Effective Family Philanthropy in Action

While many family philanthropies have an expressed commitment to equity, disability and its intersectional relationship with other identities is rarely considered—even while about one in four adults in the U.S. have a disability. National Forum speakers Christie Cawley, Ryan Easterly, Gail Fuller, and Dr. Zakiya Mabery shared their expertise for advancing disability inclusion in family philanthropy. Here, Cara Binder-Kopchick synthesizes… Read More

Racial justice and systemic inequities can be tough topics to grapple with as a family. Impact Experience’s Jenna Nicholas and Olabayo Allen-Taylor consider the ways that racial equity learning journeys not only provide an education for philanthropic families, but also draw families together across generations through shared experiences and knowledge as well as increased empathy.  Working together as a family… Read More

While change is inevitable in most pursuits, managing it well in the practice of family philanthropy can be particularly complicated as so much of philanthropy is deeply personal. National Forum speakers Rebecca Cisek, Tina Kimbrough, Sylia Obagi, and Kyle Peterson shared their tips for managing a wide-variety of change. Here, Cara Binder-Kopchick synthesizes their recommendations, offering ways that philanthropic staff… Read More

As a second-generation family member, Liz Norton outlines the process she and her siblings undertook to honor the work of their parents, forge their own philanthropic path, and embrace transparency in the next era of the foundation’s work.  “I think I will just take the big green glass vase.” My dad smiled at me when I said this. That vase… Read More

Intermediary funds are appealing choices for donors who want to enter a new funding space, respond to urgent needs, or lack the time to commit to an issue they care about, among other reasons. Here, Chloe Cockburn of Just Impact Advisors outlines what intermediaries are, when donors should use them, and how to select a fund. Donors interested in funding… Read More

Chicago Beyond dramatically shifted its grantmaking and, today, all of its multi-year grants are in support of BIPOC-led organizations with direct experience in the social issues they are working on. Here, Liz Dozier shares more about how the organization went about making this change and introduces Chicago Beyond’s Mirror Tool, which other funders can use to identify and reduce bias… Read More

The Grunin Foundation embarked on a strategic planning process to ensure its funding strategies were aligned with its capacity building work and equity framework. While they always funded in a relationships-focused way, they were surprised to find that putting more—though still minimal—processes in place helped strengthen their relationships with grantees and nonprofits in the community. Grunin Foundation Director of Communications… Read More

Flora Birdzell and Kimberly Myers Hewlett, both members of the Flora Family Foundation (FFF) Family Council, have participated in two NCFP Learning and Action Cohorts together. We talked to them to learn about the benefits of learning together and how they applied what they learned, particularly to FFF’s Black Maternal Health Initiative.  Recent research from NCFP affirmed that continuous reflection… Read More

The Marguerite Casey Foundation (MCF) updated its investment policy statement to align its endowment with its grantmaking work. The foundation’s endowment continues to grow, beating industry benchmarks, while supporting the mission of the organization. Dan Gould, vice president of investments and operations at MCF, outlines four pillars that inform MCF’s values-aligned investing, including diversifying asset managers and engaging in shareholder… Read More