The future is ours when we build it together.
Our Vision
Resilient and Inclusive Systems and Communities
The Big Table Institute operates at the intersection of entrepreneurship, systems change, and community-rooted innovation. We are a Maryland-based 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to connecting and empowering civic builders and mission-driven professionals to collaboratively create transformative, market-driven change in their communities.
Through this effort, we see a unique opportunity to help stakeholders reimagine policies, processes, and power structures within the Impact Economy and promote network models to help decentralize value creation and increase resilience, transparency, and equity for a future we build together.
Impact-First Orientation
Market-driven, human-centered solutions built around relevance, not just scalability
Dynamic Intellectual Ecosystem
Bringing together people, resources, and data to create, share, and transform knowledge
Activated Community
Highly-talented individuals united behind a shared vision of collective impact and civic responsibility
Purpose-Aligned Capital
Solutions to propel impact
“If your dreams do not scare you, they are not big enough.”
~ Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, former president of Liberia
Our Community
Mission-Driven, Civic-Minded, and Collaborative
We seek to build an ecosystem that prioritizes transparent communication, intentional collaboration, trusting relationships, and information sharing to facilitate the rapid proliferation of new ideas, partnerships, and impactful enterprises.
We operate at the intersection of:
- Innovation
- Inclusion
- Entrepreneurship
- Economic Development
Our Priorities
Strengthen Ecosystem Capacity for Transformative Change
We recognize the unique set of challenges facing civic builders and mission-driven professionals in our current social, political, and economic environment.
The Big Table Institute has lofty goals, but we do not intend to achieve them on our own. We believe we can work together to build and fund new engines of resilience. Learn more about our hypotheses here.
Let’s Build Our Future Together!
Our name reflects our intentional strategy to connect and collaborate with other mission-aligned stakeholders in the Washington, DC region and beyond.
We seek to align with partners who value systems-thinking approaches to impact investing and ecosystem development and recognize the critical role of strategic partnerships in unlocking sustainable social change.
Stakeholder Convening
Strengthen community-building and trust infrastructure across regions
Blended Finance Solutions
Activating public, private, and philanthropic capital
Community-Driven Innovation
Network-based, Entrepreneurship-led strategy
Real-time Data Feedback Loops
Guide adaptive programming and measure collective impact