Meeting the Moment: Our Approach to Philanthropy in a Year of Change

It is an understatement to say that 2025 was a challenging year for immigrant communities. The situation also threatened to derail the progress that so many non-profits had made toward building inclusive economies in North America. Consequential shifts in American and Canadian policies and attitudes toward immigrants have left many leaders in our ecosystem with increasing demands from the populations they serve and fewer funds to do it with.

This made it exactly the right time for philanthropy to step in and step up with responsive funding, which is an essential bridge between a moment of rapid change and a stable future. In fact, I view doing so as an obligation to the long-term vision of our partners and the aspirations of those who fund immigrant- and refugee-led organizations. If philanthropies such as ours, with a small team and giving levels around US$5 million in typical years, can move quickly to meet the moment, others can—and should—too.

Since its inception in 2019 as a funder dedicated to immigrant inclusion in the United States and Canada, the WES Mariam Assefa Fund has built relationships with non-profit partners working to improve economic opportunity for all. Beginning in early 2025, we moved quickly so that our partners would be resourced to meet this moment. Our strategy was twofold: First, we issued small, rapid response grants to partners in the U.S. to address immediate needs, and then we issued multiyear general operating support grants to several partners to help them weather the storm longer term.

In keeping with our trust-based practices, our starting point is a deep belief that our grantees know best what their organizations and communities need, and we’ve learned that flexible and rapid funding helps provide stability, especially in destabilizing moments.

For example, CVIIC’s work targets nearly one million people in the Central Valley of California, home to many immigrants working in agricultural sector jobs. The organization’s work providing services to Latino immigrant families, including immigration legal support, entrepreneurship trainings, and digital literacy trainings, benefitted from responsive funding that ensured the organization was adequately staffed to meet increased needs.

In Albuquerque, New Mexico, Encuentro works to create pathways to training and employment for home health aides and other workers. As a highly trusted organization with more than 300 clients and thousands of program graduates, Encuentro is a pillar of strength for Albuquerque’s immigrant communities. With additional support, it is providing emergency funding to clients’ families and addressing disinformation in the community by increasing information sharing.

But emergency stabilization requires more than grants. The Fund has always been committed to providing grantee partners with additional forms of support such as access to training and introductions to peers—theirs and ours. That has never been more crucial than it was in 2025. We heard early that safety and security were top issues our partners faced. In response, the Fund offered flexible, on-demand resources through a third party to strengthen organizations’ digital, physical, and physiological safety, crisis communications, legal support, prevention, and fundraising. This gave partners bespoke expert support as well as workshops on topics such as risk and response.

We also heard loud and clear that senior leaders of organizations were carrying immense weight, supporting staff who were facing burnout and holding the emotional pain of their communities. In response, we convened leaders to share best practices and name hard truths. Codesigned with grantee partners, this peer-to-peer well-being cohort for senior leaders became a space for care, honesty, and mutual support during a tumultuous year.

Grantee partner Jumpstart Refugee Talent has been a leader of Canada’s Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot (EMPP), working with employers to hire refugees and fill talent needs. With emergency funding, Jumpstart has been able to bolster its work and explore solutions to continue financing, and hopefully scaling, EMPP, even as the policy landscape has shifted. As a funder in both Canada and the U.S., we are learning from partners what’s working, what’s not, and what’s needed amid rapid change.

As we move further into 2026, we remain optimistic that our work will build resilient communities that can weather even the most disruptive headwinds. We are fueled by the inspirational leadership we see on the ground. And we remain committed to responsive, flexible funding and working alongside our grantees. Ultimately, we believe, equitable access to good work for immigrants is not only possible—it’s within our reach.