Northern California Grantmakers 2023 Conference

Northern California Grantmakers (NCG) held its 2023 Annual Conference: Mapping Our Collective Future on May 2nd in San Francisco. The Conference website posed the following questions: Are we making progress on building an equitable future for the region? How will we know we have reached this future? What direction are we going and what is the […]

ABA 2023 BLS Meeting: Creative Philanthropy

The American Bar Association 2023 Business Law Section Spring Meeting featured a session on Creative Philanthropy: Impact (ESG) Investing, Donor Advised Funds, Program Related Investments and More moderated by JJ Harwayne Leitner and presented by Jinna Kwak (Adler & Colvin) and Matt Topham (Gates Foundation). Here are some highlights and links to additional resources: Impact […]

Catalytic Philanthropy

“Catalytic Philanthropy” was coined by Mark Kramer in an article he wrote for the Stanford Social Innovation Review in 2009.  The article states that a grantor’s role in traditional philanthropy is typically limited to writing a check to a nonprofit and otherwise having a pretty much hands-off approach (besides its performance of the more administrative duties of managing the […]

Council on Foundations 2017 Annual Conference

The Council on Foundations 2017 Annual Conference (Leading Together) was held in Dallas on April 23-26. The Opening Plenary, Philanthropy’s Role in Vibrant Communities, kicked off with President George W. Bush discussing his recently published book, Portraits of Courage: A Commander in Chief’s Tribute to America’s Warriors, and the work of the George W. Bush Institute with American veterans […]

The Blueprint Forecast for Philanthropy and the Social Economy 2017

Philanthropy consultant, scholar, and thought-leader Lucy Bernholz‘s annual industry forecast, Philanthropy and the Social Economy: Blueprint 2017, was published last week on GrantCraft. The Blueprint provides an overview of the current landscape, points to major trends, and directs your attention to horizons where you can expect some important breakthroughs in the coming year. As a past external reviewer […]

F. D’Up Family Foundation

Inspired by recent news stories Fred D’Up inherited a sizable amount of money, which he used to grow a business empire filled with plenty of successes and failures (including multiple business bankruptcies). Regardless of whether his businesses were doing well or not, Fred felt compelled to develop his image as a rich, powerful celebrity, and he was very […]

2016 ABA Business Law Section Annual Meeting

The American Bar Association (ABA) Business Law Section is holding its 2016 Annual Meeting in Boston on September 8-10. I’m looking forward to meeting with my colleagues in the Nonprofit Organizations Committee, attending the various programs, and expressing my appreciation as one of the recipients of the Committee’s Outstanding Nonprofit Lawyer Awards. Accelerators and Incubators The first […]

Program-Related Investments

Program-related investments (PRIs) are investments (different from strictly donative grants) made by private foundations in which: The primary purpose is to accomplish one or more of the foundation’s 501(c)(3) exempt purposes (other than testing for public safety), Production of income or appreciation of property is not a significant purpose, and Influencing legislation or engaging in […]

Chan Zuckerberg Initiative – Taxable Social Enterprise – Part 1

Yesterday, Mark Zuckerberg published a touching letter written to his week-old daughter Max which announced the beginning of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. The Initiative’s mission focuses on two ideas: advancing human potential and promoting equality. And the statement that raised all the attention: We will give 99% of our Facebook shares — currently about $45 billion — […]

Fiscal Sponsorship: A Valuable Option for Grantmakers and Grantees

  Yesterday, I had the honor of participating on a panel discussing fiscal sponsorship at the 2014 Grantmakers in the Arts 2014 Conference in Houston. Frances Phillips (Walter and Elise Haas Fund), Melanie Beene (consultant, former CEO of Community Initiatives), and Ian David Moss (Fractured Atlas) were my co-panelists, and we were joined by a very vocal group […]