Blog

Dear Community,

Change can be uncomfortable—especially in large doses. As we all continue to face new challenges, I am reminded of a movement leader I deeply admire who taught me that we do have control over the direction of change.

Wangari Maathai once said, “It’s the little things citizens do. That’s what will make the difference. My little thing is planting trees.” She didn’t stop at planting trees—she organized her peers, advocated for government action, and built a movement that restored Kenya’s environment and led to the establishment of the Green Belt Movement. Her persistence reshaped landscapes and lives, ultimately earning her a Nobel Peace Prize. The lesson is clear: power grows through dedication and consistency.

At Headwaters, we’ve spent the last two years building an organization that embraces change as a constant. This mindset keeps us grounded, moving forward with purpose, and growing our impact with consistency. 

It is because of our collective dedication and consistency that I am confident in what will come next. Welcoming a Co-Executive Director and reaching this next chapter is just one of the many “little things” we have been consistently working towards. 

Here’s just a glimpse of what our team has been working on so far this year:

• Strengthening Community-Led Giving: Our intersectional and intergenerational Giving Project cohort has spent months learning about moving money to gender justice organizing and movement building. They collectively fundraised $250,000, which Headwaters will match—bringing $500,000 in gender justice funding to community soon.

• Launching the Black Radiance Network: This new, community-powered network—created by and for Black leaders reshaping Minnesota—is already making waves. We also launched the Justice & Liberation Fund, a $1 million grant opportunity to support Black-led groups working on the frontlines of justice.

• Celebrating Our Legacy & Future: Our communications team wrapped up our 40-year anniversary by launching a milestone webpage that captures reflections, calls to action, and memories. At the same time, we released our FY24 annual report, highlighting over $4.1 million in grantmaking.

• Growing Our Community of Support: Our individual giving team has partnered with community organizations and businesses to host learning sessions about Headwaters to grow our base of donors. If you want to follow Wangari Maathai’s lead and do “one little thing,” invite someone in your network to become a donor—together, we mobilize change.

• Deepening Our Organizational Strength: We are in the process of building a political education agenda for staff, developing a liberatory HR model, enriching our supervisors with generative management training, and integrating board members into committee work across the organization.

• Reinforcing Shared Leadership: Finally, we are wrapping up our Co-Executive Director application call this week, with our first-round screening deadline closing on Friday, February 28^th at 5 p.m. Each step forward is supported by our board co-chairs, our hiring committee of board and staff, and our full team’s commitment to a shared leadership that empowers us all.

This is just a snapshot of what we’ve been up to. If my team lets me know I’ve missed something (which is likely when we’re getting so much done!), I’ll be sure to include it in a future update. Thank you for being part of this work.

In community,
Bilal Alkatout, Co-Executive Director