The Calculus of Leaving: How Late Grant Decisions Create Impact Debts in Community

Funders and nonprofits, we don’t hold ourselves or each other responsible for leaving communities well — for disengaging with the same care we purport to give to engaging.

Funding decisions that come too late for good endings creates an impact debt of broken trust and promises; this debt accrues interest out of sight of those who created it.

A lot of what ails us is hard to fix. This, however, is not. So let’s fix it. Here’s how.