The Power of the Pause:
Shared Learning for Adaptive Philanthropy

Session Description: 

In uncertain times, pausing to reflect can feel counterintuitive. Yet investing in intentional, routine learning practices, internally and with grantees, equips philanthropic organizations to adapt swiftly and strategically to emerging needs while staying grounded in their values. While learning with grantees and partners is important, creating space for internal organizational reflection is also key for building the shared understanding necessary to foster alignment and decisive action when responding to changing needs.

This session shares how the Bainum Family Foundation (BFF) and Children’s Equity Fund (CEF) committed to all-staff learning sessions anchored in the “What? So What? Now What?” reflective model. These sessions increase transparency, cross-functional collaboration, and accountability across the organization, enabling real-time strategic shifts and more effective responses to organizational, grantee, and community needs. This approach was also adapted for grantee convenings, creating safe, inclusive spaces for peer learning, trust-building, and power-sharing — deepening relationships and informing more responsive support.

Participants will leave this session with facilitation strategies and practical tools (protocols, guiding questions, and templates) that can be adapted in their own settings for internal learning conversations and grantee convenings, helping them move from insight to action and demonstrate collaborative, courageous leadership in uncertain times.

Speakers: 

• Dr. Amy Erickson Soper
  Director, Organizational Learning and Impact
  Bainum Family Foundation and Children’s Equity Fund
• Julia McKay
  Senior Manager, Healthy Democracy
  Children’s Equity Fund
• Gabriela Fitz
  Independent Consultant
  Think Twice

GEO Session Materials:

• The Power of the Pause | PowerPoint
• The Power of the Pause | Participant Packet

Facilitating Shared Learning:

The following chart provides examples of how various facilitation approaches and protocols have been adapted for internal and/or external shared learning conversations at the Bainum Family Foundation and Children’s Equity Fund.

Additional Resources and Examples for Planning Learning Sessions:

• Example: Learning Session Participant Guide
• Example: Learning Session Facilitator Overview
• Example: Now What Team Planning Worksheet
• Template: Participant Guide
• Template: Facilitator Overview
• Template: Facilitation Protocol Guide