Social Innovation Forum
Dear Friends,
We celebrate 2024 as a year of transition as SIF moves into its 21st year and welcomes its second Executive Director. In this report, we are pleased to share highlights of the year’s wonderful accomplishments, as well as a preview of our future plans.
Our theme is “Hope in Action,” a quality that animates our work and that of the incredible Social Innovators. They show hope by empowering youth, advocating for community gardens, supporting creative expression as resistance, and much more.
Among the year’s exciting activities, we gave new nonprofit executive directors space for mentorship and peer support through ElevatED; published Shifting Power, sharing findings from our pilot participatory philanthropy track partnerships of 2021 and 2022; continued our work in CORE, a national peer network of place-based intermediaries; and of course, witnessed inspiring organizational presentations at the Social Innovator Showcase.
SIF will continue to innovate as we move forward — that’s our name and practice. This process acknowledges and honors all that the organization has learned and the community that we have built across the sector while simultaneously being aware of the ever-changing landscape of community needs. As the new Executive Director, I am truly appreciative of the warm welcome I have received as I joined the organization to carry our work forward.
And as the Chair of the Board, I honor all of you who have supported us this past year, given us space to stretch and evolve, and delighted in our introduction of Wyona as our new leader. Since her very first day on January 2nd, you have not only embraced her with open arms but also linked arms with her in the work at hand.
As you will see in the pages of this report, this is collective work and would not be possible without the organizations, leaders and funders who are essential to our work. SIF needs champions and cheerleaders to ensure our community continues to grow broadly and deeply so we can fulfill our mission.
Sincerely,
Julia Satti Cosentino, Board Chair
Wyona Lynch-McWhite, Executive Director