Invest in “The Middle”: Why We Need Intermediaries Like IISC
July 14, 2026
The other day, in a fundraising conversation at IISC, we were discussing the perception that several funders that we know are moving away from investing in intermediaries – capacity-builders and those who support the infrastructure of the nonprofit ecosystem. Instead, they are focused on getting money to the “front lines” – community organizers and movement leaders, who are often those first in the line of fire from those who wield their power inappropriately.
In certain regards it makes sense to bring financial resources right to the action-takers and service providers. But it also made me scratch and shake my head when I think of it with the framing from energy systems science (ESS), a field that looks at how systems thrive and regenerate.
What Healthy Systems Teach Us
One of the valuable observations from ESS is that healthy complex systems tend to have combinations of many small entities, fewer mid-sized ones, and even fewer large ones, that are linked and create important pathways for the flow of crucial resources. Think of a river delta, a tree branching structure, or veins in a leaf or in our human bodies (see graphic below).
Figure adapted from Sally Goerner, Regenerative Development: The Art and Science of Creating Durably Vibrant Human Networks (Capital Institute, 2015).
This structure helps resources, information, and support flow throughout a system so that communities on the ground can be strong amidst unpredictable turbulence (environmental, economic, cultural, political). This is crucial for any complex system’s “regenerative capacity,” or its ability to maintain long-term vitality, whether we are talking about banking and finance structures, complex human communities, or more-than-human ecosystems.
The Danger of a “Top Heavy” System
Something that can make a system fragile and unsustainable is when it becomes “top-heavy” – those at the top of the structure (aka “functional” hierarchy) suck up and hoard too many resources, essentially starving the rest of the system. This is obvious to many of us in these times of hyper-extraction and oligarchic capitalism. Another phenomenon that destabilizes a structure is when there is a hollowing out of the middle. For example, if you only have very large banks and/or other financial structures along with very small would-be recipients of funding, those on “the bottom” can easily get overwhelmed. And the entire system becomes destabilized with its “teetering top.” What is needed is a mitigating/mediating structure (for example, mid-sized banks/financial organizations) that can handle the flows from the top and then sustainably pass funding and other resources along.
The Missing Middle
We are hearing stories of many people who are suffering because of the shrinking middle – small municipalities and organizations suddenly receiving large amounts of federal funding they do not have the staffing or infrastructure to manage, and people spiraling in anger/outrage for lack of mediators who might otherwise help hold spaces for peaceful discussion and debate between (and among) those on top and those on the bottom. We also see growing challenges in the shrinking space of intentional and collective learning, which we can think about as sitting between total comfort with status quo and change that takes us into our “panic zone.” When a funder/financier says that they don’t think that “the middle” matters at this time, they are essentially contributing to the hollowing out and a further weakening of crumbling systems.
As an organization that plays a connective function, we at IISC know the value of “mediating” in a variety of ways (including through facilitation, convening, network weaving), as well as distributing key lessons from and to the roots (training and coaching). Others play crucial roles that can provide different kinds of cover, buffer and support for those who feel under threat and/or are overstretched. The point being that so much value is created in these spaces between “top and bottom,” core and periphery. And we are seeing this value being increasingly devalued.
Bridging Toward What Comes Next
The middle can definitely be a lonely place these days. And of course, that matters to those of us who can function as connectors in a variety of ways. But it is also true that this should matter to everyone, including funders/financiers, because the “missing middle” will continue to contribute to bloating the top, overwhelming and/or starving the bottom and risk taking us into very dark times.
Furthermore, as some necessary destruction and unraveling happens to dominant and dysfunctional systems of all kinds, some things will need to hold together – another role for IISC and others engaged in connecting/mediating work: bridging for and to the new! For more on this, see our posts, “Why Invest in Networks Now” and “Networks as Stabilizers: Leveraging Collective Possibilities During Transitions.”
Curious to hear your thoughts and reactions.
