2026 Birth Justice Capital Summit
Funding Forward For Birth Justice
Aligning Capital. Strengthening Community Infrastructure.
Event Details
Date: October 20-22, 2026
Location: Detroit, MI
Across the country, community-based birth justice organizations are advancing solutions that improve maternal and infant health outcomes. Yet the infrastructure sustaining this work remains underfunded and fragmented.
The Birth Justice Capital Summit brings philanthropic partners and community leaders together to align funding around three core durability priorities and identify coordinated investment opportunities using a shared national ecosystem map already in development.
What This Summit Is Designed To Do
This gathering is structured to support capital alignment across the birth justice ecosystem.
Participants will:
- Engage a developing national ecosystem map
- Learn from funder–field investment partnerships already underway
- Identify priority investment opportunities together
- Strengthen coordination across philanthropy and community leadership
- Help shape next-stage infrastructure strategies
The Three Durability Lanes
Funders for Birth Justice & Equity organizes investment across three core durability lanes that support the long-term stability of the birth justice ecosystem.
These lanes reflect patterns emerging across community-based organizations nationwide and provide a shared structure for aligning capital with solutions already in motion.
Workforce Durability & Caregiver Sustainability
Supporting the people carrying birth justice work:
- Doulas
- Midwives
- Community health workers
- Peer navigators
- Community-based organization staff
Investment opportunities include:
- Certification pathways
- Leadership pipelines
- Mental health support
- Retention infrastructure
Organizational Stability & Institutional Capacity
Strengthening organizations as long-term community anchors:
- Multi-year general operating support
- Staffing infrastructure
- Benefits and retention systems
- Operational reserves
- Leadership sustainability
Community-Based Birth Infrastructure
Expanding access to culturally aligned care environments:
- Birth centers
- Midwifery collectives
- Community perinatal hubs
- Facility stabilization and expansion
FAQ
What is the Ecosystem Map?
FBJE has begun building a national birth justice ecosystem map that makes visible where investment is flowing—and where it is not.
At the summit, participants will engage this shared picture together to:
- Identify funding gaps
- Surface emerging infrastructure
- Highlight collaboration opportunities
- Strengthen alignment across durability lanes
This work reflects what the field is already building, and where coordinated capital can accelerate progress.
Why Detroit?
Detroit represents a powerful example of community-rooted maternal health leadership and Black-led infrastructure innovation.
The summit will be grounded in the city’s legacy of organizing, mutual aid, and institution-building, including the work of leaders advancing community-owned birth center models and neighborhood-based care systems.
Participants will have opportunities to engage directly with Detroit’s birth justice ecosystem.
Who Participates in the Summit?
The summit brings together:
- Philanthropic leaders
- Community-based birth justice organizations
- Birth center and midwifery leaders
- Intermediaries and ecosystem partners
- Adjacent-sector funders supporting housing, mental health, early childhood, and economic stability
Travel and lodging support is available to community-based organization participants to ensure representation and collaboration.
What Do Participants Leave With?
Participants will leave with:
- A shared view of the national birth justice ecosystem
- Visibility into coordinated funding opportunities
- Relationships across philanthropy and community leadership
- Alignment pathways within the durability lanes
- Opportunities to continue engagement through FBJE membership
Sponsored By
