What is #ShiftThePower?

For decades, funding and decision-making in development, aid, and peacebuilding have been top-heavy and top-down. But at World Pulse, we know that much of the work that changes the world happens at the local level. That’s why we are rallying the World Pulse community to hear stories of how you #ShiftThePower. 

#ShiftThePower is a movement trying to “tip the balance of power in the development sector towards a fairer and more equitable people-centered development model.” It challenges top-down approaches that favor the priorities of donors and advocates for more decision-making and resources to be in the hands of local organizations and communities. Despite some funders’ stated desires to do things differently, progress has been slow, and new and alternative ways of operating are urgently needed.

Funders continue to fail to recognize and adequately support the work of women, despite the proven value of investing in women, women-led movements, and gender justice. Many women are already actively working for change in their communities — often expected to work for free — and have long been demanding change in how their work is funded, even before the current #ShiftThePower movement. We hold the keys to reimagining what more equitable funding can look like. It is beyond time to listen to women, particularly those in frontline communities who can speak best to what they need. 

That is why World Pulse is crowdsourcing the voices of women and other members of frontline communities. We know members of World Pulse are doing this work, and we want to hear from you! We invite you to share your recommendations for the development sector and highlight the changemaking work you are already doing to #ShiftThePower. Your stories have the power to inspire meaningful change and demonstrate the strength of collective action. 

To participate, share your story by 21 July 2024. You can share your story anyway you like — write your story, upload a video or audio clip, and/or create a drawing or other art form. Be sure to tag your post with "#ShiftThePower.” You could even receive a Story Award or Featured Initiative Award, which includes a $100 US honorarium!

Here are some ideas to get you started:

• What does it look like to shift power? What strategies or initiatives have you seen that most effectively shift power toward communities?

• Tell your own story. What challenges have you faced in accessing funding for your community-based work? How have you navigated them? What recommendations do you have for others?

• How can we get more resources into the hands of women? How should grants and/or other funding processes work to get the money and other resources to those who are doing the work in their communities? 

• What comes to your mind when you hear #ShiftThePower? What does power mean to you? What power needs to be shifted in the development sector? What could this look like?

• What are the challenges and/or risks involved when working to shift the power? How might your social, cultural, or political context create challenges or opportunities for how power can and should be shifted?  

• How do you envision more equitable relationships between communities and funders, and what role can we play in making that vision a reality?

• How can we work together to shift power? What could collective action look like? 

Want to learn more?

This call for stories is part of a research project led by World Pulse’s Research Evaluation Group (REG), a committee of members who hold researchers accountable to the community’s ethical guidelines and collaborate on and/or lead research efforts. They are supported in this effort by a team of external researchers including Jasmine R. Linabary, Ph.D. (University of Arizona), Meghana Rawat, Ph.D. (Utah Valley University), and Danielle Corple, Ph.D. (Wheaton College). These stories will help REG understand and share with others new ways of thinking and doing the work of social change– ways that honor collaboration, distributed leadership, and the sharing of power with our communities. Your responses may also be used to inform World Pulse’s own internal reflections on power shifting efforts.  

Stories received by 21 July 2024 will be considered for Story Awards and  Featured Initiative Awards, and may be highlighted in reports as well as other advocacy-related outcomes.

For more information see #ShiftThePower Campaign FAQs.