In June 2012, the Taconic Foundation awarded the Community Change a $3 million legacy grant to launch the Taconic Fellows program, giving space to talented individuals and leaders to innovate, challenge the status quo, and inspire social change.
Since the Taconic Foundation’s generous grant in 2012, Community Change has welcomed distinguished fellows who worked on critical issues of importance to low-income people, particularly people of color focusing on economic and social justice issues. The Taconic Fellows have shown how immensely valuable this program is to the field and broader movement, providing direct field connection and mutual opportunities for growth and learning. Important new organizing campaigns and organizations have been founded as a result of the time the Taconic Fellowship gave these individuals to innovate and create.
Our vision for the Taconic Fellowship is even more exciting, because it would enable Community Change to build a program that could invest in human capital over the long term. We see the Taconic program engaging promising social justice leaders who are at different points in their trajectory: young people who want to launch a career in the social justice field; accomplished directors or organizers from community-based organizations who may benefit from exposure to work at the national level; and seasoned professionals who bring particular expertise to share with the field.
