Author: camilleacey

I did not expect to be here at the end of the year. At the beginning of this year, I had (yes) purchased this domain and (yes) set up this website and (also yes) started offering the hotline. However, in the back of mind I figured I would end up back at a tech job, and this whole thing would be something I’d maybe do in my free time on evenings and weekends. Instead, I am here in December having spent the whole year working almost entirely on growing this business.

Before the year is out, I wanted to share a little of what I have learned, what I have achieved, what I have struggled with, and also show gratitude for the people that have showed me a lot of care and support over this very unanticipated year.

Listening Is The Main Thing

Product-Market Fit unlocked! People understand and value what I am offering. I have talked to a LOT of new people this year and everyone I talk to immediately understands the value of making endings better, hospicing what isn’t working, and gathering up the learnings and skills and people to nurture whatever comes next.

The free “hotline” calls started out as a way to validate my idea while also exploring how I could be of help to people in the sort of mission-driven organizations I would like to service. I have been bowled over by people’s willingness to be extremely raw and honest with me about their closure journey, and they have been grateful for someone neutral and non-judgmental to lend a listening ear. For those who don’t know me personally, I can be a bit of a chatterbox, so these calls have been an opportunity to train deeper listening and just be present.

People aren’t looking for me to fix things or offer solutions or point out silver linings, they mostly just want to be heard. Many times people have told me that the “nuts and bolts” of shutting down are “the easy part”; they reach out to me — a total stranger! — because they don’t have anywhere to go with all the feelings, anxieties, regrets, resentments and sometimes even sighs of relief that might be kicking up. Sure, if I can point out some things they might want to consider, all the better, but the listening is the thing.

The Field Doesn’t Have This Figured Out

Part of my hope in starting The Wind Down was that I would find out if anybody else had the challenge of “delivering better organizational endings” all figured out. Over the year, primarily through facilitating the Compost and Hospicing community of practice, I have been blessed to connect with so many BRILLIANT souls who all have one piece of the puzzle, but I — so far — only have a few peers who are holding civil society closures as their actual work day in and day out, and the great majority of them are across the pond in the UK rather than here in the US.

I’ve even had conversations with seasoned folks who’ve spent their entire careers in civil society and here they are asking little old me for suggestions and advice! This is all mostly unexcavated terrain! No one really knows much of anything! We are all slowly fashioning it together!

As political and socioeconomic climates continue their twists and turns alongside (and even hastening!) environmental collapse, I can only imagine this work becoming more urgent and hopefully better funded. As Ginie Servant-Miklos says in her new book Pedagogies of Collapse,

“This leaves us with two alternatives, in my view: deliberately dismantle thermo-industrial civilization now or let it collapse in an uncontrolled manner later. The temporal distance between the two choices is probably only a matter of one or two decades…The reason we are advocating for controlled degrowth is because the alternatives are much, much worse.” – Ginie Servant-Miklos

Sunsetting At Scale

I started the year thinking I might eventually want to work one-to-one with nonprofit teams who are in the process of closing, but the more I connected with leaders carrying out and/or contemplating closure, the more I began to feel like the real work is to work with groups of groups, speak at conferences, engage social enterprise incubators and accelerators, and maybe even write a book?

I am not saying I would flat-out refuse to work directly with just one group, but the issue feels urgent and one-to-one feels too slow. Some days, I feel like I want to run out and stop people before they start again! Or at least warn them to not get starry eyed about “new shiny”.

As Lee Vinsel and Andy Russell said in their pivotal Aeon article Hail The Maintainers

“In formal economic terms, ‘innovation’ involves the diffusion of new things and practices. The term is completely agnostic about whether these things and practices are good. Crack cocaine, for example, was a highly innovative product in the 1980s, which involved a great deal of entrepreneurship (called ‘dealing’) and generated lots of revenue. Innovation! Entrepreneurship! Perhaps this point is cynical, but it draws our attention to a perverse reality: contemporary discourse treats innovation as a positive value in itself, when it is not.” – Lee Vinsel and Andy Russell

Ushering The New AND The Old

When I threw myself into this work, I just sorta blanketed the spaces where my various communities hang out. Mailing lists, Slacks, Mastodon, LinkedIn, and also lots of random, cold emails to people who I admired and hoped I could talk to. I have been bowled over by how responsive so many total strangers were.

I have meet soooooo many super fantabulous people this year; some have become actual factual friends, while others who have just kept incessantly bringing my name up to people in conversations. Along the way, I have also had to (in true Wind Down-fashion) close some doors. Since I spent the first quarter of the year thinking I was going back to work in tech, I was juggling a lot of identities and jumping back and forth over a pretty “high fence”, but once I decided The Wind Down is what I do now, I knew I had to duck out of my “old life”. It was with a heavy heart that I logged out of some of those Slacks and unsubscribed from a bunch of those mailing lists. I also unfollowed many, many old tech colleagues and replaced them with people who were working in facilitation or in the impact space or at foundations. I also — just last week — loaded up over a decade’s worth of books I’d collected from my old field and put them, on-by-one in a local free library box down the street. I hope other people enjoy them! I now have space on my shelf for all the nerdy books I have on death and endings, ha!

I was going to start naming the names of the people I am grateful to/for here, but I am afraid I will forget someone and start kicking myself. I feel like the real ones all know and have been profusely thanked. The one thing I will mention is that I am a member of IMMA Collective, a global community of mission-driven solopreneurs and they have been in my corner all year long. They are the people I go to first with all my challenges, frustrations, confusion, and wins. It has so amazing to be building my own business but not even for a second feel alone. Thanks to Lilli and everyone who makes IMMA IMMA. #fuckitmode !

As part of my work developing The Wind Down, I have been bookmarking the websites of sunset nonprofits for the past few years. As my list grew, someone suggested that maybe we needed a “museum of closed nonprofits“, (hat tip, Kyle Soo) so I went ahead and created one. And then a few months after that, I started my newsletter Closing Remarks where I cover all sorts of pauses and endings in the public sector.

Although a news article or an email from a friend often alerts me to the impending closure, I often have to visit the organization’s website to gather details that help me color the story. As such, I have perused the websites of hundreds — if not thousands! — of shuttered and shuttering civil society organizations.

Even when an organization is open and in good health, a website often has so much work to do. It needs to be a place to share your message, collect donations, entice funders, spread news, attract job candidates, and often much more. While a well-funded and growing group can often turn to a professional to craft their messaging and build their website, the work and language of drawing that work to a close in a meaningful way usually requires a slightly different mindset and skillset. No more is the focus on search engine optimization and flashy graphics, now the site needs to be a time capsule, a signpost, and a monument.

In my travels across the internet of wound-down, well-meaning organizations, a checklist has begun to form in my head of critical elements that need to be added, removed, or finalized on a website before the lights go out. My hope is that these building blocks can help you erect a tombstone site that you can be proud of for years to come.

Share your timeline

Why did your group start and when? Inquiring minds want to know! With the cessation of your operations, your About page really should be a History page instead, outlining the when, how, and what of your organization. This is your time to brag about your accomplishments! Not only will this be informative for curious souls like me, but it can also be a resource for your former employees who might be able to share the information there as they look for their next roles.

One foundation that did a beautiful of sharing its history is the Kendeda Fund; their “visual garden” features numerous highlights from its 30 years of giving.

Tell your ending story

You will also want to add information about why you decided to shut down, what went into the decision, and maybe any advice or valuable learnings for groups that might find themselves in a similar situation. By being as transparent as you can about the wind down, you:

• ward against rampant gossip and hearsay;
• work to protect the reputation of past collaborators; and
• help to secure your legacy;
• and pave the way for those who will pick up this mission in the future.

The 2024 conclusion of the annual Allied Media Conference was preceded by two “in chryalis” years of pause followed by one final conference and a loving writeup of why the Allied Media collective decided now was the time to end it.

Put up critical signposts

If your group provides services to a public that is likely to be somewhat left in the lurch by your disappearance, you should also do your best to point people in the direction of organizations who they can turn to, to fill the gap. You will, of course, need to try and make sure those other agencies and/or nonprofits have the capacity to help by connecting with them to let them know the situation. You certainly don’t want to overwhelm another group who might already be on the ropes, but trying to provide a soft landing for those that relied on you goes a long way to protect your reputation and abide by your mission until the very end.

When the administrators of The College of St. Rose in Albany, New York realized they would have to cease operations after nearly 80 years, they realized that the first order of business was ensuring the well-being of current and past students. They created and shared a “Teach Out Plan” to help everyone understand the timeline and their options for either transferring to a new university or obtaining important records that they might need in order to pursue future work and/or educational opportunities.

Secure your archives

Over the life of your work, you will likely generate many resources, reports, and tools that could be helpful to whoever comes along to drive forward the mission. As part of the effort to “tombstone” your website, you will want to think about how and where you might want to organize and place these digital resources so others can get their hands on them.

As activist collective The Rules worked to put a bow on their efforts with meticulous archiving of all their resources, they decided to upload their open source “culture hacking” tools to public code-sharing site GitHub so that others could use and improve.

The Rules gets bonus points for putting those tools up in a more public place than their website so they are protected against the possibility of their own website going down. Websites going down because of unpaid web hosting bills is a sad but true fact of nonprofit endings.

…..and also remember to:

• tell an expansive story – If possible, reach out to as many former stakeholders as possible. Explore how their voices can be included in the final story of the organization.
• cease submissions – if you have been soliciting mailing list signups, donations or anything else. Please remove and disable all such buttons and forms. If you wish, you might encourage people to donate to partner organizations.
• update all your channels -Don’t just update your website, please make sure your physical location, your voicemail, and all your social media channels make it clear that you are closed. Too often, I encounter organizations that have a decent tombstone site but still have Facebook pages or Instagram profiles that on first glance make it look like they are still active.
• pay your bills and make a plan – This is a tricky one, but — if you can — pay to keep your website up for a meaningful, agreed-upon period of time before your bank accounts are closed. You will also want to decide whether you want to let it die after that or if you can find some other way for the most valuable/valued aspects to be preserved. Whatever you decide, make sure it is communicated!

While this likely won’t be easy, when done with time and care, turning your site into a tribute to the work you did can be transformative and healing. As each team member contributes to finalizing the website, you can move closer to crafting a narrative that will be valuable to many in the future.

If your organization needs support building your tombstone site or simply supporting you through a closure, don’t hesitate to reach out!

In talking to people on the hotline, I meet them where they are in their closing journey. While some of them are certain they are closing, others are entering a period of deep discernment around the future of the group. When I hear a large amount of uncertainty, I will often suggest that they consider the possibility of pausing operations.

Pausing operations can give the organization time to:

• give the staff, board, volunteers, members time to address symptoms and causes of burnout;
• talk to funders about the situation;
• connect with partners about your challenges; and
• assess the impact of your organization’s (temporary) absence from the ecosystem.

Over the years, I’ve collected a few examples of inspirational nonprofit pauses. Here are a few I really like.

In 2018, Allied Media Conference decided to take a year (2019) off to think about how they wanted to move forward after 20 years of operation. As part of the “chrysalis” period, they decided the conference would shift from annual to biannual. 2020 was the first virtual conference, with 2022 marking the final gathering.

In 2023, the parent organization Allied Media Projects announced that the conference would be sunsetting.

New Constellations’ Pause

New Constellations is a time-bound global initiative to support transformative community building. They announced their pause in 2024 after five years of operation.

SAALT’s Year of Chrysalis

South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT) announced a pause in late 2023. The group offers programs to support new immigrants, gather South Asian American leaders, and develop youth leadership. Their focus during this time of discernment is to try and tackle caste-ism in their ranks.

While every pause is unique to the group and context, there are a few elements that make for a considered and successful pause period. Here are the aspects I have observed.

Structure the Pause

Determine Operations Level

Before you declare that you are in an organizational pause, you will need to define what pause will actually mean for your group. It can vary depending on the size of your organizations and the nature of you current commitments.

At Allied Media, their pause period did not mean bringing all operations to a stopping point. They operate as funders, facilitators, and fiscal sponsors, and that work needed to go on.

In another case, a community nonprofit noted that a possible pause could mean simply letting the existing programs, which were in partnership with a local school, run through the end of the school year and then not renew for the coming school year.

Your team will need to decide what can be stopped completely, keep running at a low hum, or remain functioning “as normal”.

Plan Some Activities

You will also need to develop arough outline of what you want to actually do during this time. Will you do a staff or board retreat? Will you have strategic board meetings?

You should consider connecting with a facilitator to explore how they might hold space for your group to have these necessary tough discussions. While the executive director or board president may be the person that normally facilitates gatherings, bringing in outside help gives them the permission to put their energy into group in a new and necessary way.

The pause is also a good time to consult with your funders and strategic partners. These people could have useful guidance for you, and in some cases, strategic partners might be able to help take over some of your programming or even be able to facilitate a merger or acquisition.

Set A Timeline

In addition to agreeing on how much to tune down operations and what you want to do during this time, you will also want to time-box your pause. It important to give yourself a reasonable deadline to make decisions. Aim to set a timeline that is sufficient to accomplish the tasks you laid out in the previous step with a little padding to accommodate the normal rhythms of life.

Communicate the Pause

Once you’ve determined the rough outlines of your pause, you need to let everyone know what is going on. In many communities, word travels fast so it’s important to make sure that internal people know fairly early on and don’t feel blindsided. You also need to communicate this shift to your fundraisers, your partners, and the greater public. Make sure to put a notice and explainer on your website and any social media your organization uses.

Note: You don’t have to use the word “chrysalis”!

Reporting Back

During and after your break, sharing what is going on/ went on can help foster transparency and trust within your community and the larger ecosystem. The challenges your organization is facing are likely not unique to you, and the lessons you learn can offer up a path forward to others who are facing similar situations. Update your blog and social media to let everyone know what’s up!

After Allied Media ended its chrysalis year, it shared its takeaways in several places, and it even cited conversations from the chrysalis year when they decided to transition their executive director two years later.

Take Action

Finally, after you’ve exited your own organization’s “cocoon”, it will be time to embark on actions to either spin back up operations to the new level, make staffing changes, articulate a new mission, or shift your focus to winding down operations. While you will have reported back via public channels, the same people who you communicated the pause to will also need to be informed of what the plan and direction will be moving forward.

While there is power in the pause, it is important to note that the pause is not a time of inaction, it is a time of active inventory and introspection. You will need to be available to meet, assess, brainstorm, and have deeply honest conversations about where you are now, how you got there, and possible paths forward.

If you don’t have a critical core of people on board to do this, it might be a sign that a considered closure is a better way forward. Saying “paused” when you mean “closed” can cause confusion and engender mistrust amongst your funders, partners, and the community you serve.

If there is only a little bit of gas left in the tank, I’ve found that it is better used to give the organization a respectful sunset. Using those final pushes to tie up loose ends, can ensure that you leave behind an honorable legacy and useful breadcrumbs for whoever picks up the work in the future.

(For more on this topic, check out the article “Permission To Pause” by The (now-defunct) Whitman Institute)

Hi friends! I started a newsletter. It’s called Closing Remarks and it’s gonna be a semi-regular (maybe twice a month?) roundup of links related to non-profit closures and the assumed connection between longevity and impact.

You can see the first issue and sign up for it below or here.