Which side of a funding relationship changes to match the other: the place’s work, or the funder’s money.
Extended definition
In the philosophy of action, a shopping list and a detective’s record of the same purchases have opposite directions of fit: when they differ, the record is corrected to match the world, and the world (the basket) is what falls short of the list. The wiki applies the idea to funding. Where a place rewrites its plans to qualify for a program, the place’s work fits the funder. Where outside money is tested against work and terms the place has already stated, the money fits the place. The founding suite assumes the second, and the concept page sets out the checks that keep a run of the suite there.
Contrast with adjacent terms
Needed vs. Needy names two postures. Direction of fit names what decides between them in any single relationship, so a cohort can ask it of each grant, patron or instrument.
Related terms
Sources
- Anscombe, G. E. M. (1957). Intention
Provenance
Written 30 September 2026 as the companion glossary entry to Direction of Fit. Reframed from the philosophy of action for use across the founding suite.