Search Member Login Accessibility Options

Article

Featured Resource

How Funders Can Help Divert People with Mental Health Disabilities from Contact with the Criminal Legal System

Learn how philanthropy can aid in preventing the overrepresentation of people with mental health conditions in the criminal legal system.

The Road to Disability Inclusion Report

View the Disability & Philanthropy Forum's 2023 Report, "The Road to Disability Inclusion."

“Leadership of the Most Impacted”: Black Philanthropy Month and Disability Justice with Ryan Easterly

Ryan Easterly shares how disability justice has influenced his journey as a Black disabled leader in philanthropy.

The Power of Participation: How Philanthropy Can Center People on the Margins

Learn more about the the Advancing Participation in Philanthropy Tool (APPT), a self-assessment tool to help philanthropy shift power in support of participatory grantmaking.

“Nothing About Us, Without Us” is Beginning to Take Hold in Philanthropy

Emily Harris reflects on her time as the executive director of the Forum and shares stories of the change that is starting to take hold in the philanthropic sector.

Disability Inclusion: A Radical Departure from Philanthropy’s Past

Emily Harris reflects on philanthropy's ableist past and urges the sector to move forward in a way that truly embraces disability inclusion.

How Funders Can Increase Disabled Women’s and Birthing People’s Access to Reproductive Healthcare

Author Sarah Katz addresses concrete steps that philanthropy can take to improve access to reproductive healthcare for women and birthing people.

We Cannot Achieve Housing Equity Without Accessibility

Dessa Cosma, the Executive Director of Detroit Disability Power, reflects on her experiences with housing inaccessibility and urges policymakers and funders to take action toward a more equitable housing sector.

All of Our Futures Depend on Funding Disability

Philanthropy cannot continue to ignore disability rights and justice or relegate disabled people to the sidelines.

The Disabled Mindset: Embracing My Disability Identity

Learn more about Sarah Napoli, the Forum's Learning Services Director, in this blog post about her experiences coming into her disability identity.

Disabled People Can Be Productive Workers, But That Shouldn’t Determine Our Worth

Author Alaina Lavoie explores the ableism of disabled people being valued or devalued based on their ability to work.

Shifting My Mindset: From Internalizing Ableism to Dismantling It

Learn more about Emily Harris, the Forum's Executive Director, in this blog post about her journey to identifying as disabled and working to dismantle ableism.

Black and Disabled: I Have Lived in the Shadows

Learn more about Gail Fuller, the Forum's Program and Communications Director, in this blog post about her experiences as a Black woman with a non-apparent disability.

A Letter to the Americans with Disabilities Act on Its 32nd Birthday

Sandy Ho reflects on the ADA as a first step for disability rights and looks ahead to the future.

Moving Toward Equity: the Disability Inclusion Pledge

by Megan E. Doherty Although disability is a natural part of the human experience, our cultures and institutions—including philanthropy—have long...

Supporting Disability Inclusion Among Creative Groups

by Lane Harwell, Program Officer, Creativity and Free Expression, Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation's Creativity and Free Expression (CFE) program...

How Can We Foster Psychologically Safe Workplaces?

by Dr. Zakiya Mabery Many organizations want to foster a sense of psychological safety in the workplace - one that...

How Philanthropy Can Support Disabled Parents

by Robin Wilson-Beattie Having spent almost 17 years as a parent who has chronic, physical, and mental health disabilities, I’ve...

The Importance of, and Strategies for, Encouraging Self-ID of Disability

by Kathy Martinez Recently, I was pleased to participate in a Disability and Philanthropy Forum webinar focused on demographic tracking...

Moving the Needle on Employing People with Disabilities: What to Know About Collecting Disability Data

by Chai Feldblum People with disabilities are disproportionately unemployed and underemployed in this country. The unemployment rate in 2020 for...

Shifting Toward Inclusion: Accessible Workplaces in a World Recovering from COVID-19

by Yomi S. Wrong October marks National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM), a time to highlight the immeasurable value people...

Eugenics: Historical Practice to Present Day Technology

by Dr. Joseph Stramondo Sir Francis Galton coined the term “eugenics” in 1883 to refer to the belief that the...

Anti-Black Racism and Ableism in the Workplace

by D'Arcee NealApril 2021 When I went for a job interview in the summer of 2015 for a high-powered federal...

Members only

What does self-disclosing a disability mean?

This blog post was written collectively by the Ford Foundation's Disability Employee Resource Group. While few Ford staff members have...

My Experiences as a Filipino/Black Woman with a Disability in Philanthropy

by Nikki Brown-Booker, August 2020 I am a Filipino/Black woman with a disability who works in philanthropy. When I enter...

Members only

Open Society Foundations: Committing to Disability Inclusion

Open Society Foundations (OSF), a member of the Presidents' Council on Disability Inclusion in Philanthropy and a signatory of the...

Four Ways We Can Work Towards Creating Inclusive Workspaces

By Sarah Napoli, Project Officer, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Open Society Foundations, July 2020 When the pandemic hit the globe...

Disability Rights History: A Brief Introduction

Disability rights are universal civil rights and human rights, but these rights are not yet fully realized by society. Though...

What is Disability?

This introductory resource explains how disability is defined and the "models of disability," or frameworks, that are used to understand...

The Americans with Disabilities Act: A Brief Background

Learn about the history and intent of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), its impact on the disability community, and...

What is Disability Justice?

In this resource, you'll learn about the origin and definition of disability justice as a movement and framework. Disability Justice...

What is Ableism?

This introductory resource provides a working definition of ableism along with information to help reflect on ableist practices. Ableism is...