Global Fund for Children (GFC) is proud to join The Wellbeing Project’s Ecosystem Network. This partnership is part of GFC’s deepening commitment to fostering wellbeing and collective care to amplify social change with and for children and youth and the community leaders who champion them.

The Wellbeing Project is focused on catalyzing a culture of wellbeing for all change-makers. Its Ecosystem Network consists of 80 global, regional, and local organizations working in the social change field that have an interest in learning and sharing around the topic of wellbeing in order to bring this information back to their organizations and communities.

The wellbeing of children and youth is at the core of GFC’s mission and Theory of Change, and we deeply value the wellbeing of the community leaders and civil society organizations that champion young people. Far too many youth and grassroots leaders face security threats, trauma, financial pressures, and the constant pull to do more. Nurturing the wellbeing of the people who form organizations is integral to shifting inequitable power relations. This is why centering wellbeing is part of GFC’s Commitment to Change in philanthropy and global development.

“Far too often, funders do not recognize wellbeing as an essential ingredient for long-term social change,” said Vanessa Stevens, GFC’s Program Manager for Advocacy and Movement Building. “A deeper focus on the wellbeing of community leaders not only helps prevent burnout, but also fuels collaborative and transformative relationships that create new possibilities. As the world recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, it is a priority for GFC to center wellbeing in our grantmaking and in our relationships with grassroots partner organizations.”

As a funder, GFC intentionally centers wellbeing by, among other strategies:

• Fostering relationships built on trust and mutual learning with a deep care for who our partners are as human beings
• Resisting urgency and perfectionism with partner-centered application and reporting processes
• Acknowledging wellbeing, collective care, and healing as part of organizational development
• Funding opportunities for partners and the children and youth they work with to strengthen wellbeing and mental health
• Integrating wellbeing-focused activities into virtual and in-person convenings
• Finding creative ways to strengthen the wellbeing of GFC team members

“When community and grassroots leaders center their work in wellbeing, their practices and mindset inform the experiences of their teams, community members, and the children and young people they work with,” said Kulsoom Khan, GFC’s Senior Regional Director for Asia.

“The teams at some of our partner organizations that work on especially traumatic issues – such as Center for Awareness Promotion in Nepal, which supports survivors of trafficking and exploitation – have incorporated centering and mindfulness practices into their daily lives to continue developing self-awareness, building resilience, and cultivating social and emotional intelligence,” she added. “These practices have helped them collectively navigate challenging circumstances and continue to empower and support others in their communities.”

GFC is excited to continue this journey in partnership with The Wellbeing Project’s Ecosystem Network.