While I had some success in philanthropy early on, I realised pretty quickly that that was because of the proximity I had to Melbourne, to privilege and to whiteness - these things that so many [other] First Nations people don't have access to," says Rona Glynn-McDonald, a Kaytetye woman and founding CEO of Common Ground, an online not-for-profit organisation that amplifies and shares Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, histories and stories. At 27 years old, Glynn-McDonald is also an award-winning filmmaker, musician and activist.
Although many of Common Ground's early funders came from networks Glynn-McDonald had developed at university in Melbourne, when she tried to extend those networks to people from her hometown in Alice Springs, it was challenging. "I came to understand that philanthropy is a very colonial system. It's all about relationships and power. And the way that nonIndigenous folk give is based off their visions of impact rather than our community's vision of impact."
Seeing the large spike in donations that Common Ground and other First Nations community spaces received during the Black Lives Matter movement was a turning point. Glynn-McDonald started to question how philanthropy could be redesigned to better include and empower First Nations people.
"We had a huge influx that came in through our donations page, a donations page that rarely gets people redistributing wealth - well, back then it didn't," says Glynn-McDonald. However, the generosity was short-lived. "After a week, it just completely dried up."
It made Glynn-McDonald question where donors were now directing those funds instead. "Where was that money going? Who determined where it was going? Why did it stop? And what opportunities were there to explore ongoing mechanisms?"
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