Member Survey Snapshot: Leading to Meet the Moment

MAY 2025

INTRODUCTION

Around the world, we are witnessing increasing restrictions on freedom of expression, growing political and economic polarization, and deepening threats to the very systems that uphold human rights and gender equity. These shifts are not abstract they are reshaping the lives, futures, and freedoms of millions of women and girls.

To better understand how our members are rising to meet the challenge, we conducted a rapid response survey that included questions about how they are thinking about giving both in the immediate and long-term, how their grantees have been impacted and what they most need, whether their funding strategies are shifting, and the role WMM is playing.

Unsurprisingly, we found that WMM members are leading at this moment with urgency and ambition. There is a remarkable unity of concern among members, all of whom are driving innovation through bold, adaptive philanthropy. Our survey reveals a membership that is laser-focused on equipping their grantees with the tools, connections, and support needed to meet their urgent needs during an unprecedented political moment, and an unwavering commitment to our collective mission of driving forward sustained transformational change.

WMM members are stepping up, giving more and faster, and funding new causes and issues. They are activating their powerful networks, partnering through strategic collaboration, and scaling their impact. They are also leaning into the WMM network, drawing support and hope from one another, with a deep understanding that this kind of rapid response is possible because of the trust and community we’ve built together.

It’s remarkable to see how far we’ve come. This is not the first challenge to gender equality, and it won’t be the last. But as a movement, we’re stronger, more experienced, and better prepared today. The truth is that the challenges are too great for any one philanthropist or sector to tackle alone, but communities like ours enable donors to realize exponential reach and impact. It is during inflection points like this when the power of our WMM community is undeniable.

KEY FINDINGS

1. Universal Recognition of Urgency

Our members understand that gender equality is not only a moral imperative it is central to building more just, prosperous, and resilient societies. Everyone we heard from (100%) expressed concern about the impact of the current political climate on their grantees, with a strong majority (74%) deeply worried. This clearly signals urgency and underscores the importance of meeting the moment head-on. As we’ve previously noted, traditional funding streams often fall short of addressing root causes or responding with the speed and scale required—this is where our community is stepping up to lead.

2. Strategic Response to Systemic Disruption

The widespread negative impacts facing member grantees underscore why philanthropic capital must be the first to respond when other forms of support are unwilling or unable to engage. Across the board, our members report that their grantees are under strain. The most urgent concern is around funding as most (80%) face shrinking budgets or full cuts to funding. More than half have reduced staff (51%) and 46% are facing challenges to maintain DEI programs. Security, both physical and digital, is an emerging worry (31%), and travel limitations continue to affect connection and momentum for nearly a third. Not one member reported an increase in funding.

3.Leadership and Adaptability

A significant majority (72%) report that recent executive orders and policies have impacted their philanthropy. Rather than retreating, our members are demonstrating how they confidently lead in times of crisis, and their readiness to act in this moment. For many, this has meant a deeper focus: increased attention to specific issues, a shift to more local giving, efforts to fill funding gaps, and a recalibration of strategy to target urgent needs. This has also meant supporting each other, as one member reflected: "we need to be a support system for our members as we navigate this uncertain time with our grantees.” Members are stepping into their leadership with a clear-eyed mission and mandate to actively fundraise and advocate for gender equality, proof that they are not just committed to the cause, but ready to act to make a difference at a time when it matters most.

For example, our survey showed that our members are expanding beyond traditional funding models, and adapting their giving to respond to the moment. The majority (82%) are actively fundraising to fill funding gaps, while 27% are funding employee self-care initiatives, human resources assistance (18%) and legal aid (9%). In other words, they got curious and listened to what their grantees most needed, and acted with urgency to fill those gaps, a swiftness made possible by their already deep and intentional relationships. “We’ve recalibrated our strategy and decided to focus our resources and efforts on deepening our support to current grantees most affected by the recent changes,” one member reported. Another said she is “giving out short-term ‘emergency’ dollars rather than well thought out support for sustainable programs,” and another reported that she “bought buildings for two nonprofits that lost their federal funding for rent.”

They are also leading in a way that is uniquely rooted in women’s philanthropic practice: through trust, support, and partnership. We know from past experience that WMM members not only give more than their peers but do so with greater speed, collaboration and confidence. They are proving that again now.

4. Scaling Giving Through Increased Investment

Despite the challenging circumstances, our members are embodying the principle that philanthropy can fund new ideas and support movements others won't. Overall, our members are stepping up to face the challenge with at least 54% planning to increase their giving over the next 12 months, and many reporting their plan to accelerate their grantmaking timetable. Remarkably, no respondents plan to decrease giving, demonstrating that our community understands this moment requires scaling up, not pulling back. As one member emphasized, this is about "aligning powerful women to make a difference."

5. Embracing Risk and Innovation

Two-thirds of members are considering supporting new causes they haven't previously funded, embracing risk and innovation, and demonstrating a willingness to give boldly in the spaces where funding is most needed. One member said she is “laser-focused on protecting and bolstering the LGBTQ+ community” and another reported she shifted funding to “local BIPOC and LGBTQ-focused orgs that were in dire need who we had not already been supporting.”

Other areas of portfolio expansion include legal aid, international relations, anticorruption efforts, and film and media. For example, several members mentioned new support for democracy and legal defense organizations, and others cited new money for nonprofits impacted by foreign aid cuts, immigration and ‘threatened communities.” One mentioned “funding more research since NIH funding has declined”, another said she was newly supporting NPR and another, local food banks. This diversification demonstrates how our members are investing in long-term solutions while also responding to immediate needs, and speaks to our mission of inspiring members to commit bigger and bolder funds to advance gender equality.

6. Collective Action Through Stronger Connection

In this complex and uncertain moment, members are leaning into the community, underscoring the power and potential of WMM to cultivate strategic collaboration, foster bold leadership and facilitate effective response to crises. One member described the community as a place for “moral support” and emphasized WMM’s role in creating space for “brainstorming about how to be more effective personally and collectively.” Half say they want more educational programs and briefings, while significant portions would like enhanced peer connections (42%) and access to resources (42%). As one member noted, there's a need for "creating spaces for people to connect and share from the heart about how all this is impacting us and support one another in discerning what is each of ours to do." One-third seek external responsive funds, and 25% want pooled funding opportunities clear indicators of our community's commitment to scaling collective impact.

Leading the Charge Forward

This survey reveals members who are leading with bold, adaptive philanthropy in this critical moment. The unanimous concern, coupled with increased giving and expanded support services, demonstrates both the severity of current challenges and the power of philanthropic leadership and community in response.

Our members understand that philanthropic capital is uniquely positioned to fuel innovation, take risks, and invest in long-term, systemic solutions and they are proving it through their actions, described by one member as “bold, but strategic.” The desire for even more peer connection, education, and collective funding mechanisms reflects our community's recognition of leading not just through individual giving, but through the strategic collaboration and powerful networks that define WMM. This unique combination of a strong and connected peer network and community alongside WMM’s work to support our members’ philanthropic leadership journeys is proving to be the way forward.

MEMBER SURVEY SNAPSHOT

Q1. How concerned, if at all, are you about the impact of the current political climate on your grantees?

SomewhatConcerned

VeryConcerned

MEMBER SURVEY SNAPSHOT

Q2. How, if at all, have your grantees been impacted by the administration’s policies?

ChallengesinmaintainingDEIprograms

Threatstodigitalorphysicalsecurity

Reduconinstaff

Reducon/lossofprograms

MEMBER SURVEY SNAPSHOT

Q3. To what extent have recent Executive Orders and policies impacted your philanthropy?

MEMBER SURVEY SNAPSHOT

Q4. In the next 12 months, are you planning to: 0%

Increaseyourgivingsignificantly Increaseslightly

Maintaincurrentlevels

Decreasegiving

MEMBER SURVEY SNAPSHOT

Q5. How else are you supporting your grantees?

Human resources support Legal aid

Funding employee self care

Fundraising to fill gaps in funding

Communicating any potential shifts in your grant-making

Unsure

MEMBER SURVEY SNAPSHOT

Q6. Are you considering giving to causes you haven’t supported in the past? Yes

METHODOLOGY

This report synthesizes data across the identified focus areas to generate actionable insights for WMM’s ongoing and future initiatives. The primary data source is a comprehensive member survey conducted over a three-week period in May, achieving a response rate of 37% among active members. This survey was designed to capture members’ experiences and perspectives during a period characterized by uncertainty and global funding disruptions.