From prescriptive programs to empowered choices
Learn how Kalliopeia Foundation transformed their capacity building approach from expensive, heavy-touch interventions to a scalable platform that lets grassroots leaders choose their own development path.
Kalliopeia Foundation is an independent operating foundation that engages in grantmaking, education, and storytelling at the intersection of ecology, culture, and spirituality.
01
About
Kalliopeia prioritizes land-based projects that regenerate soil, soul, and community.
Their grants are of different sizes and scope, and can be general operating or project support, depending on the particular need. Grant decisions are rooted in trust and guided by their mission to cultivate the connections between ecology, culture, and spirituality.
SOHROB NABATIAN
Director of Grantmaking
“The way organizations work is that a fundraising question is actually a communications question, which is actually, a governance question, because your board is stuck in another paradigm and not allowing you to try reframing your work in a certain way. You have to deal with board recruitment and management before you can even get to the fundraising, but that's subtle.
Resilia creates the options for people who know what they need best, and know what their immediate pain point is.
The comprehensive nature of what Resilia offers is really important in that way, that you can engage it at different levels.”
02
Challenges
When Kalliopeia evaluated their capacity building options, they faced systemic barriers that many small-to-mid-sized foundations encounter when trying to strengthen their portfolios at scale.
Key Challenges
Cost Prohibitive
Excellence
The gold standard programs typically cost six-figures annually, per organization. Hiring consultants created awkward triangulation between funder and grantee, while giving capacity grants directly meant losing quality control when grantees chose inadequate providers.
Prescriptive Program
Fatigue
Foundation-mandated workshops attracted reluctant participants attending out of obligation rather than genuine need, making it impossible to distinguish between organizations lacking time versus those lacking relevant resources.
Power Dynamic Complications
Every direct intervention risked distorting the funder-grantee relationship, with organizations saying yes to please Kalliopeia even when the support didn't match their actual needs or timeline.
03
How Resilia Supported Growth
Resilia became Kalliopeia's first customer in 2021, providing a comprehensive platform that addressed their core challenge: offering high-quality capacity building that grantees could access on their own terms, without foundation intervention.
Comprehensive resource library
Grantees gained 24/7 access to 300+ courses, templates, and tools—allowing them to address immediate pain points when they arose.
Multiple learning modalities
Whether through one-on-one coaching, peer learning circles, or asynchronous courses, grantees could engage in ways that fit their schedules and learning preferences.
Strategic insights without intrusion
Kalliopeia receives usage insights—understanding patterns and needs without violating grantee privacy or autonomy.
Crisis support when needed
During COVID, when a nonprofit needed emergency furlough planning, Resilia's experts were immediately available.
SOHROB NABATIAN
Director of Grantmaking
"In our research and experience, the gold standard of capacity building is really expensive. It's like half a million dollars [per organization], so it's just not feasible.
[Resilia is] like a lighter touch intervention, but it actually gives someone a lot of possibilities."
04
Results
Three years into their Resilia partnership, Kalliopeia has established a sustainable capacity building model that respects both their budget constraints and their grantees' autonomy.
Scalable Impact
Supporting more than 20 organizations with comprehensive capacity building for less than what one intensive intervention would cost. Only those with genuine need engage, providing honest data about actual capacity gaps versus mandatory attendance that obscures real needs.
Unexpected Insights
Usage patterns revealed surprising preferences—grantees Kalliopeia didn't expect to embrace peer learning became regular participants, and organizations were able to address critical issues without having to admit vulnerability to their funder.
Stronger Relationships
Transformed from prescriptive funder to infrastructure provider, eliminating the awkward triangulation of consultant relationships. Grantees now choose their own development paths while maintaining authentic partnerships with Kalliopeia focused on mission rather than perceived funder expectations.
05
Impact
All of Kalliopeia’s grantmaking is dedicated to people and projects that model cultural and ecological renewal rooted in reverent connection to the Earth. Within this overall focus, they have two strong currents of interconnected work.
Land Care
Kalliopeia supports projects from different cultural contexts that bring people into nourishing, reciprocal relationships with each other and the Earth.
Indigenous Leadership
Kalliopeia builds partnerships with Indigenous leaders who model ways of being in relationship with Mother Earth, and who serve as knowledge keepers and tradition bearers in their communities and beyond.