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Impact Redefined

Our Learnings from 2024

Dear friends,

Time and time again, far too many learners have been denied the opportunity to build the lives they envision, perpetuating generational inequity. Yet, amidst these challenges, we've seen remarkable progress bloom — from within communities and through the tireless efforts of people determined to rewrite the narrative. These efforts remind us that a world where every learner has access to meaningful opportunities is not only necessary — it's possible.

Each year, we release this report to share key themes shaping our work. As we reflect on 2024 and look toward 2025 and beyond, below are some of the insights guiding our relentless pursuit of durable change for learners — especially Black, Brown and Indigenous learners:

  1. The power of collaboration. Siloed efforts in education have hindered progress, but philanthropy holds power to unite changemakers and drive lasting impact. While funder collaborations aren't new, their potential is immense. By pooling resources, aligning goals and co-creating solutions with communities, we can achieve systemic change that no single organization can accomplish alone.
  2. Moving beyond embracing localization to actively championing it. People who experience the issues every day offer invaluable expertise. Yet too often, these voices are excluded from decision-making spaces despite their deep-rooted knowledge and centuries of stewardship. True progress requires actively championing local leaders and perspectives, ensuring they play a meaningful role in shaping decisions, envisioning solutions and charting the path forward.
  3. Advocacy as a lever for equity. Despite the ebb and flow of political cycles, we must remain agile and continue to find windows of opportunity to ensure that policy change supports and serves those who need it most. To do so, we cannot discount our role in strengthening and equipping people and organizations to shape policy priorities and seize opportunities for equitable transformation when they arise.
  4. The importance of wellbeing. This work is joyful and fulfilling but also emotional and challenging. To collaborate successfully, we need to foster an environment of trust, care and learning together. Building for these conditions can take many forms, including fully supporting individuals and organizations to succeed — not just through multiyear and general operating support, but also through supporting their leadership and wellbeing.

The work of building systems that serve all learners is both beautiful and challenging. It calls for bold action, collective partnership and an unwavering commitment to creating environments where dialogue, debate and collaboration can thrive. It requires leaders who truly represent the communities they serve and the courage to confront big challenges. Knowing that successful collaboration is key to building stronger, healthier and more just communities, this is where we must focus our collective energy.

In 2024, I was deeply inspired by the resilience and dedication of our partners, communities and team members. Through these efforts, we continue to push boundaries and reimagine the way systems shape learning to unlock every learner's potential.

With deep appreciation,
Amy Klement,
Managing Partner

JEDI Inside and Out

Philanthropy's Transformative Role

In 2020, we teamed up with IDEO to report on the rapid shifts in education systems during the height of COVID-19. Building on that foundation, in 2024, we released a follow-up: Learning Reimagined: The Next Chapter. This report dives into what it will take — particularly from the philanthropic sector — to advance a more resilient and equitable future for education.

Creating systems of learning that support all learners to thrive requires intentional action from each level — from the individual to the community to the overarching system. We know that philanthropy, with its resources, networks and influence, can be pivotal in supporting this transformation. In partnership with IDEO.org, we explored four key insights for philanthropy to deepen its commitment to creating change for learners:

Elevate proximate leaders as decision-makers

Number 1

Embrace learning that builds on and respects local and cultural nuances

Number 2

Develop lasting infrastructure to safeguard transformative movements

Number 3

Build equitable learning systems to meet this critical moment

Number 4

The learnings and examples in Learning Reimagined: The Next Chapter outline a roadmap for philanthropic priorities, partnerships and investments. To share these insights, we hosted a fireside chat with experts from IDEO.org and Imaginable Futures. Watch the conversation, Collectively Accelerating Equitable Futures for Learners, for more on how we can move forward together.

Cover image of the Learning Reimagined Report, co-created by Imaginable Futures and IDEO. It shows 4 illustrated people, both students and educators, against a gradient background. Read the Report

IF's JEDI Exploration

"We feel like we are leading with JEDI. But how can we really pressure test that?"

- Desy Osunsade, Global Head of People and Culture at Imaginable Futures

This question sparked our journey of reexamining our justice, equity, diversity and inclusion (JEDI) practices and led us to partner with London Moore and Associates on an organization-wide JEDI audit. With an understanding that championing equity requires that we commit to deep introspection, be open to feedback and commit to doing the work needed to improve, we first focused on understanding where we are on our JEDI journey. We then used the established baseline to guide us toward how we might approach our future JEDI work. In our three-part series, we:

Shared insights into advancing JEDI from a holistic organizational perspective.
Reflected on cultivating a culture that empowers team members and fuels collective progress in JEDI.
Explored what we found and how the JEDI rubric we created might be adapted for other organizations.

Our JEDI audit and our continued work in response to the findings is a process grounded in building a foundation of trust and a commitment to ensure that JEDI remains top of mind in all aspects of our organization and work. To make genuine progress, we've had to pause, reframe and challenge our assumptions — whether in our structures, our internal culture or our approach with partners. The audit provided us with actionable steps that will take years to fully realize. Still, we're energized by the progress made and more committed than ever to embedding JEDI at the heart of everything we do.

Our JEDI commitment has no fixed endpoint, but we now have a clearer roadmap for continued progress, with JEDI as a guiding force in our work and relationships.

Looking Ahead

As we reflect on 2024 and look ahead, we remain committed to creating a world where every learner has access to meaningful opportunities and a chance to thrive. This year underscored the power of partner collaboration and learning and adapting alongside them as we tackled complex challenges and discovered new pathways to advance more just and equitable outcomes.

Guided by the wisdom and insights of our partners, we will continue to embrace curiosity, courage and collective strength. Together, we will build on the progress we've achieved, refine our strategies and remain responsive to the evolving needs of the systems we aim to transform.

Thank you to our partners for your unwavering commitment and collaboration. We are inspired by your work and excited to continue driving meaningful change together in 2025 and beyond.

Please reach out if you have any comments or questions. We welcome your feedback.