Funders can help fuel momentum in Indigenous communities, such as buffalo restoration on the Wolak̇ota Buffalo Range with Sicangu Co, the construction of new schools and heritage centers, and revitalization of languages and cultural practices (our partners are reviving 20+ Indigenous languages!).

In Better Way’s collaboration with Indigenous partners, we continue to fine-tune the materials that guide us, sharing them with interested funders as we evolve this work.

Annual Board Learning Plan

Grantmaking Criteria

Site Observation

Partnership Lifecycle
(We commit to 9-year partnerships)

At the heart of each is the power of partnership—we can do more together. In this spirit, we are engaging other funders to help unlock more capital for Indigenous communities, as they continue impressive strides toward self-determination and sovereignty.

Our Grantmaking Approach

In our focused grantmaking in Indigenous communities, we engage grantees in nine-year partnerships (see our partnership framework), offer technical assistance, use partner-driven success measures and evaluation, and create shared learning opportunities.

The latter includes our comprehensive and carefully curated site visits. We invite other foundations to review and use our site observation guide, which we modified from a Wildflower Foundation resource used when we went on a tour of a Wildflower School.

As we strive to be a responsive and authentic ally, we prioritize learning—and unlearning—about Indigenous cultures, languages, and ways of knowing. We create an annual learning plan for our staff and board that includes our own efforts and partner engagement.

Listening to partners and ecosystem experts is key. Our shift to impact investing stemmed from conversations with Kathleen Simpson, CEO of The Russell Family Foundation, and the concept of “total resource activation” she promotes. Today, how and where Better Way invests our endowment is as important as our grantmaking. 

Partnership Criteria

Better Way prioritizes Indigenous-led nonprofits or Tribal entities that serve children and families and considers:

Strategic direction:
new program, direction, or strategy for the organization; expanding our national reach or filling a gap in a region

Ecosystem alignment:
potential for coordinated funding and support

Long-term collaboration:
potential for sustained partnerships and integration with larger community efforts

Programmatic alignment:
effectively fulfills at least one or more Better Way priority, such as language revitalization, talent development, PreK transitions, Truth & Healing, and/or systems change or thought leadership

Sustainability & dependency:
extent of reliance on Better Way funding, organization budget, and financial health

Long-term collaboration:
potential for sustained partnerships and integration with larger community efforts

Geography:
operates in an area not currently receiving Better Way funding, prioritizing places where access to philanthropic and/or public funding is a challenge  

Design & innovation:
development of new systems or approaches that strengthen self-determination and sovereignty

Leadership and community response and relationships:
origins and drivers of the work, leadership dynamics, and connection to Tribal governance

Measurable outcomes: articulated by partners, outlining what success and impact means to them

Mobilizing funders to support Indigenous communities

Better Way partners like Saad K’idilyé and other Indigenous initiatives are inspiring funders with their impact and momentum. While we are a relatively small foundation, we helped mobilize $4M in new or deeper funding in 2025 alone.

CALL OUT

Mobilizing funders for Saad K’idilyé and beyond

The Diné phrase—Saad K’idilyé—translates to “The Planting of the Language Seed,” a fitting name for the first Diné language nest immersion program serving families and children, prenatal to Pre-K. Many Saad K’idilyé parents and caretakers did not learn Diné growing up. One remembers adults gossiping in Diné—so she and the other Navajo children would not understand. Now, her son does the same with his grandmother!

With 7,500-9,000 hours of immersion in the first five years, children at Saad K’idilyé—a Better Way partner—are becoming first-language Diné speakers. In January 2026, Better Way and W.K. Kellogg Foundation hosted a funder dinner, introducing the 30 attendees to the Diné language nest. Two months later, Saad K’idilyé received a first-time $25,000 grant from a Donor Advised Fund.

Join our funder
mobilization effort

 

When less than 0.5% of U.S. philanthropic dollars support Native-led organizations, there is a significant opportunity to do more—together. We are committed to boosting that number—and we invite you to join us.

 

Our next event—the Santa Fe Funder Gathering—is an intentionally small, immersive gathering during the 104th Annual Santa Fe Indian Market (August 13-15). Designed to mobilize foundations to start or deepen their support of Indigenous communities, the event brings attendees into a rich learning environment with leading Native voices across food sovereignty, arts and culture, education, impact investing, and more—pairing learning with action.

 

Ways to get involved

Attend one of our funder gatherings: We host several events per year, ranging from small evening gatherings over dinner to multi-day immersion learning experiences.

Meet with our executive director: Better Way’s executive director, Nicholas Banovetz, regularly connects with foundation leaders interested in investing in Indigenous communities.

Subscribe to our LinkedIn newsletter: Learn about the momentum happening in Indigenous communities through our partner stories and funder mobilization efforts. 

CALL OUT

The Nonprofit Quarterly article, ‘Can Non-Native Funders Embrace a Native Worldview?,’ featured the Better Way Foundation and our approach

2026 Board Learning Plan

Our annual learning plan outlines opportunities to dive deeper into Indigenous ways of knowing and best practices in Programs, Finance & Investment, and Governance/operations. 

We also explore writing and films by Indigenous creators and examine the art of storytelling in general to build our understanding of community/culture. Below is a sample of an annual learning plan. We also host board retreats annually at a partner site and include immersive experiences to learn from Indigenous leaders in topics such as food sovereignty, cultural practices, Truth and Healing, language revitalization, and more. We also invite board members to reflect on the experiences and recap our learning activities for the year:

Program

Explore benefits & drawbacks of scaling & replicating curriculum & materials for Indigenous Early Childhood Development & American Indian Catholic Schools Network schools (What does scaling and replication look like in the context of Indigenous education?)

Governance/operations

TBD regarding strengthening links between committees and Board – exploring best practices with the MN Council on Foundations

Monitor updates on best practices (governance, any tax reforms)

Finance & Investment

Current & historical emphasis on financing and investing alternatives

Continued discussion on “do no harm” & the spectrum between that & social impact

Deepen understanding of social impact in the context of Native CDFIs & catalytic capital

Align on Better Way’s tolerance for/spectrum of risk (including spectrum of risk assessments

Community/culture

Read a book from an Indigenous author and/or watch a film and discuss/reflect together (e.g., ‘Where they Last Saw Her’ by Marcie Rendon, Sugar Cane, Remaining Native, or Gather)

A storytelling workshop facilitated by Daniel French to gain hands-on experience crafting narratives around our work 

60 South 6th Street, Suite 2950
Minneapolis, MN 55402

info@betterwayfoundation.org

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