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Collaboration, Communication, Commitment: The Essentials of Community Development

JasonLudwig — Thu, 21 Mar 2024 15:04:10 +0000

Collaboration, Communication, Commitment: The Essentials of Community Development JasonLudwig Thursday, March 21, 2024 - 11:04 am

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Collaboration, Communication, Commitment: The Essentials of Community Development

Thursday, March 21, 2024 - 11:04 am

The once-closed public library in Chicago's Marshall Square, silent for a decade, now thrives as a dynamic community center, pulsating with youth activities and powered by clean, renewable energy.

Luis Gutierrez, founder and CEO of Latinos Progresando, which runs the center, hails it as an “opportunity for the community.” It serves immigrants from over 40 countries, offering vital support for immigration, health and wellness programs, education services, and preserving Mexican cultural heritage through local theater and talks.

But the shuttered library’s second life as a vibrant community center did not emerge overnight. As with most transformations, there were challenges to overcome, including securing funds for the project. To clear that hurdle, Gutierrez secured support from Chicago Community Trust's We Rise Together initiative, a funders collaborative that works to address urgent economic needs in Black and Latinx neighborhoods.

“There is so much talent in our neighborhood; they just need spaces like this community center to be able to go explore those talents and be creative and fulfill every dream that they have,” Gutierrez said.

Centers like the Latinos Progresando offer young people job training and placements, enabling them to connect with careers that will create wealth for the next generation.

This center is among several projects supported by Chicago Community Trust's 'We Rise Together,' the recipient of the Council’s Scrivner Award. Mandy Burrell, the Trust’s Communications Manager for Special Initiatives, noted that the foundation’s nearly $38 million in strategic investments since September 2021 have supported more than 30 neighborhood anchor real estate projects valued at more than $366 million. To further the success of these projects and their impact on the surrounding communities, We Rise Together has also granted over $7.5 million to support locally owned businesses and enhance employment opportunities in these areas.

For the community, by the community

We Rise Together's work has been community-driven since its inception. Established as a five-year initiative to aid pandemic-affected, long-disinvested communities, the primary goal was rapid funding for high-impact projects.

"Communities know what they need; many have had development plans for years, seeking funding for projects," Burrell said. “Identifying projects that were already vetted by communities has helped us achieve that goal as well as meet community needs and desires.”

To facilitate community engagement, the Chicago Community Trust instituted a steering committee comprising community, corporate, and philanthropic partners. They focus on shaping new partnerships and funding collaborations that strengthen equitable community development in Chicago.

Through grants to organizations like the North Lawndale Employment Network, the Chicago Community Trust supports workforce development that enables local residents to gain skills that move them toward economic prosperity.

Social enterprises Sweet Beginnings and Beelove Café, part of the North Lawndale Employment Network, also received grants under the We Rise Together fund. Brenda Palms, who owns both organizations, said their center can support and build employment networks to benefit the vulnerable and the incarcerated.

“Our Workforce Development Center is all about improving the quality of life for residents today" Palms said. “It was a dream to have a place where people could walk in and receive skills, certification, training, and resources to help us transform dreams into reality.”

While grantmaking supports real estate and community-led development projects, the Trust’s efforts also benefit the neighborhood as a whole. For example, the Trust invested in the North Austin Community Center, a nonprofit campus for sports, education, and wellness on Chicago’s West Side. Within seven months of its February 2023 opening, businesses within a 1-mile radius benefited from an increase in consumer spending of at least $1.8 million, as reported by We Rise Together's evaluation partner Mastercard Data Services.

North Austin Community Center, supported by the Chicago Community Trust, hosts for-profit sporting events and leagues that bring some 250,000 visitors a year. These events, in turn, help fund free gym time and recreational programming for local residents.

“We Rise Together got the wheel started – their investment created other investments and opportunities for our folks in our community,” said Pastor John Zayas, President of North Austin Community Center, which offers children a community structure and multiple opportunities in sports, education, and wellness. “If one child becomes a doctor, athlete, or teacher, it changes the economic scope of the whole family, and I think Chicago becomes a better place.”

Such projects are direct results of Chicago Community Trust’s focused approach to supporting thriving, locally owned businesses and enhancing employment opportunities in these communities. Currently, the Trust's support enables 12 projects to deliver immediate impacts for young people through job training, healthcare, childcare, and healthy food.

Funding underserved communities differently

Generations of discriminatory public policies have calcified economic and racial segregation in areas in and around Chicago, limiting opportunities for millions. A study by the Metropolitan Planning Council analyzed segregation patterns, revealing that the region could gain $4.4 billion annually and increase gross domestic product by about $8 billion if Chicago were less economically segregated.

With the goal of uniting communities to address challenges and capitalize on opportunities, the Chicago Community Trust has been tackling the racial and ethnic wealth gap in the Chicago region since 2020. Burrell emphasizes that this gap is at the root of numerous societal challenges including violence, homelessness, and food insecurity, leading to missed opportunities that significantly alter the trajectory of individual lives. We Rise Together, then, provides flexible capital to its grantees to finance projects in disinvested communities.

With a focus on stronger neighborhood economies, the Chicago Community Trust's primary objective is financing and investing in projects that meet community needs.

"As a funders collaborative, we’ve been able to make more and more significant grants than we would have had the Trust been the sole funding partner," Burrell said, adding that the Trust puts great importance on expediting the distribution of grants to prevent delays in project implementation and potential cost overruns.

Key to the Trust’s efforts is a commitment to creating opportunities for its grantee partners to exchange ideas and collaborate. The Trust also hosts regular events to showcase the impact of grant recipients’ work, giving donors insights into both the challenges and potential of the projects at hand.

“These events take effort to coordinate, but our grant recipients have told us they value the opportunities to learn from their peers,” Burrell said. “Some of these meetups have even sparked new collaborations that we have further supported with our grantmaking."

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Embracing Better Ways of Operating

Inclusive Economic Prosperity

Member Stories

Narrative Shift

Strengthening Communities

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To Help Bridge Differences, Philanthropy Should Invest in Strong Institutions

jessica.belsky@cof.org — Tue, 19 Mar 2024 18:18:53 +0000

To Help Bridge Differences, Philanthropy Should Invest in Strong Institutions jessica.belsky… Tuesday, March 19, 2024 - 2:18 pm

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To Help Bridge Differences, Philanthropy Should Invest in Strong Institutions

Tuesday, March 19, 2024 - 2:18 pm

Ali Noorani

This blog is part of the Council's Dialogue Across Difference series. In this space, we will share your viewpoints: In a time of polarization and mistrust, how can philanthropy bridge across difference?

Institutions are the vehicles through which we negotiate our differences. These days, though, too many Americans are more interested in maximalist positions over negotiating differences. So, we spend a lot of time weakening the institutions that allow for the dialogue across difference that leads to compromise.

Look around. Houses of worship are being lost to angry politics, businesses and nonprofits distracted by identity politics, public agencies undermined by special interests. These losses weaken our democracy to the point where our relationships are confined to those who agree with us.

This is the thing; institutions are the foundation of a democratic society. From government agencies that serve all people, to faith organizations, businesses and nonprofits, institutions— and the relationships they weave together—are fundamental.

Of course, since we are human, our institutions are also a topic of constant debate. Cultural questions, the role of the private sector, the purpose of public agencies. Ideally, these debates take place within our shared political community - our democracy. Which, when it is functioning, provides a process through which to negotiate our differences and find agreement.

The problem is that we take our institutions, and most certainly our shared political community, for granted. In this era of severe polarization, we don’t realize our institutions—our relationships— have been weaponized in service of political agendas. As a result, institutions are seen as belonging to one side or the other. Therefore, we don’t see institutions as public goods.

At the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, our National Governing Institutions strategy supports organizations across the political spectrum working to improve the effectiveness of the legislative and executive branch of our federal government. We believe that more nimble, well-managed governing institutions can make and administer laws and policies that represent the people’s preferences and are responsive to their needs.

Our belief in institutions extends to the role business, faith and veteran-serving organizations (to name a few) play in strengthening our civic spaces, much less building trust in our elections. We are proud to support work across the political spectrum in these communities that defend and strengthen the infrastructure and processes core to our democracy.

Ultimately, we need to think of institutions differently. We should not see agencies, businesses, religious organizations as institutions owned by one “side” or the other. Rather, we need to understand what stake we have in an institution that may not directly serve our interests. Because, if an institution is a set of relationships through which we build trust, we need to have a stake in all our institutions. Once our institutions are lost, the relationships and the trust they hold is lost as well.

Strong institutions that allow for dialogue across difference are the backbone of a durable, inclusive, democracy.

Additional Dialogue Across Difference Blog Posts

Read responses in our Dialogue Across Difference series. In this space, we will share your viewpoints: In a time of polarization and mistrust, how can philanthropy bridge across difference?

Building Common Ground

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2023 Year In Review

MatthewCain — Mon, 18 Mar 2024 13:18:54 +0000

2023 Year In Review MatthewCain Monday, March 18, 2024 - 9:18 am

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2023 Year In Review

Monday, March 18, 2024 - 9:18 am

Kathleen Enright

Research shows it’s human nature to focus more on negative experiences than positive ones. But some of us are wired differently – and that proclivity toward optimism is one reason we’re drawn to philanthropy.

I’m always awed by how you make your communities and our society better. You know progress is possible, and that you can help. Working through division and conflict, you find solutions.

As I reflect on 2023, with all its challenges and hardship, I am even more grateful for the large and expanding philanthropic community committed to collaborative action in service of the greater good.

I see it in the collaborative efforts of global grantmakers to drive more resources to locally led development. And in the hundreds of you who banded together to fight for the right to give in alignment with values. I see it in the amazing 2023 class of Career Pathways, cheering each other on and growing together into philanthropy’s leaders of tomorrow.

Turning the page on another year, we look forward to continuing to join you in working through our challenges and across our differences – always with a belief that together we can and will make things better.

Download our 2023 Year In Review

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Philanthropy Can Enable Thriving Communities by Building Common Ground

jessica.belsky@cof.org — Thu, 22 Feb 2024 14:23:48 +0000

Philanthropy Can Enable Thriving Communities by Building Common Ground jessica.belsky… Thursday, February 22, 2024 - 9:23 am

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Philanthropy Can Enable Thriving Communities by Building Common Ground

Thursday, February 22, 2024 - 9:23 am

Kathleen McLaughlin

I once heard Deb and Jim Fallows, authors of "Our Towns," talk about their epic 100,000-mile road trip from one end of the country to the other, through the heartland and (way!) off the beaten path.

Along the way they talked with many people. They were surprised to find that despite national narratives of polarization and mistrust, people expressed profound compassion for others and were collaborating across lines of difference to address significant local issues.

It made me think about the opportunity for philanthropy – and our philanthropy at Walmart.org, attached as we are to an omnichannel retailer – to build common ground as an enabler of thriving communities. Walmart.org represents the philanthropic efforts of both Walmart and the Walmart Foundation.

When I visit communities across this country, I’m struck by how Walmart is a gathering place for families and neighbors to shop and spend time with one another. And I’m so proud of my fellow associates, drawn from many different backgrounds, working together with respect and camaraderie to serve customers and create a place of belonging. Creating connections in communities includes empowering our associates to foster strong relationships among each other and their neighbors.

Walmart.org philanthropy complements and expands the community impact of Walmart’s retail presence. For example, our Spark Good platform helps customers and associates support local causes they care about through store grants, matching campaigns, volunteerism, and a charitable product registry.

I’m excited about our growing grant portfolio focused on bringing people together for meaningful encounters and equipping them with the skills to build trust and empathy.

Some recent examples:

Sharing stories
We’ve invested in organizations helping people build trust through sharing their stories. For example, Walmart Foundation funds StoryCorps, which facilitates conversations between people with different viewpoints through its One Small Step program. The results are encouraging – a recent poll revealed that after one-on-one conversations, program participants felt more empathy not only toward their conversation partner - but also generally toward others with different political views.

Strengthening collective settings
We’re funding pilot projects that facilitate connections among people from different backgrounds in places where they already naturally come together, such as new mothers’ groups or recreation centers. For example, Walmart Foundation recently provided a grant to Trust for Public Land (TPL) with the goal of building friendships and community resilience by engaging people in park revitalization.

Building skills that create connections
We invest in organizations teaching local leaders how they can effectively foster connections among people with different backgrounds. A Walmart Foundation grant supports Welcoming America in teaching leaders in geographically and politically diverse communities how to welcome newcomers, with the goal of deepening connections among neighbors.

Thank you to the Council on Foundations for its invitation for all of us to engage in constructive dialogue across differences. Our society needs philanthropy as a catalyst and as a role model. I’m eager to exchange lessons with colleagues across foundations about what works and what doesn’t, so as a field we can focus on making the most difference.

Additional Dialogue Across Difference Blog Posts

Read responses in our Dialogue Across Difference series. In this space, we will share your viewpoints: In a time of polarization and mistrust, how can philanthropy bridge across difference?

Building Common Ground

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Meet the 2024 Career Pathways Cohort

justin.wiens@cof.org — Mon, 12 Feb 2024 19:11:29 +0000

Meet the 2024 Career Pathways Cohort justin.wiens@cof.org Monday, February 12, 2024 - 2:11 pm

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Meet the 2024 Career Pathways Cohort

Monday, February 12, 2024 - 2:11 pm

The new year brings new opportunities for growth, and nothing demonstrates that more than our Career Pathways program. This selective leadership development program cultivates bold, representative, and inclusive decision-makers – and that’s exactly what you’ll find with the 24 members of the 2024 cohort.

Starting in March and continuing through November, participants will take part in skill-building and strength-defining experiences, which include defining leadership styles and strengths and completing case studies or capstones addressing specific barriers to equity impacting their organization or the broader philanthropic sector.

Participants will engage with peer circles, live and virtual learning sessions, individual executive coaching meetings, and more through learning modules that focus on individual, field, and organizational leadership. Last year was our first cohort to meet in person since 2019, and we’re excited to gather in-person again this year during select learning sessions in Washington D.C. and another location to be announced soon.

Not only will participants graduate with a clear definition of their authentic way of leading and the enhanced skills and network to leverage it right away, but they’ll also leave with elevated career advancement prospects - nearly 90 percent of Career Pathways graduates are now senior-level executives within foundations.

So without further ado, meet the members of the 2024 cohort, representing philanthropic organizations across the country. We can’t wait to kick off this program!

Professional Development

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Community-Focused Development can Create Ripples of Change

shruti.kedia@cof.org — Wed, 31 Jan 2024 14:05:38 +0000

Community-Focused Development can Create Ripples of Change shruti.kedia@cof.org Wednesday, January 31, 2024 - 9:05 am

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Community-Focused Development can Create Ripples of Change

Wednesday, January 31, 2024 - 9:05 am

When tackling issues around health care, education, infrastructure, or anything else, philanthropy is often perceived as narrowly focusing on the most immediate causes rather than tackling structural or root causes.

But the reality is that philanthropy's role is much more expansive, influential, and collaborative than some may realize. Anne Kubisch realizes this. Kubisch was the President and CEO of The Ford Family Foundation until stepping down in September 2023 after a decade of service. The Council on Foundations recently awarded Kubisch the Distinguished Service Award in recognition of her four-decades-long commitment to working on a breadth of different issues.

Kubisch served as a mentor to numerous Ford Scholars and alumni, providing guidance and encouragement as she welcomed them into the community of The Ford Family Foundation.

As Director of the Roundtable on Community Change at the Aspen Institute, Kubisch dedicated her time to understanding structural racism in America. She wrote and edited several publications on structural racism and poverty, and she played a key role in designing a week-long training program on structural racism for philanthropy and other social policy leaders.

Kubisch believes philanthropy is like the double helix of a DNA strand, supporting two interwoven lines of work: high-quality programs that help improve the lives of disadvantaged children, families, and communities; and targeted investments that increase the capacity of communities, organizations, and people to put those programs into place and advocate for needed systemic and policy and systems changes.

“I think that real change comes from investing in the power of people, organizations, and communities to actually carry out their work and put those programs in place where they can advocate for themselves,” Kubisch said. “And that's a different kind of investment than just funding a program.”

Under Kubisch's leadership, The Ford Family Foundation launched a program that trained 36,000 Oregonians to recognize the signs of child sexual abuse, know what to do when abuse is suspected, and understand steps that can help prevent it.

Community-building is essential for foundations to develop an honest and genuine relationship with communities and organizations, she added. Rather than imposing research and theories, philanthropic leaders should listen to the community, the people who are on the ground and impacted by the work, and determine how the foundation can provide the necessary support.

During her time at The Ford Family Foundation, Kubisch concentrated on community organizing. To encourage dialogue and engage underserved community members in decision-making, she introduced "field coordinators" to the Foundation staff. Hired from the communities they serve, field coordinators’ main objective is uniting individuals, guiding them in envisioning the future of their communities, formulating action plans, and collaboratively pursuing shared goals.

Philanthropy as a catalytic investment

Philanthropy has evolved, and today it is a pillar in supporting and promoting equity and justice. But geographic location and the urban-rural divide limit its reach, and pushing past those barriers will require ongoing creativity and dedication.

“If you grow up in a rural area, you have less access to all kinds of opportunities and resources than if you're in an urban area,” Kubisch said. “We need to take the same framework we have for understanding the structural causes of the arc of inequity and also apply it to a geographic lens also.”

In Vale, Oregon, Anne, along with Roque Barros, former director of Rural Community Building, spent time harvesting asparagus alongside migrant laborers and getting firsthand insight into their lives, communities, and aspirations.

According to Inside Philanthropy, only 7% of all grantmaking in the U.S. goes to rural areas. Further, Kubisch said, lack of representation causes stereotyping and bias, leading to a political and ideological divide. Hence, she spends a large part of her time engaged in community outreach activities with the aim of raising awareness and addressing the issues faced by under-represented communities, especially in rural Oregon.

Over a 12-year period, The Ford Family Foundation sponsored a rural community leadership development program that trained 6,000 residents of Oregon and Northern California to develop vision for the future of their communities. This training also focused on how to collaboratively design and implement plans that lead to improvements in local conditions.

It’s an example of the ripples of change that innovative philanthropy is capable of.

"Philanthropic investment can generate investments by other public and private funders,” Kubisch said. "It can be an investment that catalyzes further change."

Building Common Ground

Member Stories

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Strengthening Communities

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The Community Foundation Advisory Group: A Recap of 2023 and What’s Next in 2024

jessica.belsky@cof.org — Mon, 29 Jan 2024 20:26:11 +0000

The Community Foundation Advisory Group: A Recap of 2023 and What’s Next in 2024 jessica.belsky… Monday, January 29, 2024 - 3:26 pm

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The Community Foundation Advisory Group: A Recap of 2023 and What’s Next in 2024

Monday, January 29, 2024 - 3:26 pm

Kristi Knous

Heather Peeler

As the current Co-Chairs of the Council on Foundations’ Community Foundation Advisory Group, we wanted to reflect on the conversations and issues we have covered over the past year and share some key takeaways with our peers across the sector.

The Advisory Group represents community foundations of varying sizes across the country and plays a crucial role in advising the Council’s programs and initiatives that serve our field, thereby shaping discussions about key issues that we collectively face.

As we look towards 2024, we’re excited to expand the Advisory Group to 20 individuals and have launched a public call for applications to invite seven additional leaders to join our group.

In 2023, we dove into issues such as donor-advised funds and the broader policy landscape on Capitol Hill, informed the Leading Locally 2023 conference programming, and offered insights into issues facing rural communities. We also got tactical on what resources the Council should continue to offer and what it might explore in the future—especially concerning human resources needs, board trainings on DAFs and governance, and disaster and crisis response—issues all of us are grappling with in different ways.

Two main areas of feedback stood out to us as we reflected on the past year:

Importance of frequent communication: Despite how busy we all are in our day jobs, we discussed how important it is to be in frequent communication with the Council team. We’ve seen great strides over the past few years in how the Council shares its work and interacts with members like us, but there’s always room for improvement. Also, reaching out to Council staff and getting quick responses is an important part of member service.
Importance of defining scope: The Council has been a lot of things to many people over its 75-year history. For community foundations, we’ve seen ebbs and flows in what the Council prioritizes. The Advisory Group recommended that the Council make it clear where and on what issues it is playing a leadership role for the field, while also clearly sharing where it is a partner, or in the backseat. Policy issues are a great example of where this comes into play.

In 2024, we’re eager to get into the weeds together and continue to shape the Council’s approach to how it serves community foundations, while also seeking concrete ways we can collaborate on shared resources for our field.

As co-chairs, we know that the Council is seeking feedback from the field on its work, but we also know that we can’t possibly represent the full spectrum of community foundations. If you’re an executive, C-suite, or Vice President-level at a community foundation, we hope you’ll consider applying to join the Advisory Group—or reach out to one of us to share what’s top of mind for you this year.

It’s been a pleasure serving the field in this role and we look forward to sharing more about what’s coming up with the Advisory Group throughout 2024.

Kristi Knous (knous@desmoinesfoundation.org)
Heather Peeler (heather.peeler@actforalexandria.org)

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Philanthropy is a Catalyst for Unlikely Alliances

jessica.belsky@cof.org — Fri, 12 Jan 2024 22:37:31 +0000

Philanthropy is a Catalyst for Unlikely Alliances jessica.belsky… Friday, January 12, 2024 - 5:37 pm

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Philanthropy is a Catalyst for Unlikely Alliances

Friday, January 12, 2024 - 5:37 pm

Mason Rummel

In the 1830s Alexis de Tocqueville wrote that he was astonished by Americans’ collective support for important causes and our spirit of equality. Today that is no less true. It is extraordinary that people in all levels of society can find themselves in the same rooms motivated by similar interests, working toward the same goals, and aligned in voluntary spirit. All of that happens, despite our differences.

I believe philanthropy is at the core of that collaborative force. While our partners in civil society—the public and private sectors—are crucial for America to thrive, they can be constrained by profit goals and regulation. In philanthropy, we are aligned by mission and the desire to serve one another – and so we are uniquely poised to forge unlikely alliances in service of the greater good.

I see this play out each day from where I sit, leading the James Graham Brown Foundation in Louisville, a blue city in an almost entirely red state. Though Kentucky is largely rural, one can find similarities in small towns that our larger cities boast: marvelous cultural assets, diverse populations, and sophisticated businesses. No matter which political affiliation, race, or socio-economic status individuals may claim, our citizens share a profound pride of place, which is a powerful force for good for any community. My foundation has always recognized the importance of place, investing in parks and greens spaces in areas that formerly lacked places to gather. These amenities not only beautify our city but also bring people together.

And making this happen requires those alliances philanthropy is well-positioned to catalyze. As a foundation leader I work with a variety of organizations, from complex university systems to grassroots organizations providing basic needs to the most vulnerable citizens in our marginalized communities. Take, for example, the West End Opportunity Partnership, legislated by our state government to revitalize an area of Louisville that has suffered from decades of disinvestment. Philanthropic support of $10 million triggered another $10 million from the city, which unlocked $10 million from the state. Now, the partnership – which includes representatives of nine neighborhoods along with public, private and nonprofit officials – has full oversight of the $30 million fund and the authority to make decisions on its use.

We didn’t get here without disagreement and negotiation. But with philanthropy leading, differences became opportunities to create a better future in which everyone was invested.

Additional Dialogue Across Difference Blog Posts

Read responses in our Dialogue Across Difference series. In this space, we will share your viewpoints: In a time of polarization and mistrust, how can philanthropy bridge across difference?

Building Common Ground

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Celebrating our 2023 Council Award Winners

justin.wiens@cof.org — Wed, 15 Nov 2023 04:12:26 +0000

Celebrating our 2023 Council Award Winners justin.wiens@cof.org Tuesday, November 14, 2023 - 11:12 pm

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Celebrating our 2023 Council Award Winners

Tuesday, November 14, 2023 - 11:12 pm

Council on Foundations

As we arrive at the end of the year, it can be tempting to focus solely on what we want to do better next year. Sometimes the challenges we face are so overwhelming that we want to turn the page to a new chapter as soon as possible.

At the same time, we know that our Council community engaged in inspiring, transformative work over the past year. Before looking forward, we’re looking back to celebrate the accomplishments of extraordinary individuals and organizations in philanthropy.

We’re delighted to announce the 2023 Council Awards winners:

2023 Distinguished Service Award: Anne Kubisch, President & CEO Emeritus, The Ford Family Foundation
2023 Scrivner Award for Creative Grantmaking: The Chicago Community Trust
2023 Outstanding Corporate Philanthropy Leadership Award: Dr. Marvin Carr, Director, Center for Racial Equity, Walmart, Inc.

Distinguished Service Award

The Distinguished Service Award is presented to an individual recognized for demonstrating trust, integrity, and courage consistently throughout a career in philanthropy. Anne Kubisch is recognized for over 40 years of leadership in the field of philanthropy, most recently as President and CEO of The Ford Family Foundation, where she stepped down in September 2023 after ten years of service.

Anne led the transformation of the foundation from a responsive grantmaker to a nationally recognized advocate for rural communities that has provided thousands of community development grants and scholarships to students in rural Oregon and Siskiyou County in California. She’s also set up the foundation for future success, leading the development of a 10-year strategic plan for 2022-2032. In addition, Anne authored books at the Aspen Institute that have become core references for the field and previously advocated for disadvantaged communities at the Ford Foundation.

Anne Kubisch
President & CEO Emeritus
The Ford Family Foundation

Scrivner Award for Creative Grantmaking

The Scrivner Award is presented to an organization whose staff has exemplified vision and creativity in their grantmaking work. “We Rise Together: For an Equitable & Just Recovery” is a funders’ collaborative launched in 2020 by The Chicago Community Trust that works with community members to build thriving local economies in Black and Latinx neighborhoods for a stronger Chicago region.

Since September 2021, We Rise Together has strategically invested nearly $38 million in Black and Latinx communities, with most grant funding supporting more than 30 real estate investments worth over $365 million. The initiative was set up as a funders’ collaborative to sustain transformative community reinvestment at scale, with more than 160 donors to date. Grant recipients have said that the size, speed, and flexibility of We Rise Together’s grant dollars have been game-changing for equitable real estate development.

The Chicago Community Trust

Outstanding Corporate Philanthropy Leadership Award

The Outstanding Corporate Philanthropy Leadership Award, now in its second year, is presented to an individual at a corporate foundation or giving program who excels in building partnerships and pursuing corporate social responsibility. Dr. Marvin Carr is recognized for his leadership, courage, integrity, and resilience while developing and executing the strategy and portfolio of the criminal justice focus area at Walmart.org’s Center for Racial Equity.

Carr has focused on breaking the generational cycle of incarceration by partnering with organizations that are providing economic opportunities for at-risk youth. The Center’s collaborators have repeatedly said they appreciate how Carr genuinely has their best interests in mind, and that he’s willing and able to pivot on a dime when there’s an opportunity to deepen relationships and drive lasting results. Dr. Carr was also a member of the Council’s 2022 Career Pathways cohort.

Dr. Marvin Carr
Director
Center for Racial Equity
Walmart, Inc.

We’d love you to join us as we celebrate these award winners at our annual Council Member Meeting on November 16. Not only will you hear remarks from Distinguished Service Award winner Anne Kubisch, but you’ll learn what we’ve been up to over the past year and the roadmap ahead for us and the broader philanthropy sector. A final round of applause for our winners!

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For Philanthropy to Bridge Differences, Trust is Key

jessica.belsky@cof.org — Thu, 09 Nov 2023 15:30:51 +0000

For Philanthropy to Bridge Differences, Trust is Key jessica.belsky… Thursday, November 9, 2023 - 10:30 am

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For Philanthropy to Bridge Differences, Trust is Key

Thursday, November 9, 2023 - 10:30 am

Janet N. Ekezie

Philanthropy has the unique opportunity to bridge differences in ways other sectors of society do not. It can take calculated and sustained risks by supporting programs and respective issues that our political and corporate counterparts cannot. Because the sector is unaffected by short-term electoral cycles, philanthropy can affect concrete change. For instance, the San Antonio Area Foundation, the organization I work for, has supported countless efforts that have made a lasting impact throughout the community. Our vision at the Area Foundation is to close opportunity gaps for those who need it most. Therefore, the Area Foundation leads in its ability to bridge differences among the community via the network of various nonprofits we fund and support.

The Area Foundation is conscious of the inherent power imbalance that has been perpetuated between funders and grantees. However, through our work, I have seen a paradigm shift in how power is distributed. This is partly due to the legacy of the bridge builders before me who have recognized how inequitable the historical funder-grantee relationship has been. Historically, grantees have not had the opportunity to articulate their story and the needs of their community, substantially. Now, there is a conscious effort to ensure voices of the community are not only heard, but are leading the conversation. What I have described is trust-based philanthropy, but it is more than a means to redistribute power. It is a mechanism for bridging difference.

Through cultural competency, communication, collaboration, and mutuality, the Area Foundation ensures representation, transparency, and diversity in the issues it supports. For instance, Thrive Youth Center, a grantee of the Area Foundation, is the only LGBTQIA+ homeless shelter in San Antonio and South Texas. The center aims to ensure LGBTQIA+ homeless youth are allowed the inherent rights and privileges any human being between the ages of 18 and 24 is afforded. Because the Area Foundation recognizes the importance and need of supporting such an organization, Thrive is not only able to sustain its mission but also highlight its work in a way it would not have been able to, historically.

Moreover, homelessness is a universal issue that can affect anyone, at any time. In acknowledgment of that, those who work in philanthropy can look past difference and unify based on the universality of addressing the needs of their fellow human beings. Philanthropy has the ability to look beyond the noise and address the key issues. Whether it is providing emergency funds during a global pandemic, funding need-based programs, or ensuring marginalized voices have a seat at the table, philanthropy can quell mistrust and guide society towards a more harmonious collective.

It is through our trust in philanthropy that it can be a bridge builder in ways we have never seen before. We simply must look past our contentiousness of one another and look to philanthropy as an example. In doing so, we become a better people.

Additional Dialogue Across Difference Blog Posts

Read responses in our Dialogue Across Difference series. In this space, we will share your viewpoints: In a time of polarization and mistrust, how can philanthropy bridge across difference?

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