Dear FRIDA Community,
A scan of the world at this moment reveals increasingly conservative and repressive governments, insular and inhumane approaches to migrants, and sustained influence of religious fundamentalism. Never give up hope, because within this context, there is bold leadership of young women, girls, and trans*youth who continue to hold the ground gained by their predecessors and pave new directions for a more sustainable and peaceful future.
To ensure we remain relevant and responsive to the needs of young feminist organizers, we are investing in an important moment of transformation for FRIDA. This transformation involves two strands of change: a new strategic plan and leadership transition.
The first strand – the Strategic Planning process – is an important moment of learning and reflection for more than just FRIDA. Staying true to our participatory values, we designed a co-creation process that draws on the perspectives and voices of young feminist organizers and their allies to determine the future direction of the world’s first and only young feminist fund.
This process is being steered by a Change Team consisting of representatives of our staff, Board, Advisory Committee, and Grantee Partners. The Change Team will guide us through the different phases of collecting and analyzing perspectives and information to set our next course.
The second strand is a testament to FRIDA’s commitment to young feminist leadership and ensuring FRIDA is always youth-led. As the current Co-Executive Directors, Ruby Johnson and Devi Leiper O’Malley, reach 5 years working with FRIDA, we have decided to begin a transition process.
The recruitment process for FRIDA’s new Co-Executive Directors will begin very soon and we look forward to receiving applications from young feminist applicants. Once candidates are selected, they will have a significant period of mentoring and support from the outgoing Co-Executive Directors in the first half of 2019. This process is being supported by FRIDA’s board and staff, with a special team tasked to lead an open, fair and collective process to recruit two new co-leaders.
We aim to celebrate our new strategic plan and leadership transition by the middle of next year 2019. Until then, you’ll be hearing from us on the different ways you can get involved!
Powerful moments of change are inherently emotional. We embrace this moment with our hearts, minds, and souls open: encouraging each other to listen deeply, investing in the resources we need to create this moment, not being afraid to dream, being bold in our approach, and standing by each other through the different emotions, good and bad.
With trust, kindness, and generosity of our entire community, we know we will move through this moment and come out the other side stronger. We are approaching this transition with care, commitment, and understanding of the community. We strive to ensure trusting, open and shared learning throughout the process, and see this as an opportunity for new creativity and continued courageous leadership.
With gratitude,
Devi and Ruby
