund, and advancing recommendations shaped by the values and direction the broader community has set together. As Nneka reflects: “Even when we originally created it, it was that first group of women who described and defined what the fund would be used for.” 

This is what MakeWay would describe as a Community Advised Fund: not a fund directed by a single donor, but one in which a community united by a shared purpose collectively shapes where resources flow. It is a structure that reflects both the Collective’s values and MakeWay’s evolving practice of putting more philanthropic power in the hands of community leaders. 

 

Investing in the Education of Black Fundraising Leaders 

Since 2021, the fund has awarded 14 bursaries to Black emerging fundraisers to support their pursuit of the Master of Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership (MPNL) at Carleton University. Each bursary recipient also receives membership in the Collective, entering a national network of 44 members: peers, mentors, and advocates who understand the terrain they are navigating. 

The partnership with Carleton deepened over time and through persistence. The Collective is now exploring new educational partnerships to broaden access further, having found that other post-secondary institutions have struggled to attract Black students into their programs, a reality Nneka describes as “outrageous.” It is a challenge the fund cannot solve alone, but one it refuses to stop confronting. 

“It’s going to call us to think creatively about where education exists for Black fundraisers. What does decolonizing the system look like, and how can this work help enable that?” 

— Nneka Allen, Founder, Black Canadian Fundraisers’ Collective

 

A Larger Vision 

It would be impossible to tell the story of the Black Philanthropy Fund without acknowledging the ecosystem it belongs to. The Black Canadian Fundraisers’ Collective has built a B3 Capacity Building Academy, an educational program grounded in Afrocentric fundraising and giving principles; a Black Coaches Collective that connects Black leaders with coaches who understand their cultural context; and a suite of open-source resources for Black-led, Black-serving, Black-focused (B3) organizations across Canada.  

The fund supports education. But the Collective’s deepest commitment is to the wellbeing of its members: Black fundraisers navigating a sector that has not historically made space for them. Members find a place to tell the truth about what is happening to them, to get peer support, and to have people stand alongside them when they need it most.

This idea is what animated Collecting Courage: Joy, Pain, Freedom, Love, a landmark anthology co-edited by Nneka Allen, Camila Vital Nunes Pereira, and Nicole Salmon. All of the Canadian contributors have been members of the Collective.  

There are truly many layers to this story, each one a thread in the same tapestry. The Black Canadian Fundraisers’ Collective, The Black Philanthropy Fund, and Collecting Courage all exemplify what Nneka describes as the essential act of Black philanthropy: how we survive, care for each other, and remain connected. By naming and supporting these layers, the Collective isn’t trying to refine Western philanthropy; it is replacing it with something ancient, loving, and whole.

 

How to Support This Work 

The Black Philanthropy Fund is always open to donations. The more resources flow into this fund, the more Black fundraising leaders can access the education, community, and support they deserve, and the closer we get to a philanthropic sector transformed by ancestral knowledge, Afro-centric ways of giving, and a form of generosity rooted in love. 

“The more Black fundraising leaders we have in this sector, the more the sector will be exposed to a robust, loving, kind, caring, and connected form of philanthropy, which is sustainable.”  

— Nneka Allen, Founder, Black Canadian Fundraisers’ Collective

 

There are many ways to support this vital work: 

• Donate to the Black Philanthropy Fund
• Learn more about the Black Canadian Fundraisers’ Collective. 
• Buy and read Collecting Courage 

 

Interested in establishing a Community Advised Fund or Donor Advised Fund at MakeWay? Reach out to advisedfunds@makeway.org.