Equity Focused, Justice Oriented
United Way of the Greater Triangle (UWGT) has the bold mission to eradicate poverty and increase social mobility through the power of partnerships.
For 133 years, United Ways across the country have served those crushed under the weight of impoverished environments. That service has looked, felt, and sounded like charity. Yet the issues have not gone away.
The next 133 years demand more. United Way of the Greater Triangle is up to the challenge to act, which is why we’re making a strategic commitment to both charity and justice — supporting the solutions that combat the immediate effects of poverty while also focusing on long-term solutions that attack the root causes. But we can't do it without you.
Impact Investing
Eradicating poverty will take a combination of short-term solutions and systemic change. That's why we're diversifying the way we support impact here in the Triangle and focusing on equity in everything from emergency support (through our Rapid Response Fund model) to our community impact strategies (through our Cradle to Career and Healthy Families pillars). In addition, opportunities through our Equity In Leadership pillar, which are largely supported by the Anti-Racism Community Fund, are explicit and exclusive in the ways we allocate our resources to address the root cause and racist structures affecting our most vulnerable neighbors today.
Justice-Oriented Storytelling
Statistical data isn't enough to shift our community's consciousness from one that simply supports eradicating poverty to one that understands how people end up in poverty and the barriers designed to keep them there. Using a justice-focused approach to storytelling, we're prioritizing anecdotal data by connecting local nonprofits with the community narrative and putting the power of the stories back into the hands of the individuals experiencing the challenges.
Operationalizing Equity Through Engagement
How can you engage in equity yourself or through your own company? Outside of an ongoing list of engagement opportunities that directly support the Triangle community, we've created a model that analyzes where activities fall on a charity to justice spectrum and can give Triangle employees the opportunity to engage in their communities in ways that matter.
10 To Watch
Nonprofit organizations led by men have three times the assets as those led by women.
As a community, we haven’t supported enough minority leaders working hard to represent our neighbors in need. Through 10 To Watch, we’re addressing racial, gender, and power disparities in leadership by empowering local communities, amplifying the voices of nonprofit leaders of color and women, and preparing the broader community for these leaders’ continued success.