For philanthropy to advance equity in all communities, especially low-income communities and communities of color, it needs to be able to understand the demographics of the organizations being funded (and declined), the people being served, and the communities impacted. That data should be used to assess practices and drive decision making.

PEAK Grantmaking is working to better understand and build the capacity of grantmakers for collecting and utilizing demographic data as part of their grantmaking. Our work is focused on answering four key questions:

• What demographic data are grantmakers collecting and why?
• How are they collecting these demographic data?
• How is demographic data being used and interpreted?
• How can funders use demographic data to inform their work?

With the help of Kelly Brown, former executive director of the D5 Coalition, and an advisory committee of grantmakers, we have completed an expansive survey, interviews with grantmakers, and field research on these four questions.

Publication date: July 2018

Grants Management Professional Competency Model

Cross-Cutting Competencies

• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: Promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in grantmaking practices.