A Short Survey Is Coming — Here's Why It Matters

Published on March 20, 2026

Dear GPC members,

We're reaching out to invite you to join a global effort launching this April: the first-ever State of Changemaker Wellbeing Survey — and a genuine sector-shaping moment for everyone working in social change.

We know changemakers are being asked to do more with less, under increasing strain and complexity. Yet there is almost no rigorous data to back this up. This survey aims to change that.

Led by The Wellbeing Project in partnership with the Center for Healthy Minds at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, under the leadership of Dr. Richie Davidson, the survey is built on internationally validated scientific scales, has undergone IRB ethical review, and takes under 10 minutes to complete. It will be available in 12 languages. The goal is to reach 10,000–15,000 changemakers globally — building the first credible, large-scale dataset on how people in social change are actually doing, across regions, roles, and agendas. Foundations already on board include IKEA Foundation, Porticus, Skoll, Hewlett, and others.

The findings will be presented at major philanthropic convenings including WINGS and Philea, published in media, and used to advocate for greater investment in changemaker wellbeing. Our hope is that this becomes a biennial benchmark the field can use to track progress and make the case for more support.

We'd love to invite you to share this survey with your grantee partners.

What participation involves:

  • Foundations send a short advance notice (mid to early April), one launch email (April 13), and up to three reminders to their grantee partners — all copy is provided and IRB-approved
  • For grantees, the survey takes 9–10 minutes to complete
  • Participation is entirely voluntary and responses are anonymous

If your foundation would like to join, we'd love to hear from you by  March 20 — express your interest here and The Wellbeing Project will be in touch to get you set up.

If you have any questions please reach out to Dana Preston, [email protected].

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