Listening in Practice

Check out these stories, tools, events, and other resources to help turn your commitment to listening into action. Subscribe to stay up to date.
Six young people stop to pose for a phot at a garden planting

‘Right Now Requires Something Different:’ Inside Sewall Foundation’s Shift in Who Decides

When the Focus Shifts from Risk to Trust: A Conversation with Sewall Foundation Board Members

A group of people sit around a campfire talking and roasting marshmallows during the daytime

Listening to Community When the Community Is Your Own: A Conversation with Sewall Foundation Community Partners

four people sit in a circle in the forest

Resourcing Solutions from the Community: Vamos Outdoors Project and Mount Baker, the Foundation Learning to Listen

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Escaping the ‘Broken Record’ of Philanthropic Listening: A Conversation with Vamos Outdoors Project

What New Mexico Is Teaching Us About Funder Listening

New webinar: Community-Led Governance: Expanding Participation to Boards

Thurs., Oct. 22, 1:00 pm ET
Join us and our co-host from the Participatory Grantmaking Community to talk about what it would look like if funders shifted power to impacted communities through governance — and how we can get there! With special guest Chi-Ante Singletary from the Cypress Fund, and highlights from our latest tool, Community on Board.

national center for family philanthropy

Come to our breakfast reception at the 2026 National Forum on Family Philanthropy

Thursday, Nov. 5, 8:00 – 9:00 am
Join us for a hearty breakfast and heart-felt discussion about ways funders can listen to shift power to impacted communities.
You’re also invited to our session on foundation governance later the same morning, and then to see our Lead Ambassador at work moderating the lunch plenary!

national center for family philanthropy

Join our session at the 2026 National Forum on Family Philanthropy

Thursday, Nov. 5, 10:30 am – 12:00 pm

“Practices for Centering Community Voice and Leadership in the Boardroom” with L2C Lead Ambassador Melinda Tuan.
Drawing from our new resource, Community on Board: A Tool for Shifting Power through Foundation Governance, this session will engage participants in self-reflection, discussion, and trying on practices that support community-driven governance.

national center for family philanthropy

Join us at the 2026 National Forum on Family Philanthropy’s Lunch Plenary

Thursday, Nov. 5, 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm

Enjoy lunch and a stimulating plenary, “Shifting Mindsets to Shift Practices,” moderated by L2C Lead Ambassador Melinda Tuan and featuring Hali Lee, Radiant Strategies, Santhosh Ramdoss, Gary Community Ventures, and June Wilson, Central Insights & Alliance for Relational Repair & Mutuality, talking about what it takes to change how philanthropy thinks and acts.

Listen to Community wave graphic

Welcome to Listen to Community — Let’s get to work!

November 10, 2026
2:00 to 3:00 pm ET

Join this free, interactive webinar to find out how Listen to Community can support your foundation’s efforts to listen in ways that can build community power — whether you are just getting started or are eager to deepen your practice.

Bring your questions and get ready to connect with peers working on their listening, too!

Listen to Community Events

A Deep Dive with Listen to Community: What We Mean by Community

Wednesday, December 2
2:00 – 3:00 p.m. ET

Cover of the Foundation Review special issue on a yellow background.

Five Practical Steps for Building a Listening Practice

Cover of the Foundation Review special issue on a pink background.

Listening for Real: Mindsets That Promote Practices to Transform Philanthropy

Why Listening to Community is Essential in 2026 

A group of people in a circle hold string that makes a criss-crossing pattern across the circle

From Givers to Learners: How One Foundation Transformed Its Listening Practice

two dozen people who work at nonprofits supported by the Haas Fund's Endeavor Fund pose for a photo on a staircase

In Conversation: What Listening Looks Like at Two Family Foundations

Community on Board toolkit graphic

Tool Spotlight: Learn How to Bring Impacted Community Members on Board

Participatory Philanthropy Toolkit logo

Tool Spotlight: Discover the Participatory Philanthropy Toolkit

Funder Listening Action Menu Tools and Resources to Shift Power to Communities

Tool Spotlight: Explore the Funder Listening Action Menu

Funder Listening Assessment Tool

Tool Spotlight: Take the Funder Listening Assessment

Listening in this Moment: A Guide for Funders

A Funders’ Guide to Listening in This Moment

Effective Governance: Lessons from Philanthropy

Effective Governance: Lessons from Philanthropy

Glen Galaich at the microphone for an author talk at Shared Insight's 2026 gathering

From a Mindset of Control to Public Stewardship: Centering Community, Moving the Money

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