Partnering in philanthropy is like one of those trends that you know may be out there, but that you don’t notice until you start working on it, and then you see that it’s everywhere.
As we pulled together content for the fall issue if Giving Forum, which focuses on partnering, it became clear that, no matter how we defined partnering or where we looked for examples, grantmakers are deeply committed to collaborating – with each other, nonprofits, the public and private sectors, individuals, international organizations – to create greater impact and tackle bigger issues.
In the article “Nonprofits and Philanthropy: Scenario I, An Interview With Kelvin Taketa and Chris Van Bergeijk,” which appeared in The Nonprofit Quarterly, Winter 2008, Van Bergeijk of the Hawai’i Community Foundation says, “The grout that glues the tiles together is where the power is. It allows us to come up with bigger approaches and bigger solutions to social issues…There’s a real price that comes from the isolation between organizations. There’s no chance to share practices or that audacious idea that you have but keep on the back burner because you know you could never do it by yourself.”
So, if we’re committed to partnering, where do we turn for “how-to’s” or do we just jump in? When I posed this question to grantmakers I interviewed for Giving Forum, as well as members of the Forum of Regional Associations of Grantmakers, a variety of resources were sent my way. We’ve compiled some of them on our website. They include books, articles and online links on a variety of aspects of partnering – collaboration cultivation, program and organization mergers, case studies and more.
Join the Conversation: What resources have you consulted that have made a difference in helping you partner successfully?
- Chris Murakami Noonan, MCF communications associate
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