In 2021, we celebrated a decade of history working within philanthropy to more effectively meet the needs of the world’s most marginalized and vulnerable children. During one of the most tumultuous times in recent memory, in the middle of the global COVID-19 pandemic and worldwide challenges to racial injustice and colonial structures, our network set out to reexamine and renew our shared purpose, and chart a path forward via a new, ambitious strategic direction.

What has emerged is an inspiring new direction for ECFG that expands upon the successful work of the past several years and positions the network to adapt to complex and dynamic realities in the years ahead. It presents a new mission and vision that recognize that realizing rights is central to child and youth wellbeing, and that we have a special responsibility to reach the most marginalized and vulnerable. It outlines bold new areas of work in decolonizing philanthropy and child and youth participation as core elements of ensuring we reach our end goals. It presents an ecosystem-level theory of change that we hope inspires others in the field to ask critical questions about how change happens for the most marginalized children. It calls on all of us - as individuals, organizations, a network, and a field - to collaborate more purposefully in support of increased and improved funding for children and youth, to achieve 4 goals: