Where to find us
- Main Office:
123 Slater St.
Ottawa, Canada ON K1P 5H2
Tel. +1 613 408 4091
- Mexico Office:
Tlaxcala No. 178, dep. 402 O
Col. Condesa, Del. Cuauhtémoc
Mexico City, C.P. 06170, Mexico
Find more about our year-long journey
In 2022, Prospera’s fund members alongside the network’s Board and secretariat team, dedicated a full year to collectively build our strategic framework for the next decade.
Prospera’s strategic framework was devised to embody our collective power. It served not only as a profound strategic visioning process but also as an opportunity to explore how to conduct strategic planning for a diverse and complex network like Prospera in a feminist and participatory manner.
Our year-long process had two interrelated goals: first, to chart a strategic path for the next decade, and second, to strengthen the community and health of our network.
Prospera’s members were at the center of the process. Together, we engaged in discussions, shared dreams, and collectively defined our vision. Acknowledging the significance of the process itself, we prioritized care and connection, embraced time and language justice, and integrated mindful practices that nurtured our spirits throughout the process.
The year-long process imparted significant learnings and achievements that underscore the success of this ambitious participatory strategic planning initiative by Prospera:
1. The building of a feminist funding movement: Investing in a collective strategic visioning process that prioritized trust-building and belonging fostered a stronger network committed to moving forward together.
2. A successful member-led approach: Underlined the importance of ensuring the process is led by members, necessitating the creation of a Steering Committee for oversight.
3. Strengthening of Board-Membership connections: Strengthened connections between the board and membership through deep listening and commitment to mutual learning.
4. Inclusiveness through diverse modes of participation: Advocated for creating varied participation avenues (online, in-person, small groups, plenary) to accommodate diverse member preferences.
5. Supportive external facilitation is key: Utilizing a diverse team of external facilitators for the year-long process enriched the design and held a supportive space for discussions.
6. Welcoming disagreement increases trust and engagement: Encouraged embracing disagreement and dissent as signs of genuine involvement and allowed space to work through these differing perspectives.
6. Welcoming disagreement increases trust and engagement: Encouraged embracing disagreement and dissent as signs of genuine involvement and allowed space to work through these differing perspectives.
7. Adherence to feminist principles is fundamental: Stressed staying true to feminist principles, fostering inclusivity, listening, appreciating diverse voices, transparency, and mutual accountability.
8. Transparency and communication are key for trust and participation: Practiced transparency, enhanced communication channels, and promoted robust information flow within Prospera.
9. Infrastructure and processes are fundamental: Highlighted the importance of having robust processes and a dedicated team (Prospera’s Secretariat) to ensure a smooth-running process.
10. Effective hybrid approach –online and in-person: Demonstrated the possibility and effectiveness of conducting a primarily online process while acknowledging the vitality of in-person meetings in infusing new energy and strengthening connections.
11. Built consent and endorsement: Successfully built consent around the strategic vision, which was subsequently endorsed by the entire network.
Prospera is a global political network made up of bold, intersectional, diverse, and autonomous women’s and feminist funds with the mandate to support and accompany movements led by women, girls, trans, intersex, and non-binary people, and collectives.
Prospera and the movements we support work to end the oppressive systems of patriarchy, capitalism, ableism, colonialism, xenophobia, fascism, and racism.
We are a diverse and interconnected network committed to resource justice through our feminist grantmaking as well as our advocacy work. We aim to transform power and shift practices within the global aid and philanthropic ecosystems to redistribute resources to intersectional feminist and women’s movements, particularly to those who are structurally marginalized due to their race, class, gender, caste, ethnicity, sexuality, impairments or other situations of inequalities, primarily in the Global South and East in equitable and socially just ways.
We work for a feminist world where all structures of exclusion, oppression, and inequity are transformed into diversity, inclusion, freedom, equality, and justice. A world where all can live joyful and dignified lives, where democracy and human rights are upheld, and where the planet flourishes along with people.
We believe fiercely in the power of feminist movements to bring this world into being and in the unique role that our funds play in resourcing them toward such an end.
1. Build Collective Power for Influence: Prospera aims to bolster the collective influence and power of its members within the funding ecosystem, directing increased and improved resources toward feminist movements. This involves strategic convenings, the design of effective mechanisms and strategies, and targeted collaboration to establish a shared political agenda, promoting alignment and public leadership as a feminist funding network. It also requires effective communications and narrative shift work emanating from Global South and East philanthropy and movements.
2. Advocate for Funding Shifts: Prospera plans to advocate and exert influence on five key target audiences to shape funding flows in the desired direction. This includes engaging with Global South and East philanthropy, bilateral donors, individual philanthropists, private foundations, and corporations. The strategy involves differentiated advocacy approaches tailored to each audience, leveraging strategic communication, research, storytelling, and positive cases for funding to underscore the transformative impact of women’s and feminist funds on movement building.
3. Strengthen the Prospera Network: Prospera will focus on fortifying and enhancing its network by supporting the resilience of women’s and feminist funds at both individual and collective levels. This involves facilitating alliances, communities of practice, and collaborative efforts among members, exploring areas like resource mobilization, financial resilience, organizational growth, narrative transformation, strategic communications, and feminist leadership. Additionally, the establishment of a pooled funding mechanism for under-resourced members and enhancing connections, collaborations, and learning within the network will be a priority. Prospera will continue to embody its values, emphasizing trust, co-responsibility, transparency, and collective care, guiding its journey in the coming decade.
We are eager to share our learnings with broader communities, and especially with other networks that might find value in participatory processes. Throughout our year-long journey, we learned, adapted, and dared to be ambitious and dream big. We hope that this may serve as an inspiration for others to embark on a similar path.
Our strategic framework process was a journey driven by the Prospera network, thank you to every person from the network who participated in this process, to the Team of Facilitators for designing each step and to every person that was involved in one way or another.
Thank you!
For a comprehensive list of participants and acknowledgments, click here.
Delve into our Strategic Framework process here:
123 Slater St.
Ottawa, Canada ON K1P 5H2
Tel. +1 613 408 4091
Tlaxcala No. 178, dep. 402 O
Col. Condesa, Del. Cuauhtémoc
Mexico City, C.P. 06170, Mexico