Work & Opportunity
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Will More Philanthropies Step Up to Help Workers? Recent Funding Developments to Note
With Labor Day just behind us, here’s a primer on some of the ways philanthropy is supporting workers in the face of ongoing threats to labor rights.
How the Irvine Foundation Navigates the Intersection of Economic Mobility and Civic Engagement
In 2022, the California grantmaker launched Just Prosperity, an initiative to advance policies that reflect the priorities of low-income workers, with an eye toward boosting their sway in civic life. How’s that been playing out?
This California Foundation Has Supported Progressive Causes for Almost 90 Years
It’s not the biggest in the state, but the Rosenberg Foundation — established in 1935 — has long played an important ecosystem role for a whole range of social justice causes. Here’s a look at what it’s backing today.
How Funders Can Help Immigrant Workers Win the Protections They Deserve
As we recognize Workers’ Memorial Day, guest author Janice Fine offers one way philanthropy can powerfully support immigrant workers: by helping them access the federal Deferred Action for Labor Enforcement program.
Merging Trust-Based Philanthropy and VC-Style Support to Help Communities Bloom
VC investor Peter Levine backs workforce development and climate justice with a blend of trust-based practices and non-monetary support. We take a closer look at Levine Impact Lab and Southside Blooms, a Chicago-based grantee.
This Public-Private Partnership Is Using Arts and Culture as a Catalyst for Racial Justice in Oakland
The City of Oakland is partnering with local foundations to combine organizing and arts and culture work in pursuit of racial justice. The latest round backs BIPOC-led business cooperatives and more.
This Nonprofit Is Using DAF Money to Combat Inequities in Venture Capital
The $200 billion-plus accumulating in donor-advised funds is mostly invested traditionally. Inspire Access wants to mobilize some of that money to support start-ups founded and led by women and people of color.
Six Questions for Jason Lee, Founder of Hollywood Cares Foundation
Jason Lee’s Hollywood Unlocked media brand has millions of followers, but he got his start in unions. He’s returned to his organizing roots by launching a charity that supports underserved youth.
A Conversation With Jim Shelton of Blue Meridian Partners
Jim Shelton is president of Blue Meridian Partners, a funding collaborative backed by multiple billionaire donors. We talk about his fascinating career path, what drew him to education, and his views on the role of philanthropy.
How This Accessible Chicago-Based Funder Targets Entrepreneurship, Health and Disabilities
Established in 1951, the Coleman Foundation focuses on entrepreneurship, health and rehabilitation, and intellectual and developmental disabilities. We take a closer look at this accessible place-based funder.
The Robin Hood of the West: Inside the Antipoverty Work of Tipping Point Community
Modeled on NYC’s Robin Hood Foundation, this grantmaker draws support from high-profile California donors as it takes on problems around housing, early childhood, education and employment in the Bay Area.
Bloomberg Backs New High Schools Tailored to Boost the Healthcare Workforce
To address a nationwide shortage of healthcare workers, Bloomberg Philanthropies is plowing $250 million into an initiative to underwrite public high schools that’ll pair regular academics with specialized job training.
“Central to a Just Economy.” How a Collaborative Fund is Supporting Labor Rights in Brazil
Backed by the Ford Foundation, Laudes Foundation and Open Society Foundations, the Labora Fund is working to advance workers’ rights in Brazil, where nearly half of the labor force is made up of informal workers.
Gates Sticks With U.S. Antipoverty Giving, But Deeper Structural Questions Remain
In a year-end update, the Gates Foundation announced $100 million in new stateside antipoverty commitments. But amid sky-high wealth inequality, the chances that billionaire giving will get to the roots of the problem remain slim.
Here’s What You Need to Know About MacKenzie Scott’s 2023 Giving
In a new letter published on MacKenzie Scott’s Yield Giving site, she announced $2.2 billion in donations to 360 organizations in 2023. Who were the big winners? What were her top priorities? We crunched the numbers.
Military Experience Is Less Common Today, But These Funders Are Staying True to Veterans
Philanthropy for veterans often stems from personal or family experience, making a decline in the percentage of Americans who’ve served a cause for concern. But these veterans-focused funders bucked that trend in 2023.
Major Philanthropies Launch $50 Million Fund to Shepherd Federal Dollars on Jobs, Climate
With the launch of BuildUS, another intermediary fund enters an increasingly crowded field of regrantors, in the climate space in particular. We learned more about how this one will work, and the rationale for its creation.
Is the Cleveland Foundation’s New Headquarters the Future of Place-Based Philanthropy?
The Cleveland Foundation’s new building is anchoring a developing innovation district in an underserved part of the city. Lililan Kuri, the new president and CEO, explains how it could redefine the role of institutional philanthropy.
Six Questions for Nina Revoyr, Ballmer Group’s Executive Director, Los Angeles
The philanthropy of Steve and Connie Ballmer has become a major funder of antipoverty work, including in Los Angeles County. The head of Ballmer’s L.A. office tells us about her work, career path and second job as a novelist.
Eight Questions for Maria Kim, President and CEO of REDF
This unique funder supports businesses that provide jobs to people facing barriers to employment. We spoke with CEO Maria Kim about going from grantee to funder, the challenges in helping people get on their feet, and more.
Here Are Seven Grantmakers Backing Rural Communities in the South
The rural South faces outsized needs, but receives limited funding that doesn’t always make it to the groups on the ground. We’ve rounded up some of local funders dedicated to supporting rural communities.
On the Ground with the Ballmer Group, One of LA’s Leading Antipoverty Funders
Over the past few years, Steve and Connie Ballmer have continued ramping up their commitments in Los Angeles. We took a deep dive into how a vast tech fortune is being put to use to scale up local economic mobility.
How Wall Street Winner Anne Dinning Backs Anti-Poverty Work and More
This leader at quantitative investment firm D.E. Shaw & Co. has been a big backer of the Robin Hood Foundation, along with public health work and other causes. With a fortune of $900 million, expect more giving to come.
Lessons from Across the Pond: How the Living Wage Foundation Is Exporting Its Success to the U.S.
This U.K.-based organization has had some success pushing funders to cover living wages for their grantees’ employees — and doing the same for private sector employment. Its new U.S. affiliate is also off to a promising start.
In Three Decades’ of Efforts to Fund the True Costs of Nonprofits, Where Are the Workers?
The sector has long been grappling with the “nonprofit starvation cycle,” in which organizations are never able to cover the full costs of their work. One key component of the problem has received too little attention — labor.
Here are Four Grantmakers Backing Rural Areas in New England and the Mid-Atlantic
Large parts of New England and the Mid-Atlantic are rural and, despite proximity to large metropolitan areas, tend to receive less philanthropic attention. Here are some place-based funders supporting these areas.
What Has Hedge Fund Billionaire David Tepper Been Up to Lately? Here’s a Rundown of His Giving
David Tepper, founder of Appaloosa Management, is worth $18.5 billion, and has a growing philanthropic footprint that spans New York and New Jersey, South Florida, and the Carolinas. Here are some key causes and grants.
Six Organizations Fighting to Improve Nonprofit Pay and Working Conditions
Amid burnout and poor retention, there’s a growing push for funders to provide greater support to nonprofit workers. Here’s a handful of organized efforts.
