Reflections from Executive Director Aleyamma Mathew
As we look back on the past 5 years of CFF, we’re reflecting a lot on the how and why of our work.
The “why” is made clear every day when we hear story after story of the impact of violence on our communities. The “how” is something that we are constantly shaping over time, and shows up in many aspects of our approach as an intermediary fund. When describing CFF we often say we are a “pooled intermediary feminist fund,” but we wanted to take a moment to break down those labels and how they shape our work.
Being a pooled fund means we bring together diverse funders of different types and sizes, with different missions and entry points, toward a common purpose: resourcing the movement to end violence. Being an intermediary means we serve as a bridge, especially between donors and movements. And being feminist means we constantly engage with questions of power at every level.
This month, we’ve been living those labels in different ways.
First, we shared with you that we recently launched our first movement-centered Advisory Council.
The structure of this Council seeks to strengthen our role as an intermediary and reflects our feminist values by bringing movement leaders into positions of influence alongside funders.
Two weeks ago, I participated in the Ford Foundation’s Free Future 2024 gathering, where I spoke alongside two of our Advisory Committee members: donor partner Celiné Justice from Pivotal Ventures and grantee partner Mónica Ramírez from Justice for Migrant Women.
“It has been such an important and refreshing change over the last six years or so to be able to find partners in philanthropy who want to try to figure out how we can work together to try to achieve our goals,” shared Mónica. “We’re recognizing the power dynamics that exist between philanthropy and organizations doing the work, but not getting stuck there.” Mónica’s reflections align with my own, and our broader commitment to our intermediary feminist approach to this work.
Lastly, I also joined a commemoration of the 30th Anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act at the White House.
Through the years, our grantee partners have continued to hold a vision of safety that both reflects VAWA, and reaches beyond it.
It was an honor to be alongside several CFF grantee partners and so many other longtime survivor leaders — those who have been building expertise and infrastructure in this movement for decades.
Thank you to my team, our partners, and grantees for joining me in this work. It’s a privilege to be in this role and to walk alongside all of you in our work toward a safe and just future for all.
