Reflections from the #WeGiveSummit 2026: The True Cost of Impact

Last week, Keesha Gibson had the honor of serving as a panelist during the We Give Summit 2026 hosted by Philanthropy Together — a global virtual convening that brings together nonprofit leaders, collective givers, philanthropy professionals, consultants, and changemakers committed to strengthening collective generosity and community impact.

What began as a proposed breakout conversation was elevated to a main stage session titled:

“The True Cost of Impact: Funding What Nonprofits Actually Need.”

The session created space for honest dialogue around one of the most pressing issues nonprofits continue to navigate: the disconnect between the true operational cost of delivering impact and what funding structures often recognize or support.

Alongside an incredible panel of leaders from across the nonprofit and philanthropy sectors, we explored topics including:

• trust-based philanthropy

• flexible funding

• nonprofit sustainability

• multi-year support

• operational realities

• and the importance of translating impact beyond traditional proposal narratives

One of the strongest moments for me came through an audience poll conducted ahead of the session. Attendees — including nonprofit leaders, consultants, collective givers, and foundation representatives — were asked:

“Do most nonprofit budgets reflect the full cost of their work?”

The results were telling:

• 63% responded No

• 31% responded Sometimes

• Only 2% responded Yes

In total, 94% of respondents acknowledged that nonprofit budgets either do not—or only sometimes—reflect the full cost required to sustain the work.

Those results reinforced a reality many organizations experience every day:

Nonprofits are often expected to communicate transformational impact while operating within funding structures that do not fully account for the staffing, infrastructure, fundraising capacity, leadership, communications, operational resilience, and systems required to sustain that impact over time.

A major theme shared during the conversation was that budget numbers tell a story too.

"If the full story of the work is not translating through proposals, budgets, and financial presentations, philanthropy can unintentionally make decisions based on incomplete understanding", said Gibson.

This conversation aligns closely with the work we're continuing to build through the Financial Clarity Initiative™ at Gibson Consulting & Solutions.

The Financial Clarity Initiative helps nonprofits better understand, communicate, and align the true cost of their work through stronger financial storytelling, operational clarity, sustainability planning, and realistic budgeting practices. Indirectly, the initiative also supports funders and philanthropy partners by helping create greater transparency and shared understanding around what impact actually costs in practice — allowing for more informed and aligned funding conversations.

More than anything, I left the Summit encouraged.

We appreciated that Philanthropy Together created space for nonprofit voices, operational realities, and honest conversations that are often difficult to have publicly. The engagement from attendees made it clear that this conversation is resonating across the sector and that many people are ready to rethink how impact is funded and sustained.

The work is there. The impact is there. The question is whether our funding models are willing to catch up.

Inside the Work is a series exploring the realities, systems, and sustainability challenges shaping nonprofits, philanthropy, and community impact.