Giving Voice & Building Momentum for Place-Based Systems Change in Arts & Culture
Invitational Convening
June 5 - 6, 2025 | Oakland, CA
Venue Information
The California Endowment, Oakland | 1111 Broadway, Oakland, CA
Questions about accessibility? Email eartrydiouf@sff.org.
Parking: Metered street and lot parking available
Thursday, June 5
9:00–9:30 am • Breakfast / Check in
On Display: The Art of Belonging: Asian American Stories of Diaspora and Community Care by the Cut Fruit Collective
9:30 am • Welcome and Grounding Remarks
Esailama G. Artry-Diouf, San Francisco Foundation; Adam Fong, Hewlett Foundation; Amy Chou, Grants for the Arts; Debrah Giles, East Bay Community Foundation; Jess Solomon, Facilitator
10:00am • Keynote: The Big Picture & Investing in Ground Work for Systems Change
Angie Kim, Center for Cultural Innovation
10:30am - 11:45 am • Navigating Policy Changes Impacting Grantees, Funders, and Nonprofit Organizations
Ted Russell, California for the Arts; Tracy Hudak, California for the Arts; Rick Noguchi, California Humanities; Ani Rivera, Galleria de la Raza/Studio 24
11:45am • Short Film
Watsonville Film Festival
12:00–12:45 pm • Lunch
1:00–2:00 pm • Legal Protections: Physical and Cyber Safety and Security
Sean Dorsey, Fresh Meat ; Karla Ortiz, Artist; Annie Lee, Chinese for Affirmative Action
2:00pm - 2:15pm • Coffee Break
2:15–3:30 pm • Strengthening Community - Driven Models and Cross-Sector Collaboration
Vanessa Whang, Cultural Strategy Advisor; Robert Smith III, Surdna Foundation; Carolyn Johnson, Black Cultural Zone; Tommy Wong, Civic Design Studio; Nadine Rambeau, East Palo Alto Center
3:45–4:15 pm • Reflections
4:30 • Close
5:00–6:30 pm • Reception
Friday, June 6
BACFE Members and Funding Partners Only.
9:00–9:30 am • Breakfast / Check in
On Display: The Art of Belonging: Asian American Stories of Diaspora and Community Care by the Cut Fruit Collective
9:30 am • Welcome and Grounding Remarks
Esailama G. Artry-Diouf, San Francisco Foundation; Adam Fong, Hewlett Foundation; Amy Chou, Grants for the Arts; Debrah Giles, East Bay Community Foundation; Jess Solomon, Facilitator
9:45am • Strengthening Community - Driven Models and Cross-Sector Collaboration (continued)
Judith Bell, San Francisco Foundation - Funders Responding to the Moment: Regional, Statewide and National Efforts
10:15am - 11:45 am • Reflection
Jess Solomon, BACFE Facilitator
11:45am - 12:15 • Next Steps & Inspired Action
Esailama G. Artry-Diouf, San Francisco Foundation; Adam Fong, Hewlett Foundation; Amy Chou, Grants for the Arts; Debrah Giles, East Bay Community Foundation
12:30pm - 1:30pm • Lunch and Close
DOCUMENTATION & SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY
This gathering is a space for open, honest exchange, and we’re committed to protecting that. This event will not be recorded. If you prefer not to be photographed or shared on social media, red dot stickers will be available for your lanyard at check-in. We ask that attendees refrain from recording videos on their phones, and that no quotes from speakers or participants be shared without their explicit permission. Thank you for helping us create a space rooted in care, trust, and respect!
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The convening is organized by Bay Area Culture Funders for Equity (BACFE) with generous support from our member organizations and partners. We extend our deep gratitude to the 2024 BACFE grantee partners, the Steering Committee, and Art in Praxis for their guidance, leadership, and collaborative spirit in shaping this gathering.
ABOUT BACFE
Bay Area Culture Funders for Equity (BACFE) began in 2020, when PolicyLink convened a cross-section of philanthropic organizations to explore the potential of a regional funders collaborative focused on arts, culture, and equity. Together, participants asked a powerful question: What could we achieve if we aligned our efforts to not only address racial disparities within the arts and culture sector, but also to drive systems change in areas like land use, economic development, and the criminal legal system—through the lens of arts and culture?
This inquiry led to the co-creation of a shared guiding vision—BACFE’s North Star Statement:
“We commit to amplifying the voices, power, arts, and cultures of people of color and other vulnerable communities in the Bay Area, particularly those living at or near poverty, to advance equitable community well-being.”
In 2022, Art in Praxis joined as a facilitation and design partner to support the development of the collaborative’s structure, purpose, and learning journey. Over the course of the year, 17 funders aligned around a shared commitment to equity-focused, place-based cultural support.
In 2023, BACFE launched its first pilot grantmaking program, awarding $1.2 million in unrestricted support to 30 under-resourced cultural workers, organizers, and arts organizations across the region. The process was intentionally low-barrier and community-informed—an early demonstration of what values-aligned, trust-based philanthropy can look like in action.
Throughout 2023–2024, BACFE hosted a series of Learning Exchanges that brought together funders and grantee partners to deepen relationships, share critical insights, and explore pathways toward more coordinated, community-rooted support for cultural ecosystems in the Bay Area.