Community

BEA’s membership fosters relationships and collaboration among grassroots groups, values-aligned philanthropy, and national environmental organizations through virtual caucuses and in-person programming. Our caucuses provide space for organizations from different sectors to support and strengthen grassroots organizations working toward environmental justice.

Green Caucus

National environmental organizations come together for community learning and to champion community-led solutions within their organizations.
Grassroots Caucus

Frontline communities collaborate to facilitate deeper connections, share insight into the sector's needs, and build collective power.
Funder Ally Caucus

Values-aligned funders share an analysis of the landscape and trends in philanthropy. Caucus members find avenues to support the work of Grassroots members.

Member Programming

At BEA, capacity building is core to how we shift power across the environmental movement. We invest in the people, systems, and relationships that sustain grassroots organizations, recognizing that long-term impact depends not just on funding, but on the ability to operate, adapt, and lead effectively. Our member programming creates spaces for shared learning, practical problem-solving, and peer connection, strengthening individual organizations while building the collective capacity and alignment needed to advance environmental justice.

Operations Exchange

Behind every effective organization is the infrastructure that sustains it. The Operations Exchange supports staff managing finance, HR, and operational systems across BEA’s network, roles that are often under-resourced but critical to long-term sustainability.

Through quarterly sessions led by field experts, participants engage in focused learning on topics like fiscal sponsorship, employer benefits, contracting, cybersecurity and more. Each session combines practical guidance with real-time problem-solving, giving participants space to bring current challenges and to leave with actionable solutions.

This is capacity-building in practice: strengthening the systems that allow grassroots organizations to grow, adapt, and lead.

Development Peer Exchange

Fundraising is one of the most challenging and isolating functions for grassroots organizations, especially in a shifting philanthropic landscape.

BEA’s Development Hours brings grassroots fundraisers together in a lightly facilitated space to connect, share strategies, and navigate real-time challenges. These sessions prioritize peer learning, honest conversation, and resource sharing, creating a trusted environment where participants can test ideas, get feedback, and strengthen their approach to development.

Led by BEA and partners in the field, this exchange builds not just individual skills, but a stronger, more connected fundraising ecosystem across the movement.