The Role of Philanthropy in Strengthening the U.S.–Mexico Relationship

Reflections from the 2026 MAPA Summit in Mexico City

The U.S.–Mexico relationship is shaped by more than trade, migration, and government policy. It is also shaped by communities of the diaspora, civil society, philanthropy, businesses, cultural leaders, and the relationships that connect people across borders.

Creating stronger bridges for those sectors to work together was at the heart of the 2026 MAPA Summit, held this past July in Mexico City. The Summit brought together more than 150 participants from Mexico and the United States, including elected officials, Latino Caucus leaders from more than 10 states, nonprofit advocates, philanthropy representatives, and business leaders. Across three days, participants explored issues including trade, migration, workforce development, elections, education, and sustainable growth, while creating space for cultural exchange and relationship-building.

As a proud sponsor of the 2026 MAPA Summit, we were also honored to lead a conversation with philanthropic leaders, “The Role of Philanthropy in Strengthening the U.S.–Mexico Relationship.” We were joined by Arturo Carmona, President of the Mexican-American Policy Alliance, and Ximena Andión, Regional Director for Mexico and Central America at the Ford Foundation, who brought their perspectives grounded the discussion in both policy and philanthropic practice. Together, we brought foundations working in Mexico to consider what a stronger binational philanthropic ecosystem could look like.

Our conversation was designed to begin with listening. Alongside Arturo and Ximena, we asked philanthropic leaders what they are focused on, whether their work already touches the U.S.–Mexico relationship, what concerns they have about the binational landscape, and what would need to be true for them to feel confident exploring deeper collaboration.

The gathering surfaced an important thread: there is already significant binational philanthropic activity. The opportunity is to make the ecosystem more connected, visible, trusted, and strategic.

Twenty Foundations, many Shared Questions

Approximately 20 foundations working in Mexico participated in the conversation. Many participants revealed that they were already engaged in work that demonstrated a binational or cross-border dimension. Specifically focusing on migration, border communities, cross-border philanthropy, knowledge exchange, and international collaboration.

Some foundations are supporting scholarships for Mexican students to study abroad, particularly in health-related fields, responding to gaps in specialized skills and language access.

Others are working on water rights and community access to water, including efforts to protect communities from the concentration and corporate capture of natural resources.

Foundations are also investing in arts and culture, recognizing their importance to community identity and connection.

And some are supporting returnee communities, including efforts to protect assets and wealth that people have built in the United States but can lose access to when they are deported or return to Mexico.

While these are a few examples, the conversation covered a range of issues, from health and medical training to education, economic development, migration, civil society, climate, human rights, and civic participation. These examples illustrate an important point: the issues affecting communities in Mexico and the United States are often interconnected, even when philanthropic institutions are structured around national boundaries.

Building the Infrastructure for Binational Philanthropy

One of the clearest challenges raised during the conversation was fragmentation. There is not a lack of philanthropic activity, but a lack of connection among efforts already happening.

There was also the challenge of the fiscal and regulatory landscape surrounding cross-border philanthropy. For example, Mexican law places restrictions on authorized philanthropic entities making donations outside the country. This means that Mexican foundations seeking to support work across borders cannot always move philanthropic resources directly to organizations in other countries. Participants noted that the role of fiscal sponsorship and other intermediary mechanisms have been important in facilitating collaboration.

But the conversation made clear that the challenge is not only about moving money. We also need to build the relationships that allow money, knowledge, and ideas to move across borders. Trust specifically emerged as essential infrastructure. The need for trust between funders, but also with community organizations and intermediaries that can facilitate philanthropic efforts.

One of the main takeaways from the conversation was that many foundations did not know enough about one another’s work. There was also limited awareness of U.S.-based philanthropic organizations working on similar issues.

That knowledge gap is significant. If funders do not know who is working on related issues, it becomes harder to identify opportunities to collaborate, share learning, coordinate investments, or build complementary strategies.

Creating opportunities for funders to meet one another is not simply a networking exercise. It is part of building the infrastructure for stronger philanthropy across borders instead of thinking we need to create a new infrastructure from scratch.

Before there can be shared investments, there must be shared understanding. Before there can be binational strategies, there must be relationships. And before there can be trust, there must be opportunities to listen and learn from one another.

From Conversation to Connection

The gathering did not end with formal funding commitments. Instead, participants expressed interest in continuing the conversation and creating more opportunities for relationship-building.

Among the possibilities discussed were:

Future peer convenings for philanthropic leaders to continue learning from one another.
Study trips that could connect Mexican foundations with philanthropic counterparts in the United States.
Stronger connections among donor networks, community foundations, and other existing philanthropic infrastructure across Mexico and the U.S.
Opportunities for MAPA and its partners to facilitate these connections and help foundations better understand the philanthropic landscape on both sides of the border.

These next steps may be the beginning of something larger.

A study trip, for example, can become more than an exchange of ideas. It can help funders see one another’s work firsthand, develop trust, identify shared priorities, and create relationships that may eventually lead to deeper collaboration.

Philanthropy as a Bridge

For HIP, this conversation reflects a broader belief: building and funding Latine power requires us to recognize the connections that already exist across borders.

Latine communities are not defined by a single geography. Families, cultures, ideas, resources, businesses, and movements have long moved between Mexico, the United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean. It also means acknowledging that the conversations are taking place within a complex environment for civil society. There is a changing landscape for human rights, climate justice, violence and forced disappearances, as well as the realities that shape community-based work in different territories.

Our philanthropic systems need to better reflect those realities so that resources, knowledge, and relationships can move across borders.

This means investing in locally rooted leadership. It means creating spaces where funders can share knowledge rather than operate in isolation. And it means recognizing that philanthropy has a role to play in strengthening the broader civic, economic, and social ties that shape the U.S.–Mexico relationship.

The MAPA Summit created an important space for that possibility.

We are grateful to MAPA, the Ford Foundation, all our philanthropic partners, and the leaders who joined us in Mexico City for bringing curiosity, expertise, and openness to this conversation.

There is no single solution to building stronger binational collaboration. But there is an important first step: bringing the people who are already doing the work together.

And that is where bridges begin.