EPIP News & Events

Reflecting on EPIP 2024: Reconnect, Revive and Rise!

It’s hard to believe it’s already been almost a month since our largest EPIP conference to date. Almost 300 of us gathered together in New Orleans, with more joining virtually, for our thoughtful and thought provoking plenaries and breakout sessions.

We’re still pouring through the post-conference feedback, but one thing is clear: this conference was really special, and left so many of you feeling nourished, motivated, and supported in your learning and professional development. One participant told us, “this was the medicine I didn’t know I needed.” 

If you attended in-person or virtually, all three plenaries are available to re-watch directly in the Whova app and will be available for 3 months. 

What helped make EPIP 2024 so special? See below for some of our highlights, and be sure to join us in 2026! 

Feedback from Our Attendees

Welcome Reception at the New Orleans African American Museum

We visited the New Orleans African American Museum for a beautiful reception where we learned about the history of the Tremé neighborhood from Chief Curator Gia Hamilton, delighted in music from the New Breed Brass Band, and celebrated EPIP’s accomplishments over the last few years as we became our own independent organization. Attendees got to tour the museum, and visit amongst the garden murals of local leaders and activists who have shaped the city.

(Photos by Cfreedom Photography)

Learning Tour: Unearth the Past, Understand the Present, Envision the Future

Throughout the conference, we wove in local artists and artisans to bring the spirit of New Orleans and sense of place to all of our attendees. On this learning tour, guided by Know NOLA Tours, about 60 of our attendees got to visit some of the city’s cultural guideposts to hear more about how important arts and culture are to the spirit of racial justice and resilience in New Orleans. The tour featured stops at Congo Square, the Plessy v. Ferguson historical landmark, StudioBe, Ashé Cultural Arts Center, and the TEP Center, where attendees got to hear from Leona Tate herself!

(Photo Credit: Malik Bartholomew, Know NOLA Tours)

Overheard at our Plenaries 

“To funders: do not hire and require talent to move from New Orleans to your offices in the North. Our people can do the work here on the ground." - Cherry Rangel, Black and Indigenous Solidarity in New Orleans 

“When things feel overwhelming, and hard, I remember that my people have been here before, my ancestors have been here before.” - Maheen Kaleem, Harnessing Philanthropic Courage for an Uncertain Future 

“Even if it’s just a job, when community calls, I will still answer.” - Shawnda Chapman, Philanthropy Won’t Break My Soul

Healing Spaces and Breakout Sessions

We were thrilled to have three gifted healers and facilitators join us from Unchained Visioning for identity-based healing spaces. Since 2016, EPIP has offered these spaces at our conferences to help us all access greater healing and liberation in our own bodies so that we can move towards a more just and equitable world, together. We will continue to integrate healing modalities into our programming, and we look forward to offering healing spaces for more members outside of our conferences, too. 

With multiple breakout sessions reaching room capacity, we know there were more takeaways than we can possibly include here. We experimented this year with longer-form workshop style sessions embedded into the conference as well as traditional breakout sessions. Our community was eager to learn, and one of our guest facilitators told us this was the most engaging and participatory audience they've ever had at a conference! 

Vendors and Artists 

• Anaya Bazaar
• Bubblegum Crystal Shop
• Community Book Center
• Jua Kali Market 
• Kersey Barrett-Tormey (madebykersey)
• Kinfolk Brass Band 
• Legatron Prime
• LOUD Queer Youth Theater 
• Moon Garden
• New Breed Brass Band
• StudioBE / Eternal Seeds 
• Sweet Rush NOLA
• Wendi Moore O’Neal 
• Wicks NOLA Candle Company

Registration is Now Open for the Fall 2024 Cohort of Philanthropology

In order to use philanthropy to drive social change, it is crucial that new practitioners in the sector understand its context, history, and challenges. Philanthropology™ is EPIP's signature curriculum that responds to this need with an in-depth critical study of philanthropy through a social justice lens that includes academic and practitioner perspectives. 

The Philanthropology™ curriculum includes 9 hours of synchronous virtual sessions spread over several weeks supplemented by reading materials, videos, and reflection activities. Participants learn the landscape and history of the philanthropic sector and dig into concepts like intersectionality, movement building, grantmaking with an equity lens, and strategies for putting this knowledge into practice.

Fall 2024 Cohort dates:

Module 1: Philanthropy History, Ecosystem, and Evolution

• Wednesday, September 25 from 10 a.m. - 1  p.m. PST 

Module 2: Racial Equity and Equity Analysis in Grantmaking

• Wednesday, October 9 from 10:00 am - 1:00 pm PST 

Module 3: Self-Advocacy and Personal Leadership

• Wednesday, October 23  from 10:00 am - 1:00 pm PST

Member Registration Investment: $325 | Member registration is now open here.

General Registration Investment: $500 | General registration is now open here.

Communities of Practice

EPIP’s Communities of Practice give emerging professionals a space to grow, learn, and connect with their peers. Available Communities of Practice are:

• The People of Color Network: The People of Color Network (PCN) is a professional development and peer support network for EPIP members who identify as people of color. The PCN is designed to address the intersections of challenges and opportunities that are unique to emerging people of color in the sector. The spaces we provide, whether in person or virtual, are places where we hope you can show up in your wholeness to connect, vent, share strategies with peers, and learn key skills. 
• The Emerging Women of Color Community of Practice: The Emerging Women of Color (EWOC) community of practice was launched in 2022, focused on leadership development and network weaving for early- and mid-career women of color in philanthropy. Created in response to member requests, this community provides leadership development through the lens of race and gender. It also works to connect early-career women of color with a network of peers so that it takes less effort to ‘find your people’ in the field.
• White Affinity Community of Practice: EPIP launched this space in 2021 to provide a rigorous and supportive environment for members who identify as white to deepen their knowledge of antiracism and develop skills and strategies to advance racial equity and inclusive leadership practices in philanthropy, unpack and process the harmful effects of white privilege and white supremacy culture including how both show up within individuals and institutions, and discuss shared challenges and experiences. 

Contact [email protected] with any questions or to express interest in getting involved as a facilitator for future sessions.

EPIP Chapter Updates

EPIP New York Invites You to Happy Hour

Join EPIP New York’s new steering committee and members for a fun evening of networking activities and optional free salsa lessons, happening July 11  from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Time Out Market New York in Brooklyn.

Sign up today!

Join EPIP Chicago for Summertime Music in the Chi

Chicago-area members and those interested in membership are invited to join the new EPIP Chicago Steering Committee for a gathering at Revival Food Hall and the Millenium Park Summer Music Series on July 11. Enjoy food, drinks, and wonderful music as we connect with friends new and old! 

Get the details and sign up here.

EPIP LA Presents “Innovations in Philanthropy: Strategies to Drive Systems Change

Join EPIP LA on July 24 for a panel discussion highlighting how funders across diverse issue areas deploy systems change strategies through policy advocacy, narrative change and cross-sector partnerships. The session will provide a general overview of these topics as well as specific case studies, resources and frameworks for practitioners in philanthropy to consider in formulating holistic approaches to driving long-term impact. A networking reception will be held after the panel. 

Register now.

Sector News & Events

Listen to the Latest Episode of Justice Ain’t Cheap, a Podcast from Funders for LGBTQ Issues

“As the south goes, so goes the nation.” The South has always been a testing ground for right-wing attacks on queer and trans communities. Funders must strategize to provide sustained and proactive support in the South.

This episode, “The Proving Ground,” is about the state of LGBTQ philanthropic organizing in the South. Funders' President Saida Agostini-Bostic joins Shaena Johnson, Out in the South (OTS) Project Director; board member and OTS steering committee member Kelli King-Jackson; and Grantmakers United for Trans Communities (GUTC) Fellow Míchél Macklin of Texas Pride Impact Funds.

These three leaders in the fight for LGBTQ equity in the South join in conversation to discuss just that: the role that philanthropy can and must play in the fight for queer and trans rights in the South.

Listen now.

Register for ABFE's Black Women in Philanthropy Leadership Retreat

In the fast-paced world of philanthropy, it's easy for Black women to find themselves depleted and stretched thin across personal and professional responsibilities.

Black Women in Philanthropy is more than just an event—it's a sacred space dedicated to the nourishment of body, mind, and spirit where the power of community, leadership, and radical rest converge to create an unparalleled experience of renewal and growth.

Join A Philanthropic Partnership for Black Communities August 18 to 20, 2024 for this journey of radical rest, healing, and empowerment. 

Learn more and register today.

Job Board 

Looking for a new opportunity?

The positions below are just the beginning. Check our Job Board for more opportunities from around the country! 

• Director of the Louisiana Justice Fund - Foundation for Louisiana,  Louisiana
• Administrative Assistance - TCC Group, New York, NY
• Program Analyst, Democracy, Rights, and Governance Initiative - The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Los Altos, CA
• Senior Manager, People (Human Resources) - Council on Foundations, Remote
• Senior Communications Associate - Meyer Foundation, Washington, DC
• Program Associate, Gender and Reproductive Equity Grantmaking - Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies,  Washington, DC or New York, NY
• Program Officer, Grantmaking & Capacity Building - Ms. Foundation for Women, Brooklyn, NY

Want to explore the Job Board's filters and special features? Log in to your member account or join EPIP today!

Join Our Community!