Advocacy and Education
Influencing change together
The Women’s Fund of Central Ohio is a leading voice on gender equity and philanthropy in Central Ohio and beyond. Through our research-backed, trust-based approach, we are dismantling patriarchal philanthropy and building a more equal society. And we’re committed to bringing others along—because our mission is made possible by all people working together.
Our Advocacy Priorities
We’re creating an intersectional movement to advance social change for women and girls because we know that every woman has a different experience. We use our influence in the community to uplift the voices of those who are most impacted by systemic inequity. We take a multi-pronged approach to our advocacy and focus our efforts on economic empowerment and leadership for women and girls.
in·ter·sec·tion·al·i·ty
noun
1. the interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender as they apply to a given individual or group, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage.
The term was coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw in 1989.
In 2019, we released Assets for Equity: Building Wealth for Women in Central Ohio. Through this original research, we identified specific wealth accelerators that can significantly improve a woman's ability to build wealth. These accelerators include:
Access to childcare
Elimination of the pay gap
Paid leave
Affordable healthcare
Many women, especially women of color, do not have access to accelerators such as these that help ensure economic security for themselves as well as for their children and grandchildren. We focus our advocacy on these areas in alignment with our grantmaking priorities to address the gender and racial wealth gap.
How We Advocate
WE Use Our Voice to Influence
From meetings with policymakers to book clubs, we participate in conversations about gender equity and help others understand what women in Central Ohio need to thrive.
How We Advocate
WE Invest in Change
Since our founding, we have invested over $1 million in civic engagement, movement building, and policy advocacy that aligns with our strategic priorities.
How We Advocate
WE Develop Training Tools
We use our research to develop innovative tools like Gender By Us that help individuals and organizations become advocates for gender equity.
How We Advocate
WE Join the National Conversation
The Women’s Fund is a member of the Women’s Funding Network, an international coalition of women’s funding organizations. Through this coalition, we join a chorus of other women’s funds on important issues like federal child care benefits and voting rights.
“The Women’s Fund’s support helped Policy Matters Ohio become an authority on this issue. We may not have been asked to provide input on critical decisions about relief and recovery without this support.”
Will Petrik, Budget Researcher at Policy Matters Ohio
With our funding, Policy Matters Ohio was able to build and align bipartisan coalitions
to highlight the need for federal relief for childcare during the pandemic.