OVERVIEW: The Wend Collective, co-led by James Walton, is not a traditional grantmaker. This organization makes strategic investments that pursue “pathways toward a better world.” So far, its work has prioritized climate change, recreation, youth development and social media policy.
IP TAKE: The Wend Collective is not a traditional grantamker; it does not maintain a website or run grantmaking initiatives in specific areas of interest. It’s not transparent or approachable at this state, as a result.
In the early stages of its development, the collective appears to make large strategic investments in a range or projects that concern climate change, youth development and social media policy. Reach out to the collective’s staff via LinkedIn to see what’s next for this innovative organization. It’s not the most responsive funder in these spaces, but they are approachable.
PROFILE: Based in Denver Colorado, the Wend Collective is a social impact fund that provides fundraising services from “the mindset of equity and abundance to return to a more interconnected world.” Co-led by James Walton, a member of the family behind the Walmart fortune and member of the board of trustees of the Walton Family Foundation, the collective appears to be in the earliest stages of development. It describes itself as “a collective of wayfinders exploring pathways towards a better world.” The Wend Collective does not name specific grantmaking initiatives, and while it appears to employ a formal staff, there is no evidence of recent grantmaking. The organization’s LinkedIn page suggests interest in climate change, conservation, racial justice, Indigenous rights.
Grants for Climate Change, Clean Energy, Racial Justice, Civic and Democracy
Still in its earliest stages of operations, the Wend Collective’s LinkedIn page suggests that its “philanthropic fundraising services” will work toward “a world with more trust, more vibrancy, and more justice; accomplished by healthier relationships with ourselves, each other, communities, the natural world, and spirit.” Rather than grantmaking, the collective appears to make strategic investments in promising projects. According to the real estate industry news outlet The Real Deal, in 2021 Wend purchased three camp facilities in Huguenot, New York for a price that was $2 million over market value from a YMCA-affiliated organization. According to the article, Wend suggested that it intended to “continue the camps’ longtime mission of serving disadvantaged youth.” An article in the Washington Post reported a donation to the newly launched Council for Responsible Social Media, which brings together “former U.S. lawmakers and federal officials, advocates, scholars, industry leaders and whistleblowers” to discuss the effect of social media on children’s mental health and national security. And according to MomentumMag, the Wend Collective collaborated with the nonprofit PeopleForBikes to install 300 miles of bike path networks in the cities of Austin, Denver, New Orleans, Pittsburgh and Providence.
Important Grant Details:
The Wend Collective does not appear to have nonprofit or tax-exempt status with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, making it difficult to ascertain particulars about its philanthropy at this time. It appear that a large portion of the collective’s work consists of social impact investing. For additional information about the collective and its work, see its LinkedIn page.
This funder does not accept unsolicited proposals. Networking with its staff via LinkedIn seems to be the best way to get in touch.
PEOPLE:
Search for staff contact info and bios in PeopleFinder (paid subscribers only).
LINKS: