Session 5 (In-Person): Rural and Native Nation Leadership in Philanthropy: Wielding Power, Tending to Relationships and Leading Change Differently

This session welcomes:

• Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and/or LGBTQ+ professionals working at MCF member organizations 
• Members of MCF’s new People of Color and LGBTQ+ Community of Practice

Session 5 Overview: Rural and Native Nation Leadership in Philanthropy: Wielding Power, Tending to Relationships and Leading Change Differently  

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For rural communities and Native Nations, connection to place isn’t just geography – it’s identity, ancestry, and a way of understanding the world that shapes how decisions are made and how power is shared. This session makes space to step back and explore, learn and celebrate rural and indigenous leadership approaches that offer alternatives to dominant paradigms and reconnect us to relational ways of wielding influence, building community, and creating change.

If we’re not careful, in philanthropy, we can operate within leadership frameworks that prioritize individual achievement, linear progress, and concentrated decision-making power. These approaches can inadvertently perpetuate the power imbalances we seek to address through our work. Rather than offering simple solutions, this session invites us to grapple with complex questions about how different rural and indigenous ways of knowing might inform—and complicate—our journey for being and becoming ourselves as people of color and/or LGBTQ+ professionals in philanthropy.

Expanding Our Perspective

Together, we’ll explore:

• Power as Relationship Rather Than Position: What tensions emerge when we try to implement collective decision-making within hierarchical philanthropic structures? How do sovereignty-centered approaches challenge conventional grantmaking relationships? 
• Relationship-Tending as Core Practice: How might centering kinship networks and intergenerational wisdom reshape our understanding of accountability in philanthropy? What happens when relationship-building timelines conflict with organizational deadlines? 
• Patience and Cyclical Thinking for Leading Change: How do we navigate between embracing longer timeframes and meeting immediate community needs? What does community accountability look like when it conflicts with institutional expectations? 

Pre-Session Reflection Questions:

• What leadership lessons from your own cultural or community background have shaped your approach to your journey in philanthropy? Where do these create tension with institutional expectations?
• How does your connection to place (whether geographic, cultural, or spiritual) influence how you make decisions and use power in your professional role? When has this created conflict?
• To whom or what do you feel the deepest sense of accountability when your professional actions impact community well-being? How do you navigate competing accountabilities?

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We’re grateful to have Tuleah Palmer, Carly Bad Heart Bull, Tony LookingElk, Benya Kraus and Wakínyan LaPointe to help set the context for our collective exchange of experiences and perspectives by sharing their reactions to this session and to our 2025 theme - Different Voices, Shared Journey: leadership without easy answers.

Summary Runsheet

Optional Pre-Reads

• Indigenous Leadership: Native Narratives on Building Strong Communities Edited by Carolyn Kenny and Tina Ngaroimata Fraser 
• Sand Talk: How Indigenous Thinking Can Save the World by Tyson Yunkaporta
• Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer

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This session is designed by and for the People of Color and LGBTQ+ Community of Practice. It is part of their 2025 Series “Different Voices, Shared Journey: Leadership Without Easy Answers”.

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Questions or Accessibility Needs?

Please contact Awale (Wally) Osman at [email protected] with any questions about the program or registration process.