Recapping our time at the SHIFT Conference
In September, members of the Workforce Matters team joined hundreds of workforce leaders and practitioners in Memphis, Tennessee to participate in the SHIFT Conference hosted by the National Fund for Workforce Solutions (NFWS). Together with peers from around the country, we laughed, danced, learned and deepened our understanding of best practices and emerging topics in Workforce Development. While at SHIFT, Workforce Matters’ project lead Natasha K. Hale and steering committee members Lauren King of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and Kwelin Waller of the American Institutes for Research Opportunity Fund had an opportunity to highlight the Workforce Grantmaking in Native Nations and Communities (WGNNC), an initiative of Workforce Matters that is advised by Native leaders and funders.
Launched in 2023, WGNNC seeks to strengthen workforce-focused organizations, programs, and initiatives led by and for Native Nations and communities (collectively referred to as Indian Country); and shift/influence thinking and behaviors of partners (funders, federal and state policymakers and agencies, and researchers) so that they can effectively support Indian Country. In the Spring of 2024, WGNNC granted award funding to eight (8) organizations to implement initiatives that center the needs, lived experiences, and interests of workers and learners in Native nations and communities.
In their panel, Natasha, Lauren and Kwelin provided an overview of the initiative, emphasizing why this work is important to the field of workforce development broadly and to Native Nations and communities specifically.
Offering their unique perspectives as funders, Lauren and Kwelin shared what they learned through this initiative and through their partnership with Native and Tribal leaders who are leading workforce efforts in their communities.
For Lauren it was important to better understand the sovereignty of the organizations participating in the fund, be mindful of the experience that Native Americans have had with settler philanthropy1 and explore a more nuanced approach to grantmaking that is culturally competent.
Kweilin emphasized the importance of moving beyond a narrow, Westernized approach to workforce development. Instead, she advocates for a more holistic perspective—one that redefines prosperity and focuses on the well-being of entire communities.
Natasha highlighted the process and approach the team took to recruit Native leaders in Indian Country that represented elected Native leaders, on the ground workforce practitioners, and community grassroots leaders. She shared the intent behind the process to develop a culturally competent process that honored the vision of Native Nations and honored cultural economies.
As a national network of grantmakers and funders, Workforce Matters is committed to creating opportunities for our members to work together through initiatives like Workforce Grantmaking in Native Nations and Communities where they can co-invest, learn and advance their commitment to equity individually and collectively. The WGNNC is one example of the ways our members come together to support people and communities who for too long have been excluded from opportunities to pursue their highest potentials. Sharing our efforts and learnings with workforce professionals at conferences like SHIFT gives us the opportunity to influence others, shift behaviors, and shape the field of workforce development to realize its highest good, truly being a vehicle for systemic and structural change, for all communities.
