JEDI in our Fundraising

OUR PAST

In the past, many of our fundraising materials overrepresented children of color, positioned IslandWood and our donors as saviors, and reinforced negative stereotypes. A 2017 external review of our communications with the University of Washington’s Center for Communication, Difference, and Equity and feedback from IslandWood graduate students made clear that we were causing harm to the very people we were seeking to serve. With this clarity, we worked with our communications team to change the course of our marketing, accurately representing, both in words and visuals, who our work seeks to serve, and why.

WHERE WE ARE NOW

  • We use the Inclusive Communications Guidelines developed by our communications team to ensure that our fundraising communications are respectful, accurate, and transparent about who we serve and why.
  • The majority of our stewardship events are open to all donors, regardless of gift amount. This includes open trail days on our campus and annual gratitude events.
  • We call or handwrite a note to all donors to thank them for their gifts, regardless of gift amount.
  • In the past, our annual fundraising event, Dinner in the Woods, carried a large ticket price. In 2021, via a virtual event, the event was free and we offered no-cost events in the week leading up to Dinner in the Woods with our first-ever Community Week. Dinner in the Woods also provided closed captioning for viewers who are hearing impaired.
  • We highlight donors of all kinds on our blog and in our newsletters.
  • We often field requests from other organizations in the environmental education space and are as transparent as possible, providing as much information as we can in an effort to support other organizations doing this important work.

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