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The Difference We Choose at Embolden WI

Updated: Mar 3


What you do makes a difference.


And you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.


At Embolden WI,

we decided.


We decided we are not here to whisper around power.

We are here to shift it.


We inform.

We involve.

We inspire.


Because policy should happen with people —not to them.


Desmond Tutu said,“There comes a point where we need to stop just pulling people out of the river. We need to go upstream and find out why they’re falling in.”


So we go upstream.


Upstream where systems are written.

Upstream where budgets are drafted.

Upstream where decisions are made about who thrives and who treads water.


We are not in the business of handing out life jackets forever.


We are cultivating conditions where fewer people are pushed into the river in the first place.


And here’s something that should stop us in our tracks:


In Wisconsin, less than 7% of adults can name their State Senator and State Assembly Representative.


Seven percent.


Democracy cannot breathe if people don’t know who speaks for them.


So we build bridges.


Between neighbors and their elected leaders.

Between lived experience and legislative language.

Between community voice and policy text.


We inform people.

We help them find their representatives.

We teach them how to speak up.

And we insist that those in power listen.


We do not just amplify voices.

We wire them directly into the system.


And we know something else:


Too many mission-driven leaders are buried in paperwork

when they should be building movements.


So we remove the burden.


Through fiscal sponsorship,

we hold the compliance,

the contracts,

the reporting,

the backend weight —

so community leaders can carry the vision.


We are the steady drumbeat of change.

Not flashy.

Not frantic.


Steady.


Rooted in radical imagination.

Grounded in shared power.

Committed to a Wisconsin where people don’t just survive systems —

they shape them.


Because what we do makes a difference.


And we at Embolden WI have decided exactly what kind of difference we want to make.


Please consider making an invest today to support, sustain, and strengthen the difference Embolden WI makes - https://www.thebigshare.org/organizations/emboldenwi

 
 
 

Fiscal Sponsorship: A New Way to Organize, Advocate & Amplify Change

Updated: Aug 23, 2025

Learn how you can support Embolden WI's fiscal sponsorship program


Did you know there are over 1.8 million nonprofit organizations registered in the US?
Did you know there are over 1.8 million nonprofit organizations registered in the US?

There are so many incredible community members out there right now who are holding the ideas and answers to our greatest challenges. Those closest to the problems are closest to the solutions, but we have failed to create the conditions in which these change act uninhibited on their vision and mission.


Many aspiring community leaders are commended for their vision and encouraged to take action. However, taking action requires funding, and traditionally, this has been achieved through creating a nonprofit. Consequently, individuals undertake the challenging task of applying to the IRS for 501c3 status which can take 9-12 months if approved. Even after establishing a nonprofit and starting to raise funds in the highly competitive grant and donor market, costs quickly add up. A mandatory annual audit costs approximately $30,000, and nonprofit insurance expenses rack up $10,000 or more. Providing health coverage and benefits for employees is often unaffordable, and the necessary technology to remain efficient and competitive exceeds the overhead budget.


For years, we have hindered community-driven transformation by forcing change makers to shoulder extensive administrative and financial burdens to receive funding, preventing them from focusing on their mission-driven work.


In the Powerful & Proximate report, readers are asked, "What kind of transformative change is possible for our communities when grassroots organizations are supported adequately and appropriately, regardless of nonprofit status?" At a moment in history when we need to center community, rapidly respond, and ensure those closest to the problems are closest to the opportunity, we don't have time to play the traditional "nonprofit industrial complex" game.


How do we cope? It may sound surprising, but starting a nonprofit isn’t the only way forward. Fiscal sponsorship offers the administrative backbone and infrastructure change makers need to focus on their mission. Fiscal sponsors ideally act as necessary connective tissue between grassroots organizations and funding sources. They create a path to rapid deployment of resources and a more equitable and accessible way for leaders of all kinds to access nonprofit infrastructure and get to work. It's time to challenge the status quo and lean into a powerful way to connect community with the resources they need to succeed.


The demand for nonprofits to act as crucial agents of change is higher than ever, yet implementing mission-critical initiatives has become more difficult. We are burdened with excessive responsibility and insufficient support. More and more, fiscal sponsors are seen as a path to rapid deployment of resources and a more equitable and accessible way for leaders of all kinds to access nonprofit infrastructure and get to work.

Fiscal sponsors ideally act as necessary connective tissue between grassroots organizations and funding sources. They present an important opportunity to elevate and effectively support grassroots organizations while honoring their vision for sustainability and remaining responsive to where they are in their growth. - Powerful & Proximate report

Fiscal Sponsorship 101

  • Fiscal sponsorship is when a nonprofit organization (sponsor) partners with community to offer the opportunity to operate under its tax-exempt status enabling the partner to focus on its mission while the sponsor manages administrative tasks and compliance.

  • Fiscal sponsorship is a common mechanism used in the nonprofit sector that enables individuals and organizations to start new programs without establishing a new, separate nonprofit organization.

  • When implemented properly, fiscal sponsorship offers the potential for efficiency, collaboration, and resource optimization.


Fiscal sponsors are sometimes described as:

  • management commons

  • administrative backbones

  • intermediaries

  • incubators

  • a hub


What we love is what fiscal sponsors really do. Here are some of my favorite ways some fellow fiscal sponsors describe their services:

  • "a nonprofit organization that provides financial and operational infrastructure so our partners can focus on their missions." - Evergreen Social Impact

  • "we support leaders, create efficiencies, and foster innovation" - Colorado Nonprofit Development Center

  • "we work with organizations to face barriers, like access to resources and capacity, by ensuring they have the support they need; financial, human, and more, to operationalize their work." - TSNE


Why Fiscal Sponsorship Matters More Than Ever

  • Since January of 2025, the Trump Administration has waged the most significant assault on the nonprofit sector we’ve ever seen.

  • In addition, the nonprofit sector is facing increased competition and stricter regulations, the core challenges of fundraising, compliance, and operational management.

  • Fiscal sponsors (or intermediary organizations) like Embolden WI provide financial and operational infrastructure so our community partners can focus on their missions.

  • While the field of fiscal sponsorship is growing rapidly, fiscal sponsors are underutilized or not properly leveraged to uplift and activate grassroots organizations and the community-based power they hold.


With over 20 years of nonprofit management and nonprofit advocacy experience, Embolden WI provides our partners with required and necessary administrative resources, enabling them to better focus on fulfilling their missions, building organizational capacity, and improving our communities.


We have a powerful and urgent opportunity to lean into the fiscal sponsorship space to meet this moment in history. Those closest to the problems are closest to the solutions, but these communities need and deserve access to trusted infrastructure and "red tape expertise" to eliminate the administrative burdens that prevent community-led transformation.


Embolden WI already offers fiscal sponsorship to these amazing partners and many others are reaching out to see fiscal sponsor support. Link here to learn more about our fiscal sponsorship program.

We at Embolden WI are embracing a mindset of continuous improvement, collaboration, and courage.


What can you do to help? Support the infrastructure that makes it all work. At this moment we hope you'll consider making an investment to help us meet the full promise of our fiscal sponsorship program. To lead in this space, we need to hire a Director of Fiscal Sponsorship as soon as possible. The Director of Fiscal Sponsorship is the point of contact for our fiscally sponsored partners, helping them navigate charitable requirements and bring their ideas to their full potential.



https://video.wixstatic.com/video/b6462a_d1adc79099f542d989c0767d5f2473d5/1080p/mp4/file.mp4
Listen to Embolden WI's Executive Director explain the power, impact, and potential of fiscal sponsorship in Wisconsin
Fiscal sponsorship, when mission- and values-aligned, can serve as vital connective tissue for closing this gap and supporting grassroots organizations, which hold tremendous community power and have the relevant proximity necessary to solve important social issues—if only they were equipped with resources that support their full activation. - Powerful & Proximate Report

Interested in learning more about the power and potential of fiscal sponsorship? Check out these resources:


History of fiscal sponsorship

The practice of fiscal sponsorship dates back to 1959 but the field really started to develop in the 1990's. The early 2000's saw an increasing interest in fiscal sponsorship from philanthropy and nonprofit leaders, largely in response to urgent calls for social justice and increasing threats to civil society and the health of our planet.


In November 2023, Social Impact Commons and the National Network of Fiscal Sponsors released the first major comprehensive scan of fiscal sponsorship in seventeen years. Their report, Fiscal Sponsor Field Scan 2023, found that “three times as many sponsorship programs were created in the last 20 years than were created in the 40 years prior to 2000." The field scan provides detailed information on more than 100 fiscal sponsors who collectively administer over 12,000 charitable projects with 18,000 employees or contractors.







 
 
 

The Uniquely Cruel New Threats to Nonprofits: An Overview from Sara

Updated: Jun 12, 2025

"Since the start of the Trump administration we've seen a relentless and unprecedented attack on nonprofits and the people and communities we serve." - Diane Yentel, President & CEO of the National Council of Nonprofits

It's been 21 years ago this month that I began my career in nonprofit leadership. For over two decades, I've had a front row seat to the nonprofit industrial complex that already came with its challenges and faults. But I knew that after November 5, 2024, the nonprofit landscape as we knew it would forever be changed - and not for the better.


Right now, the nonprofit world and the communities and causes we serve, we're all holding our collective breath. Since January 27th, the Trump administration has instilled a level of anxiety, instability, and for some, a level of paralysis among nonprofits. In summary, this administration is going after nonprofits he doesn't agree with by cutting off their funding and taking away their tax exempt status and they have been waging the most significant assault on the nonprofit sector we have ever seen. We're now all assessing where we are on the spectrum of harm - from somewhat to decimated. But we know that an attack on one of us is an attack on all of us.


The Trump administration has made it no secret that they are seeking unchecked power to weaponize the government and silence critics.  Mainstream news has given a lot of attention to the attacks on Harvard, PBS and NPR, but we want to remind you that right here in Wisconsin, nonprofits are also being targeted:


Embolden WI is not immune to these attacks. Almost all of our funding that goes to support our incredibly impactful Providers and Teens Communicating for Health (PATCH) Program comes from federal funds. We've already been told that one of our critical grants is likely to be pulled jeopardizing this amazing youth led program that has been changing lives and the landscape for adolescent health for over a decade. To say things have gotten scary for our small but mighty nonprofit is a huge understatement. This administration is implementing a broad assault on civic society and on democracy and we must not be silent and we must stay informed, involved, and inspired to fight back.


One powerful way you can help today is to sign up to Foster Embolden WI's Future with a $10 or more a month donation. Right now we're leaning into our vast network of supporters and asking you to sign up to give $10 a month through our Foster the Future Fund. We desperately need to secure reliable, unrestricted funding to give us the grace and space to navigate and mitigate the growing threats to nonprofits like ours. With a monthly donation of $10 or more, we're depending on a network of people who care to help us weather this storm. 


At a time when people are desperately trying to figure out what they can individually do to resist, persist, and make a difference, don't underestimate the power you have to invest in and sustain a critical nonprofit like ours. For every dollar donated to Embolden WI, 86 cents goes directly into our programming that emboldens marginalized communities to build the power and agency they need to drive long lasting transformation for health justice. If you can, please consider signing up to invest $10 a month to make enormous difference to our small, but might nonprofit.


Additional Information Threats to Nonprofits:









Resources for Nonprofits:


Call to Action:

The National Council of Nonprofits urges Congress to recognize and support the indispensable work done by nonprofits by ensuring any tax package advanced by Congress:

  1. Rejects increased taxes on foundation and other charitable nonprofits

  2. Rejects limits on charitable donations made by individuals and corporations

  3. Preserves and strengthens charitable tax incentives


 
 
 
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