Worldwide Initiatives for Grantmaker Support

WINGS is a network of 130 philanthropy associations, networks, academic institutions, support organizations, and funders, in 45 countries around the world whose purpose is to strengthen, promote and provide leadership on the development of philanthropy and social investment.

WINGS as a membership organization represents the transition from top-down/expert-led models to a democratic, distributed peer-learning model that creates and shares knowledge in a horizontal manner.

Within the ecosystem it works to promote, WINGS seeks to empower its members in particular, and the field of philanthropy support in general, through better interconnections and synergies, collectively created knowledge, impact evaluation and data about the field, transparency and good governance, collaboration, and development of common practice.

In addition to connecting the field and responding strategically to its needs, WINGS strives to usher in a new era by gaining more visibility and reach for philanthropy support organizations. Strengthening its own voice and capacity to advocate by expanding its scope to represent all the actors involved in the promotion of philanthropy, including individual giving and social investment.

Mission

Unlock philanthropy’s potential by strengthening its ecosystem of support organizations

WINGS works to catalyze, accelerate, connect and influence the field of philanthropy support in order to promote and develop philanthropy and contribute to a more effective and diverse civil society.

Pursuing this mission through activities such as: producing and disseminating knowledge and data about the field of philanthropy in order to build the capacity of philanthropy actors, new and old; nurturing an interconnected network by promoting knowledge dissemination, joint projects, and regular exchange among WINGS members; expanding and diversifying the WINGS network to reflect the contemporary ecosystem; and building alliances with other civil society networks and key actors in the field such as the academic community, development actors, the private sector and funders interested in strategically engaging with the field of philanthropy.