Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.

—Margaret Mead

As I look back on my life with like‐minded community activists, I am stunned by what is a network of amazing women around the world. They are a treasure chest of gold: those giving, those working, those leading, and everyone supporting them. Our strategy is meant to shift the power and privilege of a few to equity and equality for all. I am reminded of my first definitive playing field for feminist work, the UN Women's 1995 Beijing Conference for women—a turning point in my life and in the lives of others. To this day, the global impact of that conference cannot be overstated. Recently, in 2020, we celebrated the 25th anniversary of that Beijing conference, in both Mexico and Paris, with renewed vigor under the “Generation Equality” campaign. I got the chance in community with so many others to reflect, rejoice, and refocus on gender equality and what's next on the journey that started so long ago. Although COVID prevented us from doing much of the work in person, UN Women and its partners—of which I am one—managed to ensure that there was a broad array of stakeholders around the table to make bold commitments for feminist technology, gender‐based violence, sexual rights and human rights, feminist movements, and much more. Although we are still working through how all of us show up and account for our commitments, it is clear to me that we are on the right track.

I feel like Stella when she got her groove back. These past couple years I have been surrounded more by family, as we holed up for COVID, than ever. Being in the United States again and having my children, including my nephews, near me is a true blessing. When the three musketeers are around, it's like Christmas every day. Since then, we have welcomed old and new friends into our space and when we finally vaccinated and came out of our COVID bubble, traveled to experience both exotic places—like Mexico, Paris, Ireland—and made stops in close‐by playgrounds in Reno and Vegas. I've had some excursions back to the South to meet parents, celebrate my mother's 70th birthday, and say goodbye to an aunt. I know I am in the right place at the right time. I have a great, healthy relationship with someone who moves in a similar rhythm and appreciates my goals. And finally, having a self‐care focus means I can deliver more for me and so many of those who have been mentioned in this book.

Now that I have arrived where I want to be, I am struck by the opportunities unfolding in front of me. I ask myself, “What's next? What is the plan from here?” Professionally, I have been challenging myself to transform GFW into the feminist organization of tomorrow and, of course, writing this book. It's been a joy to traverse my life and reflect on the pearls of wisdom, the inspiration, and the grit of these everyday feminists whom I've been blessed to know. I admire and am strengthened by them. Personally, I am not sure. I look to my daughter Sahara again to observe and learn. She seems so comfortable not planning for college. She simply states that she will go to one and it doesn't really matter which one. Her very answer makes me anxious. I meditate on the premise “let go and let God,” yet when I want to watch it in practice, I watch my daughter. I need to mirror her. I stop worrying about jumping too fast into a new relationship and just enjoy it. I stop asking myself where I will live when I am an empty nester and just enjoy living in this beautiful city of San Francisco now. And I stop asking myself how to make this world a better place for women and girls everywhere and just relish in the fact that there are amazing women and girls everywhere asking themselves that same question today. And together, we will prevail, one movement at a time.

In your journey with me through this book, we have seen how we can no longer afford to underappreciate, overlook, and underfund what has historically been our most crucial lever for transformative social change: everyday feminist women. The modern, everyday feminist working as a change agent within social movements—whether launching, growing, or sustaining them—has proven to be a critical maximizer for success. And not just for women's and gender issues but for causes that span the social spectrum. Resourcing the everyday feminist and the movements they champion is today's most neglected but powerful pathway to real, sustainable social change, locally and across the globe. Especially for communities in greatest need.

Although these everyday feminists are pivotal movement builders and key to sustaining momentum on a social issue, they are precisely the people who tend not to get noticed or supported. There are myriad reasons why. From being more difficult for funders to find than the easier landing spots of big, well‐established, traditional nonprofits to not fitting the mold of people typically entrusted with grants, the everyday feminist is perennially overachieving but undersupported. It's time we close the feminist funding gap, be bold in our choices of whom and how we support, and listen to the lessons these extraordinary women share on transformational social impact

I hope all of you, like me, are now serious about achieving transformative social impact and the kind of lasting change that will reduce suffering, disparities, inequalities, and degradation of our planet. I see everyday feminists working hard against some incredible challenges. I want to show up for them—and I hope you can join me.

The stories we've heard of everyday feminists like Loretta, M. Adams, Tarana, Miriam, Leslye, and others in this book are just the tip of the iceberg. They are launching, growing, and sustaining social movements that offer us a real pathway for a new world. But their organizations and their movements have been under‐resourced for too long. Whether it's through giving time, talent, or funding, we need to do more for them. Following are some specific ways that you can contribute most meaningfully.

Action Steps: Supporting the Everyday Feminist

Allow me to dream a bit with the following checklists for stakeholders. I encourage you to find where you fit in and consider what steps you will take to help.

Philanthropy (Foundations and Individuals)

• Embrace and value the slow path to real, lasting change—stick with everyday feminists through the natural ups and down of movement work. A short‐term focus and pulling resources will disrupt progress and often cause the work to die.
• Diversify your portfolio to include movements at different stages: emerging, taking‐off, and formalization, and even decline. This increases the likelihood of funds reaching the everyday feminist at the exact moment of need.
• Balance your strategies to center and reflect the work that is already happening and presents opportunities for innovation. Allow more flexible funding to encourage everyday feminists to use resources where they are most impactful.
• Move away from directing single‐issue grants to maximize programs that organically intersect.
• Center everyday feminists of color with a specific goal to disrupt racist tendencies in philanthropy that hold them back, especially Black women.
• Look for everyday feminists—especially those who are the hardest to find and those experiencing specific crises (remember you don't have to re‐create the wheel; you can partner with feminist funds who are experts at finding these grantees).
• Nurture young everyday feminists to support their capacity, even if they have small organizations that are battling to achieve more capacity.
• And finally, please read if you haven't already, “Lighting the Way: A Report for Philanthropy on the Power and Promise of Feminist Movements,” put out by the Bridgespan Group,¹ and “The Dire State of Funding for Black Feminist Movements—and What Donors Can Do About It,” by Hakima Abbas and Kellea Miller.²

Governments (Bilateral and Multilateral Funding Arms)

• Protect everyday feminists serving as human rights defenders everywhere and implement no tolerance policies for countries that don't comply—with sanctions attached.
• Urgently dedicate funds to women and girls in humanitarian situations including through women's funds that are closest to the communities.
• Increase the percentage of gender funding that goes toward everyday feminists, feminist movements, and gender justice organizations, which include feminist funds so that you don't have to re‐create the wheel.Support feminist technology and startups that double the proportion of women working in technology and innovation, and eliminate online gender‐based violence.
• Implement carbon reduction solutions that include a just transition from fossil fuels to sustainable fuels and that include the 1 billion people currently living without access to power of any kind, understanding that the climate crisis has the largest impact on the poor and most marginalized in society.
• Expand access to sexual and reproductive health and rights to ensure bodily autonomy for all.
• Eliminate the gender gap in the labor market and transform the care economy to ensure economic rights for all.
• And, finally, please read if you haven't already, “Moving More Money to the Drivers of Change: How Bilateral and Multilateral Funders Can Resource Feminist Movements,”³ put out by AWID (cite #76) as well as some titles listed in “Decolonising Aid: A Reading and Resource List,” gathered by The New Humanitarian.⁴

Corporations, For‐Profit or Hybrid Organizations, and ESG‐Minded Businesses

• Clarify values of your leadership, boards, and staff members to ensure you partner with and listen to everyday feminists.
• Don't re‐create the wheel. Going alone does not garner trust. Partner with women's funds and others who know and work with everyday feminists in specific markets and geographies.
• Evaluate your risk appetite and trust everyday feminists, their organizations, and their movements with unrestricted, long‐term, flexible support. The return on investment will be worth it.
• Give the everyday feminists a seat at the table to help make decisions for the communities that affect them.
• Support investment in everyday feminists through your business strategy and not just corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs. Value support throughout your enterprise; don't let this be relegated to CSR initiatives where it can be perceived by the rest as “not my responsibility.”
• Account for your commitments for transformative social change by showing your progress toward intentional change in your leadership, business practices, and supply chain.
• And finally, please read, if you haven't already, “Stop Undervaluing Exceptional Women” in Harvard Business Review⁵ and “Because Feminist Activism Works,” put out by Mama Cash.⁶

Everyday Feminists, Women's Funds, and Feminist Movements

• Do what you do!
• Look for and develop support in your communities and we will find you.
• Advocacy is not a bad word. We need your boldness as you drive change. Ask for what you need to do this work. And tell your stories.
• Change the whole system. Don't accept promises to change pieces.
• And finally, recognize this work is not charity. It is an investment in our collective futures and those of our children. It is a path to dismantling racism, sexism, classism, and ageism.
• And finally, if you haven't already, please read “Funding for Intersectional Organizing” and “Where Is the Money for Feminist Organizing?” both put out by the Human Rights Funder Network.⁷ I believe these sources will help you decide if you are interested in direct partnerships with the listed industries or if you'd rather work through trusted intermediaries and partners you already know. There are benefits to both.

We can do this together! I know together, nothing can stop us. Together we are more than the sum of our parts. Be proud to call yourself an everyday feminist—or an everyday feminist ally. Working together we can end poverty, injustice, mass hunger, homelessness, refugee and environmental crises, inequities in education and health care, gender violence, oppression, and create a world where everyone can thrive and not just survive. Join us! Although these everyday feminists are pivotal movement builders and key to sustaining momentum on issues spanning social and economic challenges the world faces, they are precisely the people who tend not to get credit or the resources required to further drive their missions. They are often characterized as being more difficult for funders to find than the easier landing spots of big, well‐established, traditional nonprofits. This means they don't fit the mold of people typically entrusted with grants. I am convinced that everyday feminists are perennially overachieving but terribly undersupported. It's time we close the feminist funding gap, be bold in our choices of whom and how we support, and listen to the lessons these extraordinary women share on transformational social impact.