Help Your Letter Carrier Deliver the Goods

May 7, 2009

The canned goods, that is.

This Saturday, May 9, is the 17th annual National Association of Letter Carriers Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive. In 2008, the event, billed as the world’s largest food drive, collected 73.1 million pounds of food that was subsequently delivered to local food banks, pantries and shelters in all 50 states.

Contributing couldn’t be easier. Simply place your donation of non-perishable food items in a bag next to your mailbox before your mail is delivered this Saturday.  Your letter carrier will pick up the donation and see that it is delivered to a local food bank.

With more Americans unemployed every day, your contribution really matters. Thirty-five million Americans are hungry or living on the brink of hunger. Take a look at Hunger 101 on Feeding America’s website for some disheartening facts about hungry children, seniors and the working poor.

Or for something more interactive, take the quick Hunger Quiz and see what you learn about hunger in the U.S. I hope you learn enough to join me in donating this weekend. The Greater Twin Cities United Way, an MCF member, is a sponsor of this long-standing event.

If you really get into it, consider visiting the hunger site, where one click of your mouse donates 1.1 cups of food to the world’s poor and hungry. Last year, visitor clicks at the site triggered donations of 66,235,889 cups (more than 8 million pounds) of food. It’s so easy, and if you come back every day this year, you and your mouse will be responsible for donating 400 cups of food.

- Susan Stehling, MCF web communications associate

Comments Off | community foundations, economy, in the news, individual giving, international, nonprofits, technology | Permalink
Posted by MCF Webmaster

Succeeding with Microfinance

May 6, 2009
Learning about microfinance in Akbarpura, India - by lecercle

Learning about microfinance in Akbarpura, India - by lecercle

MCF’s International Funders Network recently held a discussion on what international funders and donors need to know about microfinance in order to succeed.

Three experts were invited to provide information on this complex topic: Rob Scarlett, a member of ACCION International’s President’s Council and a trustee of Sundance Family Foundation (an MCF member); Monte Achenbach, VP for international programs at American Refugee Committee; and Jason Cons, director of research and project design at The Goldin Institute.

During the Q & A session, attendees had the opportunity to inquire about their specific areas of interest. Here is a flavor of the conversation:

Q: Is Microlending working?

A: It depends — it’s not working in Bangladesh where people have taken out multiple loans to pay for everyday living expenses and are now overextended. It is working in Bolivia. The answer is different depending on the country, regulations, and division between NGOs and for-profit lenders.

Q: How do funders work successfully with for-profit lenders?

A: The lack of government oversight and regulation makes this difficult. Funders really need to build a long-term relationship and communicate their needs with their lender. 

Q: How do you determine and measure the impacts of giving?

A:  There are many ways to make determinations and measure impact. The impact can be social, economic, societal – and all can be measured in different ways.  Once you’ve determined what you want to measure, it’s recommended that you build in an ongoing, long-term process of internal and external accountability at all levels, and that you incorporate a community engagement process into your data collection and reporting activities.  

Q: Where can we find more information about microfinance?

A: In addition to ACCION International, ARC and the Goldin Institute, you can find information at CGAP: Consultative Group to Assist the Poor and The MIX Market. These organizations are also in the beginning stages of reporting social key indicators and eco-mapping that can be used for comparison data.

- Submitted by Lisa Johnson, MCF’s manager of professional development and e-learning

Comments Off | international | Permalink
Posted by Lisa Johnson

Conference blog keeps you in the loop

May 4, 2009

The national Council on Foundations’ (COF) annual conference began this morning in Atlanta.  COF’s president Steve Gunderson writes, “There is energy and urgency in the air. It’s a critical time for the country and the world. And it’s just the right time for the more than 1,300 people here to reexamine philanthropy’s place, today and tomorrow.”

Tight budgets may be preventing many from attending this year, but you can still join the conversation and gather insights on what matters in the field of philanthropy.

The Council launched a new blog, which my colleague Juliana Tillema introduced to you on her Philanthropy Potluck blog post April 30. The conference blog, RE: Philanthropy, provides a place for those attending to post reports and reflections on what they see, hear and think. What’s the talk in the halls? Amid all the changes in the economy and Washington, what really matters now?

The blogging team is a mix of expected and unexpected writers, established voices and next-generation leaders, and includes Minnesota connections such as Trista Harris, executive director of Headwaters Foundation for Justice, and Emmett Carson, former president and CEO of The Minneapolis Foundation and current CEO and president of Silicon Valley Community Foundation.  The blog may also include video.

This morning’s posts include contributors’ responses to the question “What one question do you think philanthropy needs to address?”

COF says the blog will continue beyond the conference. So, check out what your colleagues in philanthropy are saying. Post your own ideas. And join the conversation.

- Chris Murakami Noonan, MCF Communications Associate

Comments Off | collaboration, communication, community foundations, conference, corporate, diversity, economy, education, environment, evaluation, family foundations, government, health, international, leadership, mcf, nonprofits, philanthropy blogs, private foundations, programs, promotion of philanthropy, public policy, research, technology | Permalink
Posted by Chris Noonan

A New Community Engagement Guide for Social Justice

March 30, 2009

On March 26, the Minnesota Council on Foundations, Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy and PFund Foundation held a briefing on capacity building and community engagement for social change at the Northwest Area Foundation in St. Paul. 

The National Gender & Equity Campaign, a demonstration project of AAPIP and PFund Foundation, shared best practices and key lessons from their community engagement approaches. Grantmakers also heard various community perspectives about the NGEC and PFund Foundation’s community engagement processes. They shared their reflections and insights in to the impacts on the ground and how to enact approaches that stay relevant to community contexts.

This sparked a thoughtful discussion among participants. The discussion revolved around the questions: How can we keep our organization relevant to our audience? How can we reflect the needs of the community back into the community through responsive services? How can we make the evaluation process more realistic? Once you’ve participated in the community engagement process, how do you move forward strategically? One attendee remarked, “The community engagement process helps to debunk myths and satisfy truths. It helps you keep your organization relevant.” In light of today’s economic environment, I think we can all agree that we need to attend to the needs of our audiences now more than ever before.

The National Gender & Equity Campaign, a demonstration project of AAPIP, has produced ”A Guide on Community Engagement: Making Social Justice Work Inclusive”. This facilitation guide shares a framework, tools and methods for community engagement. If you’re interested in engaging the communities you serve, check out the full facilitation guide on NGEC’s website.

- Lisa Johnson, MCF’s manager of professional development  and e-learning

Comments Off | diversity, grantseekers, international, nonprofits, programs | Permalink
Posted by Lisa Johnson

2008 in Philanthropy

December 31, 2008

As 2008 draws to a close, the Foundation Center has published its annual review of philanthropy news over the past year:

From the historic candidacies of Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama, to the credit crisis and implosion of the U.S. economy, to the spectacular Olympic Games staged by a rising China, it was a year to remember. And philanthropy was very much a part of it, doing what it has done best traditionally even as it sought to become more efficient, more effective, and more relevant to the networked global economy of the twenty-first century.

This special section takes a look at the economy, diversity, legislative news, global trends, noteworthy gifts, and more. The section ends with a look ahead at what’s to come in 2009.

Comments Off | diversity, economy, government, in the news, international | Permalink
Posted by MCF Webmaster

Roundup of New Giving Reports

December 16, 2008
The Social and Economic Value of Private and Community Foundations
In perhaps the first broad analysis and estimate conducted in the U.S., the new organization The Philanthropic Collaborative says that every $1 philanthropic contribution produces an estimated average return of $8.58 in economic benefits.
> Download (PDF)
International Grantmaking Trends
This updated report from the Foundation Center and the national Council on Foundations shows that more than 72,000 U.S. foundations gave $5.4 billion to international causes in 2007, a record amount and an increase of more than 70% over the $3.2 billion given in 2002.
> Order from the Foundation Center
> More information from the Chronicle of Philanthropy
Giving in Numbers 2008
The Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy’s latest annual report of 150 US. companies shows that giving was “decidedly higher” in 2007 than the previous year, despite a mixed economic climate. The report also gives recommendations for how companies can support nonprofits in the future.
> Download (PDF)
> Read more from the Chronicle of Philanthropy

Comments Off | corporate, economy, international, research | Permalink
Posted by MCF Webmaster

McKnight Expands International Crop Research Program with Help from Gates Foundation

December 8, 2008
McKnight Collaborative Crop Research Program photo

The McKnight Foundation was awarded $26.7 million for crop research from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The funding will allow McKnight to expand its grantmaking to take advantage of its 25-year history strengthening a network of scientists, organizations and communities working for food and nutritional security in Latin America and Africa.

“The United Nations estimates more than 900 million people are undernourished, living in hunger,” said McKnight president Kate Wolford. “In issues of food security and sustainability, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and McKnight have overlapping interests. This grant will allow McKnight to double its support for research to help some of the world’s poorest farmers.”

McKnight has funded plant biology and crop research since the early 1980s, and established the McKnight Collaborative Crop Research Program in 1994. Today, the CCRP supports 26 projects in 17 countries, promoting sustainable food production and improved nutrition through strategic partnerships among researchers, development organizations and farmers in Latin American and Africa. Attentive to local cultures and resources, funding often focuses on under-researched crops in harsh environments where the poorest people live.

Read more at www.mcknight.org.

In the media:

Comments Off | family foundations, international | Permalink
Posted by MCF Webmaster

In the Media

December 5, 2008

Roundup of philanthropy and nonprofit articles.

Comments Off | disasters, economy, government, in the news, international | Permalink
Posted by MCF Webmaster

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