Can love be the right metric for a billion dollar philanthropy? While this post by Suzanne Guillette seems to argue both for and against this premise – I propose that love can be a metric for authentic partnerships, particularly when power and money are involved. While we and many others in the sector have chorused that multi-year,…
This week we wanted to highlight an article by our funder friend Compton Foundation. This post was first published on their site September 10th. “Yet all is not lost. Human beings, while capable of the worst, are also capable of rising above themselves, choosing again what is good, and making a new start.” Laudato Si…
In my last post I noted my intention to start searching out sunsetting stories of small to medium sized foundations. Consequently, I began exploring Grantcraft’s “Making Change by Spending Down” series produced in partnership with The Andrea and Charles Bronfman Philanthropies. Most of the posts feature thoughtful reflections about Bronfman’s spending out process, but it…
Yesterday, I picked up a copy of Octavia’s Brood, which is an anthology of science fiction stories by amateur writers who happen to be seasoned activists for social change. I’ve been carrying one of its premises in my heart since I read the introduction: those working to bring about social, political, and economic equity are imagining new…
Lately I’ve been inspired by the notion of changing the rules of the philanthropy game here in the U.S., like Professor Ray Madoff’s challenge to institutions with over six hundred billion dollar endowments be required to pay out more than 5% and stop using “charities” as tax shelters for amassing wealth. Professor Madoff’s ideas seem…