Turn on or tune in to any media source, and your emphatic reply would be “No way.” The extreme polarization in our country is more and more frightening every day. The new cultural norm is to not merely express strong points of view but to thoroughly demonize others.

At least one practitioner says it’s time to address this crisis with a new, 21st century approach to diversity, inclusion and equity.

At the University of St. Thomas Diversity Insights program last Thursday, Howard Ross, founder of Cook Ross Inc. and a leading national expert on diversity, leadership, and organizational change, challenged his audience to look within themselves for solutions.

Ross homed in on the source of our animosity toward each other — essentially, primal fears that lead us toward unconscious, visceral negative reactions to cultural, group, individual and institutional differences.

He coached audience members to overcome the “us vs. them” mentality by developing our capacity to observe ourselves. Instead of pointing the finger at others, he said, we should shine a light on our own biases.  Recognizing our own foibles and faults will increase our compassion toward others.

Ross’s points reminded me of conversations we’ve had at MCF about diversity in philanthropy. When we developed our Diversity & Inclusion Action Kit to accompany MCF’s Working Towards Diversity IV research, we deliberately titled the worksheets ”My Actions.” We wanted to reinforce that grantmakers must take the first step by focusing on what they can do – not what others should do.

Ross concluded his remarks with some concrete steps we can each take to close the widening gulfs in our organizations and in society at large:

• Shift your consumption of media to really listen to the other side.
• Open a constructive dialogue in your organization, focusing not on the issues themselves, but on the way in which you’re talking about the issues.
• Talk to young people about other points of view.
• Take “the other” to lunch not to persuade, but to listen.

I haven’t cracked open Ross’s new book “ReInventing Diversity: Transforming Organizational Community to Strengthen People, Purpose and Performance.” But based on his presentation, I expect I’ll find more than a few concepts that are applicable to the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors.

Join the Conversation: When “us vs. them” differences arise in your own organization, what are your actions and reactions? Is there a chasm between grantmakers and nonprofits that could be narrowed by self-awareness?

- Wendy Wehr, MCF v.p. of communications and information services

Photo cc AAskew

The forums brought together more than 400 city, county and school district leaders, including elected and appointed officials, to generate ideas about ways they could collaborate across jurisdictions for better public service delivery.

At the forums, some of Minnesota’s most innovative local leaders came together to share their experiences with redesign and to explore new opportunities to work together across jurisdictions. They shared stories of what’s working in their communities, and they shared their hopes for the future.

Three critical lessons, summarized here, came out of the forums. The report provides much more detail on each.

1. Redesign is facing some barriers to change. Changing the way services are managed or delivered is never easy, and it hasn’t been for our local leaders working to redesign services in their communities.

There’s the identity issue, there’s turf, and there’s ego, and there’s the fear of change. We’ve got to get people to understand that we’ve got to change to stay alive.
— JO CARLSON, MAYOR, CITY OF WHITE BEAR LAKE

2. Leaders agree that five essential elements are needed to redesign local governments. Barriers are not permanent obstacles, and many local leaders have moved past them.

There’s definitely a willingness among local units of government to work together. At the legislature, they need to know that there are people in local government that want to work together, and I think that message needs to go out to our stakeholders at the local level, too.
— KEVIN DONOVAN, MAHTOMEDI SCHOOL BOARD

3. Minnesota’s local governments are ready to innovate. In fact, they’re already doing it.

Right now we’re working with other school districts in Itasca County and the region in Deerwood, Nashwauk-Keewatin, Floodwood, Hill City, Greenway, and Northland Community School. We’re linking via technology and together we’re sharing teachers and courses. Our students are getting electives and opportunities that a lot of large school districts in the Metro don’t offer because we’ve worked together and used technology to do more with what we have.
— JOE SILKO, SUPERINTENDENT, GRAND RAPIDS

Learn more, follow the media coverage of the report and find additional resources on local government redesign on The Bush Foundation’s Redesigning Local Government web page.

- Susan Stehling, communications associate

We reviewed recent trends in human services giving and the subject area outlook for 2012. Then Bill King, MCF president, talked with Neal Cuthbert, vice president of program, The McKnight Foundation, and Randi Roth, executive director, Otto Bremer Foundation.

These leading grantmakers acknowledged the difficult funding landscape. Roth explained, “Needs are dramatically outstripping resources. In the communities, the economic conditions are more difficult than you could remedy with the amount of money that’s available. Last year’s donors are this year’s recipients.”

Added Cuthbert, “The human services arena has really been challenging not only because of the recession but because of what’s been going on in the public sector. There’s political stasis and an inability for the public sector to move forward.”

These challenges aside, Roth and Cuthbert offered some perspective and insight for grantseekers in 2012:

• Everyone’s focused on greater impact. “These communities need help. You only have so many dollars and you want them to go as far as possible. Impact is really just a way of being cost effective,” noted Roth. Both panelists agreed that defining and measuring impact is difficult. Cuthbert said, “We try to really focus on and articulate the two or three areas where we want to see change.”
• To achieve more impact, grantmakers and nonprofits are creating opportunities for shared learning and collaboration. As Roth described, “Is one model proven to be effective and can this information be shared between grant applicants? Can a program that’s doing a good job share those best practices?” Cuthbert explained, “We expect ourselves to be constantly learning and we expect it of the people we work with.”

So how can nonprofits more successfully partner with grantmakers in 2012? Roth summarized, “Tell us how your work will move this community forward, tell us how you’ll know you’re successful, and tell us where you fit into the network of service providers.” She added, “As a grantmaker you don’t expect the same level of sophistication in answering these questions from a very small organization as from a very large one. But I think you still have the conversation on the same topics. Even the smallest organization in the most remote place does need to be thinking about these things.”

Cuthbert summed up, “You have to be brutally pragmatic, as nimble as you can possibly be, flexible and opportunistic.”

Other Grantmakers to Share Advice

Two more upcoming webinars will delve deeply into health and arts funding.  They will feature conversations with grantmakers from Medtronic Foundation, Miller-Dwan Foundation, Minnesota Philanthropy Partners, and The McKnight Foundation.

• Health, February 1; and
• Arts, February 7.

Register today to learn more about Minnesota’s funding landscape in 2012!

-Anne Bauers, MCF research manager

McKnight also previewed some of its big programs and activities to come in 2012, including:

• Working with a number of school districts to build seamless pre-kindergarten through 3rd grade programs that get children ready for school and keep them engaged. McKnight has partnered with the Urban Education Institute of the University of Chicago for this initiative, to bring research-based tools and expertise to these efforts.
• Going “beyond the rail” to increase equity and shared economic impact of new transit investments.
• Celebrating 30 years of the McKnight Artist Fellowships program, which makes awards to individual artists in 12 disciplines.
• Support to communities around the globe in East Africa, South America, the Mekong River area and more.

The full letter, with more details of what McKnight accomplished in 2011 and what it plans for the year ahead, is on the foundation’s website.

We reviewed recent trends in education giving and the grantmaker outlook for 2012. Then Bill King, MCF president, chatted with Mike Newman, vice president and director of community relations, Travelers Foundation, and Susan Heegard, vice president and educational team leader, Bush Foundation. These leading grantmakers described several important trends in education grantmaking for 2012:

• Grantmakers will continue to focus on collaboration as a way to share learning opportunities with partners, leverage resources, and prevent duplication. Heegard explained, “If there are other folks working in this area, we want to make sure that we’re adding value and figuring out carefully where our niche is.” Newman added, “We as a philanthropic sector, along with the nonprofit sector, are learning how to better connect with one another.”
• One benefit of collaboration is enabling grantmakers and nonprofits to be learning organizations. “Learning – and sharing that learning with others – is really critical, whether you have success or not,” said Heegard.
• Data will continue to drive grantmaker decision making. Heegard noted, “You want to use data to guide the front-end decision: How should you invest? And then you want to use data to track your progress: how are you doing?”
• Even as collaboration becomes increasingly important, Newman noted that grantmakers will continue to fund diverse priorities and programs. Heegard added that this makes sense — to fund across the full spectrum of education needs.

The grantmakers also offered their own advice to nonprofits seeking grants in 2012:

• Know your own work well. Newman commented, “Be clear about who you are and say it with clarity.”
• Know your colleagues and potential partners. “Have a good knowledge of who else is doing similar or related work. Distinguish your efforts, or figure out a way to come together with others in partnership,” Heegard said.
• Understand the grantmaker, including areas of focus. “Check out our website. Talk to colleagues. Find out who else we fund. That gets you a helpful overview,” Newman advised.

One great tool for understanding grantmakers’ guidelines and which nonprofits they’ve supported in the past is MCF’s Minnesota Grantmakers Online.

Other Grantmakers to Share Advice

Three upcoming webinars will delve deeply into other subject areas, and they will feature conversations with grantmakers from The McKnight Foundation, Medtronic Foundation, Miller-Dwan Foundation, Minnesota Philanthropy Partners and Otto Bremer Foundation.

• Human Services, January 24;
• Health, February 1; and
• Arts, February 7.

Register today to learn more about Minnesota’s funding landscape in 2012!

-Anne Bauers, MCF research manager

A growing movement to spark philanthropic giving from a community on behalf of a community, where “community” is defined by race, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation.

The U.S. population is changing, with ethnic and racial groups growing faster than the overall population. Not surprisingly, the face of philanthropy is changing along with it.

The report found that 63 percent of Latino households now make charitable donations, and blacks give away 25 percent more of their income per year than whites.

Concurrently the definition of philanthropy is expanding to encompass contributions of any size from people of every income bracket and ethnic background. And, the report shows how these new philanthropists are pooling their money—in increasingly organized ways—for greater impact.

The report challenges funders to consider ways to collaborate:

• by providing seed support and other forms of assistance,
• by embracing identity-based funds as critical partners in the sector and forging stronger connections within communities of color,
• by diversifying the leadership of mainstream philanthropy to reflect changing demographics and
• by shifting practices to reflect what communities of color are teaching about the future of giving and how funders can positively impact the country’s most vulnerable children and families.

MCF agrees that grantmaking is most effective when grantmakers reflect the diversity of the communities they serve.

For local information on the subject, check out our 2011 Working Towards Diversity IV report, which paints a comprehensive picture of the demographics, policies and practices on diversity and inclusion of Minnesota grantmakers. Review our diversity resources, and visit the websites of our strategic partners:

• Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy (AAPIP)
• Hispanics in Philanthropy (HIP)
• Minnesota Blacks in Philanthropy and
• Native Americans in Philanthropy

It’s important work. W.K. Kellogg Foundation president and CEO Sterling Speirn puts it this way, “We believe that understanding and supporting this emerging area of philanthropy is essential for any foundation, funder or donor who wants to drive social change.”

- Susan Stehling, MCF communications associate

CC Photo: KellyCDB

When planning the launch of Minnesota Philanthropy Partners, we knew creating a video about our grantmaking work was an important component. As we unveiled a new name for our network of 1,600 funds, foundations and organizations, we wanted to reassure nonprofits that the grantmaking for three of our anchor foundations,  The Saint Paul Foundation, F. R. Bigelow Foundation and Mardag Foundation, remained the same.

Video is also a great way to make our grantmaking processes more transparent. We hope that an insider peek into our practices will help nonprofits be more informed when working with us, which would then result in more powerful collaborations. Our program team wants to work closely with nonprofits. We welcome conversations with organizations to learn about their work and understand if their programs and objectives fit with our funding priorities and commitments.

Ultimately, this new grantmaking video, along with other communication efforts like our Nonprofits to Know^TM  video series and MNSights magazine, is intended to help strengthen philanthropy in Minnesota. We hope the outcome of the new video is that more great programs find our foundations and that our community is the better for it. Have a look and let us know what you think!

Seventy percent of grantmakers anticipate that their funding priorities will remain constant in 2012, which is almost a 10-point increase over what they predicted for 2011.

MCF’s 2012 Outlook Report is based on an October/November 2011 survey of 100 foundations and corporate giving programs that represent 76 percent (or about $1 billion) of all Minnesota annual grantmaking.

Subject-Area Funding
For the first time in its annual Outlook survey, MCF asked grantmakers to estimate changes in giving to the specific subject areas they support. While most respondents plan no changes to 2012 subject-area giving, one third of education funders forecast giving more to education in 2012.

Arts, culture, and humanities is the only subject area to which more grantmakers said they expect to decrease rather than increase funding. Although the respondents represent a small part of the Outlook survey sample, this finding appears to be consistent with a trend toward less arts funding as reported in MCF’s latest Giving in Minnesota report.

Learn More
To learn more about what the report findings mean for Minnesota’s nonprofit and philanthropic communities, check out the full report online and register today for one or all four of the subject-specific webinars hosted by MCF.

Webinar topics and dates are:

• Education, January 18;
• Human Services, January 24;
• Health, February 1; and
• Arts, February 7.

At each webinar, in addition to a broad overview of 2012’s giving outlook, a panel of funders will dive more deeply into subject-specific funding and answer questions like the following:

• What are the current trends in funding for education, human services, health or arts?
• Will funding for the area be up or down in 2012?
• What should nonprofits be aware of as they prepare to seek funds in 2012?

We promise you’ll come away from them more knowledgeable and informed about 2012’s funding landscape in Minnesota!

Greater value from government arises out of effectiveness, efficiencies, innovation and collaboration.

That was the message yesterday from Minnesota Commissioner of Administration Spencer Cronk , who spoke in St. Paul at a Coffee with Commissioners event, one of a series of dialogues with state government officials, organized by the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits and MCF, with support from The Minneapolis Community Foundation.

Cronk was joined by Alyssa Haugen, Director of Office of Grants Management and Matt Bailey, who recently joined the department to head up the new Office of Strategic Partnerships, which will focus on finding added value through collaborative relationships between multiple levels of government and the nonprofit, philanthropic and for-profit communities.

Cronk and his colleagues cited several examples of ways in which philanthropists, nonprofits and citizens can get engaged in creating more efficient and effective government, for the ultimate benefit of our state’s residents:

• The Bush Foundation is partnering with government in the “Southeast Minnesota Community Transformation Contract,” a concerted effort to transform human services delivery in a 10-county region. The goal is to improve value on investment, spend less money, focus on client outcomes and strengthen partnerships across government entities.
• The Office of Grants Management is all about efficiency: assuring competitive grants processes, beefing up reporting standards, and pinpointing fraud and waste.  Nonprofits receiving state government grants can contact the Office at any time for troubleshooting assistance.
• The Better Government for a Better Minnesota initiative is focused on saving money, reducing waste and making government work better for residents.  Do you have your own ideas about improving government?   Fill out the easy-to-use online form.

While the government officials shared these and other examples, attendees at the event had their own suggestions for better state government.  They strongly urged the Department of Administration to tap into the value of volunteers.  Tens of thousands of workers and retirees are eager to share their insights and expertise to create a better Minnesota for all.

Join the Conversation:  Where can you uncover hidden value in your organization?  What recommendations do you have for Commissioner Cronk and others in state government who seek to provide added value for Minnesota citizens?

-Wendy Wehr, MCF V.P. of Communications and Information Services

The program provides an opportunity for individuals to increase their capacity for and improve their practice of leadership while working with others to address big issues in their communities. It is based on four core principles needed to solve tough problems: knowing yourself first, knowing your community deeply, fostering community action, and managing conflict.

Some of the qualities the foundation looks for in Bush Fellows are:

• Commitment to making their community a better place for all
• Belief that risk, failure and conflict are not to be feared when working to find solutions to tough problems
• Passion for learning and improving their leadership skills
• An understanding that the solutions to their community’s tough problems are to be found within the collective wisdom of the community

To learn more and get started on an application, visit the Bush Foundation’s website. New in 2012, there are three deadlines over the course of the year that an application can be submitted: March 2, May 4, and July 9.

Also be sure to have a look at the 2011 Bush Fellows cohort, to see all of the great work that has been funded over the past year.