Request For Ideas

Purpose of the RFI

SAFSF is excited to announce the launch of our Request for Ideas (RFI). This initiative will gather ideas throughout the year for our general programming, with a specific call for 2025 SAFSF Forum submissions by Sunday, January 12. For this deadline, we are particularly seeking ideas that can be developed into proposals to engage a diverse range of funders—including philanthropy, community development finance institutions, public agencies, and impact investors—in strategies that drive systems change. These proposals can address elements of systems change  such as culture, policy, markets, and tools, all in support of building a more resilient, just, and democratic food and agriculture system.

Beyond this deadline, the RFI will remain open throughout the year to gather ongoing input and foster continuous dialogue with our network of collaborators. We aim to engage more broadly in partnership for the ongoing development of SAFSF’s programs, both for the Forum and future program initiatives.

SUBMIT AN IDEA

About the 2025 SAFSF Forum

The Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Funders (SAFSF) Forum is a unique gathering for the full capital spectrum of funders interested in education, skill building, and leadership development in food and agriculture. We will partner with the national ecosystem of funders, frontline community and movement leaders, and practitioners dedicated to advancing equity and sustainability in food and agriculture. The 2025 SAFSF Forum, hosted at the Tamaya Resort, in Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico, will focus on advancing solutions through a systems change approach, grounded in the values of resilience, justice, and democracy. 

Core Values & Co-Creation Approach

We are committed to making this process as inclusive and non-extractive as possible. As part of developing your proposal, please review SAFSF’s commitment to Social Justice and Racial Equity. We also encourage you to consider:

  • Collaborative Co-Creation: As desired, SAFSF will partner with contributors to refine session concepts, help identify speakers, and ensure accessibility and impact in the context of the broader program.
  • Mutual Benefit and Reciprocity: Especially for field-based learning experiences, sessions should provide tangible benefits for the local communities involved, ensuring a positive and reciprocal experience.
  • Compensation for Community Partners: All non-funder speakers and facilitators must be fairly compensated, with their travel and accommodation covered by their funder sponsor.
  • Accessibility and Inclusion: Sessions should prioritize inclusion for all participants, including people with disabilities and from varied socioeconomic backgrounds.

What We’re Looking For

We invite high-level ideas for workshops, structured networking, learning dinners, and field-based learning experiences that align with SAFSF’s vision for systems change in food and agriculture. This RFI is designed to be accessible and collaborative, providing an opportunity for potential collaborators to share their initial thoughts and receive support in developing full proposals. By engaging a broad range of voices—from frontline communities and movement leaders to funders, government leaders, field-based practitioners, and other stakeholders—we aim to create a program that is inclusive, equitable, and representative of diverse perspectives.

Session Types

We are seeking proposal ideas for the following session types:

  1. Panel Discussions and Workshops (90-minute sessions, up to 14 sessions)
    These sessions should be interactive, collaborative, and focus on actionable strategies that engage participants in systems change. We encourage innovative formats and activities that invite engagement and offer practical outcomes.
  2. Structured Networking (60-minute sessions, up to 8 sessions)
    These sessions offer a more casual setting for deeper conversations and connection—structured networking sessions are held during the day. We’re looking for ideas that encourage meaningful dialogue and help participants connect around shared interests.
  3. Learning Dinners (60 minute sessions, up to 6 sessions) These are programmed small-group dinner events, curated for deeper connection around specific topics or affinity groups. The Learning Dinners will take place on site at Tamaya Resort in reserved rooms with hotel catering.
  4. Field-Based Learning Experiences (3 half day, 4 full day)
    These sessions will take participants into the Albuquerque region to explore place-based solutions and challenges such as water rights, Indigenous agricultural practices, and climate resilience. We encourage concepts that benefit the work of on-the-ground hosts and are designed in collaboration with local communities. 
  5. Integrated Capital Case Studies with Breakouts (25 min panel + Breakout, 3 Sessions) These sessions explore the use of diverse capital forms to advance systems change across culture, policy, markets, and tools. Sessions will start with a 25-minute panel featuring successful case studies, followed by breakouts that encourage practical application, collaborative problem-solving, and peer learning. 
  6. Other Programming (for Annual Program Planning, not 2025 Forum)
    To collaborate on SAFSF virtual and in-person programs beyond the Forum, send us your idea for a session or program concept. Please provide as much detail as possible to help us understand your perspective on ways we can collaborate to advance systems change. Please indicate if you are submitting a forum idea that you also want to advance as a program idea.

Community Partners & Funder Commitments

While the Forum will continue to be a conference focused on building the funding field and funder learning, we recognize that the impact of funders is rooted in their connectivity and partnership with field leadership and advocates. Although it is impossible to fully eliminate power dynamics between funders and funding recipients, we are committed to ensuring that all participants feel welcomed, included, respected, and celebrated.

This year, SAFSF has a limited budget to support up to 20 community-based leaders as part of the plenary and program sessions. 

Please note: For plenary sessions, SAFSF staff will design the plenary sessions based on the ideas received through the RFI process, and then invite participants to collaborate and prepare for these sessions together.   

Funders who submit session proposals are expected to cover the registration, travel, and accommodations of their (non-funder) speakers, as well as a meaningful honoraria for their time and expertise. This requirement must be met for workshop proposals to be considered.

Submission Requirements

Please review the Frequently Asked Questions page and then submit your ideas by completing this form, which includes:

  • Concept Title and Session Type: Specify the type of session you’re proposing (e.g., workshop, table topic, field-based learning experience, or other programming).
  • High-Level Overview (up to 250 words): Provide a short description of your concept. Include your initial ideas for content, your collaborators, and how the session connects with SAFSF’s key themes of Resilience, Justice, and Democracy. Use the provided checklist in the form to indicate which themes your proposal addresses.
  • Social Justice & Racial Equity Focus (up to 100 words): How will your session center the experiences, perspectives, and expertise of marginalized communities, including but not limited to Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, 2SLGBTQ+, and low-income communities?
  • Preparation & Readiness Needs: SAFSF will provide typical conference speaker prep for each session. Let us know if you might need additional support from SAFSF, such as identifying speakers, accessibility needs, or help refining your content.
  • Additional Comments (up to 100 words): Share any other relevant information about your submission that you think would be helpful.
  • Suggested Speakers (Optional): Share any potential speakers you have in mind for this session. Please share their name, title, and organization.

No detailed budgets or confirmed speakers are required at this stage, but it is helpful to know other organizations you plan to work with and if you have specific speakers in mind or confirmed. Proposals for the 2025 Forum that are selected will be invited to discuss their concept with SAFSF staff and asked to submit more detailed information by mid-March 2025.

SUBMIT AN IDEA

Timeline for RFI Process

  • RFI Open House with SAFSF Team:
  • RFI Submission Deadline: Sunday, January 12, 2025, at midnight PST
    • Please note that submissions will be reviewed and prioritized on a rolling basis.
  • SAFSF Selection & Notification: January 31, 2025
  • Forum Orientation with SAFSF Team (30 min meeting): February 1 – March 15, 2025
  • Complete Proposals Due: March 15, 2025
  • Program and Speaker Prep (1-2 hours, optional): March 15 – May 30, 2025
  • Speakers & Agenda Finalized: April 14, 2025
  • 2025 SAFSF Forum Santa Ana Pueblo, NM: June 9-12, 2025 

Selection Criteria for Concepts

Concepts will be evaluated based on:

  • Relevance and Strategy: Does the concept make sense in the context of the 2025 SAFSF Forum’s themes? Is the content connected to a theory of systems change? Does the content offer actionable tools and insights for diverse types of funders to be more impactful and effective? 
  • Originality and Creativity: Does the session propose intentionally thoughtful formats? Does it incorporate diverse learning approaches, such as hands-on activities, storytelling, dialogue and participation, arts-based methods, or cultural practices that resonate within this setting?
  • Ecosystem Collaboration and Systems Change Levers: Does the session highlight opportunities for collaboration across the ecosystem, connecting funders with organizations and movements driving change? Does it emphasize strategic engagement with critical levers of systems change, such as policy shifts, cultural transformation, market innovation, or developing essential tools and resources for long-term impact?
  • Diversity, Equity, Inclusivity, and Accessibility: Does it center marginalized voices and ensure fair participation? Does the session design prioritize inclusion for all participants, considering accessibility and diverse backgrounds?
  • Impact: Does the session promote inclusive, community-led initiatives by locally rooted organizations – whether based in New Mexico or elsewhere? Will it help funders understand how to support and engage in efforts that empower communities to drive change in food and agriculture systems? Does it address power dynamics in a way that can open dialogue and cultivate more authentic relationships?

Next Steps

SAFSF will request those selected to be part of the 2025 Forum to provide more details. Selected partners will also be offered the opportunity to discuss and co-design your ideas further, as needed.  

Submitted ideas will also inform ongoing program partnerships and development throughout the year.  

We encourage you to sign up for one of our upcoming RFI Open Houses where our team will support potential collaborators in developing their ideas, review the process, discuss Frequently Asked Questions, and answer anything else still unresolved.

For questions or more information about this RFI, please contact the SAFSF Program Team at [email protected].

We look forward to reading your ideas and working together to build a just and equitable food and agriculture system.