Alice Clifford is a strategic philanthropy advisor with over a decade of experience working across the Irish social impact ecosystem. She has held senior roles in philanthropy and nonprofit organisations, including at Ireland’s Social Innovation Fund, and has served as Chief Executive Officer of a national nonprofit organisation.

Her work spans philanthropic fund management, nonprofit strategy and fundraising, and cross-sector partnership development. This provides a strong understanding of how funding can be deployed effectively to support long-term social impact.

Through her experience as a fundraiser, she has also engaged with philanthropic networks in the United States through The Ireland Funds, including time spent in San Francisco, where philanthropy is highly developed and advisory support is widely used. This exposure highlighted a clear gap in Ireland, where demand for strategic philanthropic guidance is growing but specialist advisory services remain limited.

Philanthropy is becoming an increasingly important part of the funding landscape in Ireland, driven by rising private wealth and greater engagement from individuals, foundations and corporate funders. However, many donors are seeking structured, independent support to ensure their giving is strategic, informed and impactful.

The Changemakery was established to meet this need. It provides research-led advisory services that support clients to understand complex issues, identify high-impact opportunities and design thoughtful, long-term funding strategies.

The approach is rigorous, independent and grounded in deep sector knowledge, with a focus on enabling more effective, intentional and impactful philanthropy.