Great Falls Forum panelist Gabriela Alcalde, right, answers questions from the audience Thursday afternoon as other panelists Phil Walsh and Leila DeAndrade look on in Callahan Hall at the Lewiston Public Library. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

LEWISTON — Philanthropic organizations in Maine have been reshaping how they use resources to empower local groups and communities, a shift that was discussed during a Great Falls Forum on Thursday.

During the first in-person forum since February 2020, several leaders of philanthropic organizations said a national reckoning with racial and other forms of inequity, along with the pandemic, have led the field to rethink how to better address community needs.

Phil Walsh, executive director of Maine Initiatives, said philanthropy should be putting money into communities in ways that “elevate and uplift” local organizations already working on the ground to solve issues.

He said even though philanthropy is seen as charitable and overtly positive, it’s still an “intervention.”

“It can be well intentioned, and seeking good, but if you do it poorly, you can disrupt a community,” he said, adding that philanthropic groups “need to think deeply about the responsibility of it.”

Gabriela Alcalde, executive director of the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation, said she sees their role as “the supporters of important work.”

“The community organizations are the rock stars, we’re backstage,” she said, adding that the overall tone has “been an important shift.”

Thursday’s forum, titled “Soul-Searching Philanthropy,” was moderated by Lewiston resident Adilah Muhammad, founder and executive director of The Third Place.

She described the “inspiring” changes taking place, which she said have changed the way donors and grantees are engaged in the process.

Great Falls Forum moderator Adilah Muhammad, left, talks with an audience member Thursday afternoon at the end of a panel discussion about “Soul-Searching Philanthropy” at the Lewiston Public Library. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

Walsh said instead of directly dictating where money will go, organizations are instead having community conversations where residents participate in how it could be spent.

The Elmina B. Sewall Foundation has been conducting a similar three-year process in the Lewiston-Auburn region. Alcalde said she saw the organization’s role as simply holding the space for it.

“We’re the convener and active listener,” she said. “It’s really the community’s conversation. How do we respond and not feel like we’re the leaders?”

Last week, staff and volunteers behind a drop-in center for unhoused people at the First Universalist Church of Auburn announced they had received a $10,000 “rapid response” grant from the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation.

Leila DeAndrade, vice president of community impact for the Maine Community Foundation, said during the pandemic, there was a “wave of new organizations” popping up to address the crisis. She said there’s a lot of community energy, especially in Lewiston.

“It’s one of the most responsive communities in Maine,” she said. “It’s not a community where people sit back and chew on things. People just try to come up with solutions.”

When asked about what concerns they might have for philanthropic efforts in the future, DeAndrade said she’s worried about getting enough resources out to support all the work that needs to be done.

Walsh said the country is at the beginning of “the largest intergenerational transfer of wealth in history” as the baby boomer generation passes down wealth.

“The sector as a whole is going to get richer,” but it won’t all be positive, he said.

Great Falls Forum panelist Leila DeAndrade, left, answers questions from the audience Thursday afternoon as other panelists, Phil Walsh, middle, and Gabriela Alcalde look on in Callahan Hall at the Lewiston Public Library. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

Alcalde, who as a Latinx immigrant represents just 1% of philanthropic organization leaders, said she’s concerned that the racial justice commitments made two years ago during the Black Lives Matter movement are being overlooked.

“A fraction of them have been fulfilled,” she said, adding that under 10% of philanthropic funds go to Black, Indigenous and People of Color communities.

She asked the audience to consider something: “Philanthropy only exists because of inequity,” she said.