Ankita Patel

Ankita Patel (she/her), J.D., is a philanthropic strategist and coalition builder with over two decades of experience advancing equity-centered giving and movement building. Ankita has led major initiatives across some of philanthropy's most respected institutions. Most recently, as the Principal and Founder of Rooted Confluence Consulting, Ankita supported the Washington Immigrant & Refugee Funders Collaborative in their governance, operations and strategic planning, and led several sessions support individual donors and institutional philanthropy in integrating advocacy and democracy work as a key lever for impact in their portfolios. She has also served as Director of Social Impact at Panorama Global, where she shaped field building strategies for collaborative giving, managed The Ascend Fund around women of color's political power, and moved over $1M to women-of-color-led organizations in just 60 days. As Senior Advisor to Tides Advocacy and Tides Foundation, she deployed $20M in rapid-response funding. Earlier, at Philanthropy Northwest, she led policy and advocacy strategy across a 150-member philanthropic network and launched the Washington Census Equity Fund bringing together the philanthropic sector in an unprecedented manner to resource an accurate count, and at the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, she managed a portfolio of federal and state funds supporting survivor safety and immigrant rights. A published thought leader, Ankita has written on issues ranging from a funder’s guide on image-based sexual violence to census equity to protections for trafficking survivors. She serves on multiple nonprofit boards, including the Pride Foundation, Progress Alliance of Washington and the Washington State Budget & Policy Center, and holds a J.D. from Seattle University School of Law. Ankita leads with integrity, curiosity, and a conviction that philanthropy is at its best when it shares power rather than simply distributing resources.