Vanessa Stevens (she/her)
Trust-Based Philanthropy Project
Washington, D.C.
LinkedIn
Contact: vanessahstevens@gmail.com
Most often works with: Family Foundations, Private Foundations, Community Foundations, Corporate Foundations, Intermediary Grantmaking Organizations, Pooled Fund/Donor Circle, Philanthropy Serving Organizations
Challenges most often addressed:
Vanessa most frequently supports funders, donor collaboratives, and funder networks that are working to align their day-to-day practices with trust-based and participatory values.
She helps organizations redesign grantmaking, strengthen support beyond the check, deepen relationships with community partners, explore participatory approaches, and build learning cultures that inform strategy and decision-making.
Vanessa Stevens is a philanthropic advisor, facilitator, and strategist with nearly 20 years of experience across philanthropy, nonprofit leadership, and global development. She works with foundations, donor collaboratives, and funder networks in the U.S. and globally to strengthen learning cultures, build effective collaborations, and advance trust-based, participatory, and community-centered grantmaking.
Most recently, she served as Director of Innovation and Influencing at Global Fund for Children, where she shaped grantmaking strategies and field-building to strengthen trust-based partnerships and participatory grantmaking with community- and youth-led organizations.
Her perspective is informed by experience on both sides of the funding relationship, including earlier leadership roles within community-based and nonprofit organizations. She brings expertise across children’s rights, migration, gender-based violence, youth leadership, civic participation, and community-led development, and is committed to helping funders build more equitable, accountable, and community-centered partnerships.
