Nonprofit Awareness

Fairy Godmothers Inc.

2013-02-15T09:00:00.000-05:00

Fairy Godmothers Inc. is a Philadelphia, 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that makes it possible for junior and senior high school girls, to attend their prom. For the last 13 years they have provided prom gowns, shoes, and other accessories to girls, whose financial situation would otherwise prevent them from attending their prom.

The organization coordinates special Prom Fairs, where qualifying girls can have the special experience of trying and selecting their prom dress and accessories. At $10 for dresses, and $2-$6 accessories, these girls have a chance to participate in one of the lasting memories from high school.

Want to get involved?

Donated dresses must be less than five years old, dry cleaned, and in great condition. You can also donate shoes and accessories. Monetary donations are also accepted via Paypal.

Want to help a girl's prom dream come true? Volunteer! Right now, through the Pennsylvania and Arizona branches of the organization you can donate your time and talents to the following positions:

Personalist Stylist
Personal Shopper/Customer Service
Seamstress/Alterations

Other chapters of the organization are located in New York, Delaware, and Virginia.

For more information, please visit Fairy Godmothers Inc.

The Grannie Project

2013-02-14T09:00:00.000-05:00

The Grannie Project, founded in 2012, is a small, young nonprofit, but a great example of inspired people setting out to make a difference. The focus of the Grannie Project is to rescue and re-home senior pets, and to promote spaying and neutering pets.

The Southeastern Pennsylvania organization was created after its founders visited a high kill shelter to adopt a cat. Seeing the number of senior cats at the shelter inspired them to establish The Grannie Project, a 501(c)3 that is funded entirely through private donations. The organization operates entirely through a network of foster homes, which means funding goes to directly to the pets, for veterinary expenses, food, shelter and supplies.

The Grannie Project encourages pet owners to responsibly plan for the future care of their senior pets after they are gone; too many cats and dogs end up in kill shelters. To meet current shelter pet needs, the organization advocates spaying and neutering pets.

For more information, please visit The Grannie Project. The website is full of resources for pet owners and articles to encourage involvement.

Action Against Hunger

2013-02-13T09:00:00.001-05:00

Action Against Hunger| ACF International is a global humanitarian organization committed to ending world hunger. The organization saves the lives of severely malnourished children and helps vulnerable communities become self-sufficient, through long-term sustainable systems.

The Numbers:

Lifesaving impact in 40+ countries
5000+ field staff assisting more than 6 million people each year.
30+ years of expertise in contexts of conflict, disasters and food crises

Where Your Money Goes:

93% of all funding goes towards program services. (That's $0.93 of every dollar). 4% goes to general operating and management expenses, and 3% goes to fundraising. One of the reasons fundraising costs so little, may be because there are so many, easy, ways to get involved. Donors can contribute directly via the website, shop in the organization's online store, or even use free tools through the Action Against Hunger website to create their own fundraising campaign to end hunger.

So what does that 93% in program services look like? Well in 2012:

550,000 small farmers were provided with tools after drought and displacement
42,000 severely malnourished children in the D.R. Congo were treated
170,000 people gained access to clean water in Kenya

Programs:

Nutrition: "Action Against Hunger’s methods for identifying and rescuing populations afflicted with acute malnutrition are internationally renowned, having pioneered revolutionary nutrition products and field tested treatment protocols that have become industry standards. From rural mountain villages to the confines of refugee camps to ethnically divided cities, Action Against Hunger treats and prevents malnutrition in over 40 countries around the world. [Action Against Hunger's] programs are launched most often during times of crisis and focus on the most vulnerable, including young children and women who are pregnant or nursing."

What They Do:

Evaluate nutritional needs: To assess the root causes of a malnutrition outbreak, ACF collects baseline data on key nutritional indicators like local capacities and resources, cultural practices, infrastructure, and geography. These nutrition surveys are essential for mounting an effective, customized response.
Treat acute malnutrition: ACF treats cases of severe acute malnutrition with inpatient care (for those with medical complications) and with community-based, outpatient programs. Without treatment severely malnourished women and children would likely face imminent death.
Prevent acute malnutrition: ACF’s prevention activities provide Ready-to-Use-Foods to patients discharged from therapeutic care, children with moderate acute malnutrition, and children in communities faced with seasonal hunger. Prevention can save millions of lives while long-term solutions are developed.
Build local capacity: ACF strengthens public health systems to combat malnutrition. They field teams that consist overwhelmingly of local staff and integrate their programs into existing health structures. When crises subside, they ensure local capacity is in place to support continued improvements in communities’ nutritional health.

Food Security & Livelihoods: "Encompassing a wide array of activities customized to meet a community’s specific needs, [Action Against Hunger's] programs are designed to bolster agricultural production, jumpstart local market activity, support micro-enterprise initiatives, and otherwise enhance a vulnerable community’s access to sustainable sources of food and income."

What They Do:

Evaluate local needs: To determine what’s causing hunger in a given area, Action Against Hunger carries out comprehensive evaluations by collecting and analyzing key data on local assets, resources, and livelihoods strategies. Their teams meet directly with community members to better understand local conditions and create a collaborative plan of action.
Respond to emergencies: When disasters destroy infrastructure and food supplies, when violence forces thousands to flee, or when drought disrupts food production, Action Against Hunger responds with distributions of food, cash, and other items to prevent hunger in the short-term and ensure that crops can be replanted and livestock restocked in the future.
Provide long-term solutions: Designed in collaboration with local populations, Action Against Hunger's strategies are context-specific: micro-grant support for families recovering from conflict; seeds and tools for agricultural recovery; livestock and veterinary services where needed; small business assistance; and other programs that help families regain self-sufficiency.

Water, Sanitation, & Hygiene: "Every day 4,000 children die from illnesses like diarrhea, dysentery, and cholera caused by dirty water and unhygienic living conditions. [Action Against Hunger] can’t fight malnutrition without tackling the diseases that contribute to it. As part of [their] integrated approach to hunger, [they are] getting safe water, sanitation, and hygiene services to communities in need all over the world."

What They Do:

Provide access to safe water: During emergencies, ACF trucks water into affected areas and installs storage tanks and reservoirs. Where water is scarce or unsafe, they drill and decontaminate wells, install hand-pumps, protect natural springs, tap aquifers, rehabilitate damaged infrastructure, and pipe water into hard-to-reach villages and health centers.
Promote sanitation & hygiene: To prevent outbreaks of disease during a crisis, ACF’s teams distribute hygiene kits and build latrines and hand-washing stations. In communities at risk, they construct water filters made from basic materials and teach healthy practices like hand-washing, cooking with clean utensils, and drawing water from protected sources.
Ensure lasting change: ACF’s commitment to community participation ensures long-term capacity: the organization trains community-based water committees to manage their water and sanitation infrastructure themselves, and organize village health teams to model good sanitation and hygiene practices for their communities long after ACF leaves an area.

Emergency Response: "From cholera epidemics sweeping through refugee camps, to catastrophic natural disasters, to spikes in malnutrition rates brought on by drought, Action Against Hunger responds to humanitarian emergencies all over the world, delivering immediate life-saving services to populations in distress. With emergency teams on call 24 hours a day, and pre-positioned stocks of essential supplies ready for deployment, [their] internationally renowned rapid response capabilities ensure that life-saving assistance can be delivered anywhere in the world when needs arise."

Praise:

Four Star charity rating by Charity Navigator
A- rated organization by Charity Watch
2012 Top Nonprofit by Great Nonprofits

To learn more about Action Against Hunger|ACF International please visit their website. The site is definitely worth a visit, as it provides comprehensive information on how the organization implements their program services, the organization's impact, news from the field, and of course, all the financial and reporting documents savvy funders are looking for.

Artistic Rebuttaling – Using Art to Advocate for the Arts

2013-02-12T09:00:00.000-05:00

Guest Contributor: Amy Scheidegger (Director, Artistic Rebuttal Project)

One afternoon in late January 2011, I, an artist from the age of 2, was horribly disturbed by a conversation between a group of brand new college kids on a Philadelphia subway on the way to a theater in which I worked as a prop painter. This what I overheard:

“Art is like, the most worthless degree anyone can get. It’s like having a degree in making shit out of Popsicle sticks and string.”

I’m not naïve. I was raised in the south where the majority of my community (and family) did not embrace art as a career path, but people this young? I thought the youth of America were more appreciative of art has a valid profession, whether an arts degree was involved in that career choice or not. And I do admit that when I heard “art is the most worthless degree anyone can get” I took it to mean “art is worthless,” so maybe those kids on the subway weren’t as misinformed as I jumped to conclude. Artists become artists with a degree or not. But still, their sentiments really angered me, and as an arts advocate with two degrees in the field, (a BFA in Painting and a Masters in Arts Administration) I knew I had to do something rather than just wallow in my disappointment. It is widely acknowledged that artists do not get the respect they deserve, degree or not, but what artists and what their art accomplishes is too important to let conversations like this one be ignored.

I took to the internet where professionals of the visual, performing, musical and written word persuasion, arts administrators and appreciators were contacted and hundreds joined together to make their own visually rendered statements about the importance of the arts. Statements range from where art is hiding that the non-artist does not see, statistics about how much money arts and culture contribute to the economy and what art-making does for human development. The end product of collecting all these images were full color books showcasing everyone’s rebuttal to the “arts is worthless” debate as well as their personal love for the arts.

The Artistic Rebuttal Project is grassroots arts advocacy at its best: Artists and art lovers coming together to creatively fight for their livelihoods. Since creative people are trained, either professionally or have trained themselves, to see both the beauty and the faults (but mostly the beauty) in the things that they and others observe and create, I have found them to be among the most trusting, honest, brave, and compassionate people I have ever known. The city of Philadelphia felt the same way, as evidenced by Leadership Philadelphia’s Creative Connector initiative in 2011. I was honored to have been chosen by my peers as one of Philadelphia’s top 76 Creative Connectors, a group characterized as entrepreneurial professionals who serve as civic hubs of trust who use art, culture and design to build community and economic vitality all while purposely flying under the radar. In 2011, we published a Pennsylvania edition, to take down to Art Advocacy Day in DC, a national and a children’s edition.

After a very successful first year and 200+ rebuttals collected from ages 5 to 65, our second year imposed a theme: Art is an Instinct. Artists of all trades and levels of expertise often feel an inward impulse to create. I know I have, ever since I first picked up a crayon at the age of two – and promptly drew all over my parents’ walls and keepsakes. Creative people feel a sense of accomplishment, a very personal reward, from this impulse to do, make, and perform. When this creation is shared, others are often moved and rewarded in ways that are hard to articulate. Born from this internal drive, a work of art has the potential to affect a countless number of people in an immeasurable amount of ways. In 2012, we published another Pennsylvania edition for Arts Advocacy Day, with a forward from Julie Hawkins, a Philadelphia arts advocate and fellow Creative Connector; as well as a national edition, with a forward by Kymia Nawabi, winner of Bravo TV’s “The Next Great Artist, Season 2.”

We are now in our third year and a lot has changed. We learned (the hard way) from our second year that the time-suck involved with fundraising in order to publish a small run of books was shifting focus off our main mission: advocating for the arts and artists. We also learned that asking for rebuttals in the form of .jpegs and .pdfs, in order to be printed, was restrictive to those artists who can’t put what they love about their discipline into those formats, or even into words at all. So we’re now transitioning to advocating for arts and artists digitally, in whatever share-able format a person deems fitting to them, in order to better fulfill our mission, accommodate a wider range of artistic expression and grow our audiences.

We also determined that the reasons why the project started, to combat the negative perception of an art degree and artists in general, and the reasons why the project is still functioning today are quite different - based simply on what people involved with the project are actually doing on the project’s behalf.

Here is what the project does currently:

Promotes Visual Artists Rights (since visual is my area of expertise) and advocates for artists to be better educated about the history of artists (a.k.a. the historical perception of artists) in America
Promotes the creative process as a career
Creates an outlet for creative people to share their arts experiences
Advocates on behalf of artists and their skill sets, arts education and arts access
Stimulates people to make art

How Others Can Help:

In order to grow the scope of our project, we need new supporters, new rebuttals, new stories about how the arts have improved our lives; just fresh faces and voices to share.

Anyone interested in helping with the effort can come up with their rebuttal and email it to artisticrebuttal@gmail.com. Rebuttals can also be tweeted to @ArtistRebuttal or left on our Facebook Page: Artistic Rebuttal Book Project.

We also want to form meaningful partnerships with both arts-centric folks and organizations that aren’t art focused but promote the use of art in their own missions, so if there is anyone, any organization out there that wants to help us in advocating for the arts/artists, please contact us with ideas through our social media outlets or email.

Rebuttals can be viewed at www.artisticrebuttal.com/apps/blog

For more info about the project, to join our e-mailing list and to donate to the project, visit www.artisticrebuttal.com. Donations assist in informing artists of their rights and printing rebuttals that are mailed to our congressmen in Washington, NC and local/state representatives.

A very special thank you to Amy for telling us about the Artistic Rebuttal Project, and for sharing a preview of some new rebuttals...

Creative Commons

2013-02-11T09:00:00.001-05:00

Who They Are:

Creative Commons is a nonprofit that enables the sharing and use of creativity and knowledge through free legal tools. Its mission is to develop, support, and steward legal and technical infrastructure that maximizes digital creativity, sharing, and innovation. The organization's vision is 'nothing less than realizing the full potential of the internet- universal access to research and education, full participation in culture- to drive a new era of development, growth and productivity. Creative Commons was created to bridge the gap between the innovative digital culture and copyright law.

What They Do:

Creative Common's easy-to-use copyright licenses provide a simple, standardized way to give the public permission to share and use your creative work- on conditions of your choice. The licenses are not an alternative to copyright, but rather work alongside copyright, allowing you to modify your copyright terms to meet your needs.

Copyright laws for creative work can be pretty difficult to understand, Creative Commons offers an easily accessible and understandable option to protect your work.

For more information or to get your creative copyright, click here.

Children's Futures

2013-02-10T09:00:00.001-05:00

Children's Futures was established in 2001 to serve Mercer County, NJ, and ensure that all children and families get off to a healthy start in life. They aim to increase opportunities for health and wellness, and to ward off health and social problems that can lead to a lifetime of illness and dependency.

The organization's mission is to improve health and development outcomes for children and their families. To achieve this mission, they formally collaborate with schools, social service providers, healthcare agencies, faith institutions, civic associations, employers and others around school readiness and success strategies that have the greatest positive impact on children's immediate health needs, as well as long-term development.

Children's Futures provides services in the following areas:

Health Education and Outreach
Prenatal Care Services
Nurse Home Visiting
Case Management
Quality Child Care
Health Literacy
Family Support Services
Professional Training & Technical Assistance

Additionally, the organization hosts conferences and forums, provides training and technical assistance to area agencies, produces reports and advocates for policy changes. Their programs focus on: strengthening parenting, improving primary care systems, improving child care systems and integrating community support.

For more information please visit the Children's Futures website.

The David and Lucile Packard Foundation

2013-02-09T09:00:00.000-05:00

The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, mission

Programs:

Conservation and Science

Areas of Focus:

Marine Fisheries
California Coast
Gulf of California
Western Pacific
Marine Birds
Science
Climate
Agriculture
Western Conservation
Packard Fellowships

Support:
- Harness market forces to drive changes in the management of the world’s fisheries.
- Pioneer new approaches to the conservation of coastal ecosystems in California, the Gulf of California, and the Western Pacific Ocean.
- Reverse the decline of marine bird populations.
- Enable the creative pursuit of scientific research.
- Reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change.
- Improve the environmental performance of agriculture and biofuels production.
- Protect and restore biologically important and iconic regions of western North America.

Population and Reproductive Health

Areas of Focus:

Global
United States
Sub-Saharan Africa
South Asia

Support:

Mobilizing policies, resources, and political will at the global, regional, and country levels to cultivate a climate that advances and protects family planning and reproductive health and rights.
Expanding access to quality services by training providers in quality care, introducing new family planning methods, informing communities about reproductive health information (with an emphasis on young people), and expanding access to safe abortion and post-abortion care.
Empowering women and girls to increase their ability to make informed family planning and reproductive health decisions. This includes selective efforts within the foundation's geographic focus that improve educational attainment for vulnerable girls, expand leadership and economic opportunities for women, and redefine community priorities to support the ability to make positive reproductive health choices.

Children, Families and Communities

Areas of Focus:

Preschool for California's Children
Children's Health Insurance
After-school and Summer Enrichment

Support:

Public policy reforms
Systems improvements
Research (very selectively)
Communications and advocacy, and
Constituency development

Local Grant-making

Areas of Focus and Support:

Arts
Children and Youth
Conservation and Science
Food and Shelter
Population and Reproductive Health

Organizational Effectiveness and Philanthropy

Support:

Organization or network assessment, which may include social network analysis or mapping
Strategic planning, business, or operational planning
Financial and executive coaching
Mergers or other restructuring efforts
Fund development planning and feasibility studies
Executive search services during senior leadership transitions
Cultural competence or diversity initiatives
Board development and governance
Training for network coordinators (e.g., facilitation skills)
Strategic communications planning, including planning for use of social media
Building the organization or network’s capacity to evaluate its work

In addition to grants, the Packard Foundation makes a variety of Program-Related Investments (PRI), alternatives to outright grants primarily issued as low-interest loans. They also provide Packard Fellowships for Science and Engineering, to allow the nation’s most promising professors to pursue science and engineering research early in their careers with few funding restrictions and limited reporting requirements.

The foundation's long-term funding commitments include:

Lucile Packard Children's Hospital
Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute
Monterey Bay Aquarium

For more information please visit the foundation's website.

The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation

2013-02-08T09:00:00.000-05:00

The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation's, was established in 1967 to solve social and environmental problems at home and around the world. Its total assets (as of December 2011) are $7.29 billion.

The foundation's program goals include:

helping to reduce global poverty
limiting the risk of climate change
improving education for students in California and elsewhere
improving reproductive health and rights worldwide
supporting vibrant performing arts in our community
advancing the field of philanthropy
supporting disadvantaged communities in the San Francisco Bay Area

Three fundamental values guiding these programmatic goals:

The Hewlett Foundation is concerned primarily with solving social and environmental problems. This requires that staff defines program objectives, grants, and other activities in terms of problems to be solved; identifies indicators of progress and criteria for evaluating success; and that the foundation is prepared to stay the course.
The solutions to serious problems are seldom known with anything close to certainty. The Foundation must therefore be prepared to experiment and take risks in its grantmaking. This, too, requires setting clear objectives and creating ways to measure success whenever possible. Without this information, it would be very difficult to know how the risk eventuated. This approach also requires a willingness to acknowledge and learn from failures.
Grantee institutions--nonprofit organizations and, in some cases, government entities--are essential partners in achieving the Foundation's goals. This explains the relatively high proportion of the Foundation's grants budget allocated to general operating support. It also implies a concern not only for the health of individual organizations, but for the fields in which they operate.

Programs:

Education: pursues outlined goals by investing in organizations that develop and advocate for innovation in ideas, practices, and tools, as well as those that participate in the public debate on these issues.

Programs:

Deeper Learning
California Education
Open Educational Resources
Serving Bay Area Communities

Goals:

increase economic opportunities and civic engagement by educating students to succeed in a changing world through deeper learning
improve the conditions for education reform in California
equalize access to knowledge for teachers and students around the globe through Open Educational Resources
raise educational achievement in disadvantaged communities in San Francisco Bay Area

Environment: to pursue program goals, the foundation works closely with a wide range of nonprofits and diverse populations that bring varied perspectives and practical experience to their grant-making.

Programs:

Western Conservation
Energy and Climate
Serving Bay Area Communities

Goals:

conserve the ecological integrity of the Western U.S. and Canada for people and wildlife
avoid the worst effects of global climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions
ensure clean and efficient supplies of energy, while protecting human health and the environment
reduce environmental problems that disproportionately affect disadvantaged communities in the San Francisco Bay Area

Global Development and Population: the foundation seeks to maximize its investments by supporting sound policy making through research, analysis and advocacy.

Programs:

Transparency and Accountability
Research, Policy Analysis and Advocacy
Quality Education
Quality Family Planning
Serving Bay Area Communities

Goals:

promote transparent and accountable governance around the world, including through a Mexico country program
foster greater use of high-quality research and analysis to create sound policy in developing countries, including through investments in training and policy research capacity
improve the quality of basic education and children's learning in the developing world
ensure access to quality family planning and reproductive health, both domestically and internationally
reduce teen and unplanned pregnancy in disadvantaged communities in San Francisco Bay Area and California's Central Valley

Performing Arts

Programs:

Continuity and Engagement
Arts Education
Infrastructure
Serving Bay Area Communities

Other Work:

Effective Philanthropy Group

Programs:

Strategy Support
Measurements and Evaluation
Organizational Learning
Organizational Effectiveness
Philanthropy Grant-making

Special Projects

Programs:

hosting initiatives that might (or might not) eventually become part of the foundation's primary strategies
supplementing program budgets when unexpected opportunities arise
supporting selected national media organizations
supporting social science research that informs the foundation's strategic pursuit of its goals
supporting think tanks and related institutions, some of which are especially concerned with international relations
supporting key academic and cultural institutions
supporting evidence-based policy making and common values

To learn more, including information of the foundation's impact, please visit The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation website, here.

W.K. Kellogg Foundation

2013-02-07T09:00:00.000-05:00

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation's , created in 1930, mission is to support children, families, and communities as they strengthen and create conditions that propel vulnerable children to achieve success as individuals and as contributors to the larger community and society.

Values:

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation believes:

in helping people help themselves through the practical application of knowledge and resources to improve their quality of life and that of future generations.
all people have the inherent capacity to effect change in their lives, in their organizations, and in their communities.
stewardship requires fidelity to the spirit and to the intent of the founder, and the wise use of resources.
innovation of thought and action leads to enduring and positive change in both formal and informal systems.

They value integrity of purpose and action, and believe it is essential to all of our affairs.

Founder W.K. Kellogg defined the foundation's purpose as "... administering funds for the promotion of the welfare, comfort, health, education, feeding, clothing, sheltering and safeguarding of children and youth, directly or indirectly without regard to sex, race, creed, or nationality..." To guide current and future trustees and staff, he said "use the money as you please so long as it promotes the health, happiness, and well-being of children."

What They Support/ Programs:

Educated Kids: ensures that all children get the development and education they need as a foundation for independence and success; the foundation seeks opportunities to invest in early child development, leading to reading proficiency by third grade, high school graduation, and pathways to meaningful employment.
Healthy Kids: seeks funding opportunities that allow the foundation to make progress in ensuring all children grow and reach optimal well-being by living in secure families, having access to fresh, local, healthy food, physical activity, and access to quality healthcare.
Secure Families: goal is to build economic security for vulnerable children and their families through sustained income and asset accumulation.
Racial Equity: directs grants and resources to support racial healing and to remove systematic barriers that hold some children back. The foundation invests in community and national organizations whose innovative and effective programs foster racial healing through action-oriented research and public policy work, they are helping translate insights into new strategies and sustainable solutions.
Civic Engagement: partners with those committed to inclusion, impact and innovation in solving public problems. The foundation seeks engagement through dialogue, leadership development, collaboration, and new models of organizing.

To learn more, including information on the foundation's mission-driven investments please visit the website.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

2013-02-06T09:00:00.000-05:00

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation , created in 1936, is the nation's largest philanthropy devoted solely to public health. The foundation's efforts focus on improving both the health of everyone in America, and their healthcare- how it's delivered, how it's paid for, and how well it does for patients and their families.

Priorities:

Health Policy
Prevention
Cost and Value
Leadership

Program Areas:

Reversing Childhood Obesity
Ensuring Coverage for the Uninsured
Investing in People to Improve Health
Fostering Pioneering Ideas
Improving the Public's Health
Advancing Healthcare Quality
Helping the Most Vulnerable Populations

What They Fund: Proposals must address one of the seven program areas. Public agencies, universities, and 501(c)3 public charities are funded.

Types of Projects Funded:

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation aims to fund innovative projects that can have measurable impact and can create meaningful, transformative change, such as:

Service demonstrations
Gathering and monitoring health-related statistics
Public education
Training and fellowship programs
Policy Analysis
Health services research
technical assistance
Communications activities
Evaluations

For more information please visit the foundation's website.

The Getty Foundation

2013-02-05T09:00:00.000-05:00

The Getty Foundation fulfills the philanthropic mission of the Getty Trust by supporting individuals and institutions committed to advancing the greater understanding and preservation of the visual arts in LA and throughout the world. Through strategic grant initiatives, it strengthens art history as a global discipline, promotes the interdisciplinary practice of conservation, increases access to museum and archival collections, and develops current and future leaders in the visual arts. The foundation carries out this work in collaboration with the other Getty programs to ensure that the individually and collectively achieve maximum effect.

Funding Priorities:

Access to Collections: provides grants that increase access to significant museum and archival collections, with an emphasis on digital access and on projects that involve collaboration among multiple institutions.
Art History: aims to strengthen art historical scholarship and to provide opportunities for sustained international exchange among scholars.
Conservation: promotes the interdisciplinary practice of conservation by supporting projects that foster collaboration between conservators, art historians, conservation scientists and other heritage professionals.
Leadership: recognizing that the continued vitality of the fields they serve depends on the quality of their leaders- the foundation funds professional development opportunities for individuals at various stages of their careers.
Residential Fellowships: providing grants and fellowship opportunities through the Getty Research Institute and Getty Conservation Institute.

The Getty Foundation is just one initiative of the J. Getty Trust. The others include a museum, research institute, conservation institute, trust and publications division. For more information about the Trust, and the foundation, please visit the website.

Ford Foundation

2013-02-04T09:00:00.000-05:00

The Ford Foundation, created in 1936 by Edsel and Henry Ford, supports visionary leaders and organizations on the front lines of social change worldwide. They believe all people should have the opportunity to reach their full potential, contribute to society and have a voice in the decisions that affect them.

Goals:

Strengthen democratic values
Reduce poverty and injustice
Promote international cooperation
Advance human achievement

The foundation believes the best way to achieve these goals is to:

Encourage initiatives by those living and working closest to where problems are located
Promote collaboration among the nonprofit, government, and business sectors
ensure participation by men and women from diverse communities and all levels of society

The Ford Foundation's work mainly consists of grants or loans that build knowledge and strengthen organizations and networks.

Some quick facts:

The foundation receives approximately 40,000 proposals annually, and awards only 1400 grants
More than 16.3 billion in grants have been awarded worldwide, to organizations in the U.S., Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia

Programs address eight significant social justice issues:

Economic Opportunities and Assets: reducing poverty and establishing economic security

Issues: Economic Fairness, Metropolitan Opportunities, Sustainable Development

Democracy, Rights and Justice: strengthen democracy and advance human rights for all

Issues: Democratic and Accountable Government, Human Rights

Education, Creativity, and Free Expression: promoting more equitable education and greater voice and expression

Issues: Educational Opportunities and Scholarship, Freedom of Expression, Sexuality and Reproductive Health and Rights

Priorities/Types of Grant Funding:

General/Core Support
Project
Planning
Competition
Matching
Recoverable
Individual
Endowment
Foundation administered project
Program related investment

The website includes a very good section regarding their approach to impact assessment. For more information about The Ford Foundation, please visit their site.

The Rockefeller Foundation

2013-02-03T09:00:00.000-05:00

The Rockefeller Foundation was founded in 1913 by John D. Rockefeller, Sr, to support work that expands opportunity and strengths resilience to social, economic, health, and environmental challenges.

Core Values:

Leadership: take steps to achieve [their] vision of a better world and inspire others to join them.
Equity: enable broad and fair access to resources and networks that facilitate inclusion of diverse people and perspectives.
Effectiveness: work to achieve impact by using efficient and creative processes in their work to accomplish short and long term goals.
Innovation: believe in the potential of ideas to transform the lives of people and build stronger social relationships. They invest in new work along a spectrum from discontinuous to incremental.
Integrity: make decisions transparently, in line with their mission and vales, acting with candor and courage.

The governance policies are described in a set of documents: charter, social investing guidelines, by laws, code of conduct and whistleblower policy, which are approved by the Board of Trustees. All these documents, and the foundation's 990s are available for review, with easy links, on the website.

The Rockefeller Foundation's vision is to help build resilience by helping individuals and communities prepare for, withstand, and emerge stronger from acute shocks and chronic stresses. They seek to achieve equitable growth by expanding opportunities for more people in more places worldwide.

Giving Priorities/Programs:

Current Initiatives:

Developing Climate Change Resilience
Strengthening Food Security: Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa
Protecting American Workers' Economic Security: Campaign for American Workers
Promoting Equitable, Sustainable Transportation
Linking Global Disease Surveillance Networks
Transforming Health Systems
Enabling Enviroment: Innovation
Harnessing the Power of Impact Investing

Four Areas of Focus:

Revalue Ecosystems
Secure Livelihoods
Transform Cities
Advance Health

The foundation's website offers comprehensive information on its history, governance, focus and impact. To learn more please visit The Rockefeller Foundation, here.

Top Foundations

2013-02-03T08:30:00.000-05:00

This week we'll be focusing on the top Foundations in the U.S. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which is the country's one number Foundation, was already featured here. For a complete list of the top 100 funders, you can visit the Foundation Center's list, here, and you can count on NA to profile more of these Foundations in the coming months.

Working Solutions

2013-02-02T09:00:00.000-05:00

Today features a nonprofit organization that serves the for-profit small business community in the San Francisco Bay Area. Developed as a pilot program, before receiving its nonprofit status in 1999, Working Solution's supports entrepreneurs to start or grow successful local businesses. They provide microloans/ small business loans and long term business advising.

Small business loans $5,000 up to $50,000
Five years of post loan business coaching and advising
Referrals to small business resources

Working Solutions strives to support microenterprise development in an effort to strengthen the local economy, create jobs and build strong communities. Having made it's 100th loan in April 2012 to a vintage furniture store, here's the organization's impact to date:

Jobs Created: 313
Entrepreneurs Educated: 8,182
Funds Loaned: $3.254 million
Repayment Rate: 97.64%
Businesses graduated to conventional financing: 20
Start-up Businesses: 51%
Existing Businesses: 49%

And my favorite statistics... Entrepreneurs served:

64% women
39% minority
59% low-income

Fore more information, please visit Working Solution, here.

WARNING:The Wheelchair Recycler

2013-02-01T09:00:00.001-05:00

"The Wheelchair Recycler's mission is "to provide any means necessary to mobilize those in need. This is accomplished through recycling, refurbishing, and reclaiming used electric power wheelchairs and scooters as well as other durable medical equipment."
Founded in 1998, by David Heim and based in Massachusetts, the organization has to date given away over 500 power chairs and repaired hundreds more. In many cases they've saved hundreds of individuals from being bed-ridden. Most who receive the chairs are on fixed income and lacking adequate insurance.
The organization's long term goal is to set up The Wheelchair Recycler nationwide. In order to do that, their short term goal is to obtain the necessary funding to help support daily operations- such as transportation, office equipment, utilities, and phones.
For more information on The Wheelchair Recycler, please visit their website."

This feature was published March 12, 2009. During NA's hiatus the feature received a comment from a (very helpful) tipster that all was not right with this organization. When the site resumed, I responded with the proper steps one would take if they suspected foul-play at a nonprofit organization:

Go to the leadership. If the problem is the Executive Director, then speak to someone at the Board of Directors level. If that's an issue? Nonprofits ultimately answer to their state's Attorney General.

But I didn't stop there. Revisiting The Wheelchair Recycler website, there is no list for Board of Directors, nor any other information that would legitimize this organization as a not-for-profit. The site does claim The Wheelchair Recycler is a 501(c)3 with a faulty link to GuideStar in the donations section. Looking up the organization on GuideStar you'll see The Wheelchair Recycler's tax-exempt status has been revoked, for not filing the required 990 Form three years in a row.

So what does this mean? The Wheelchair Recycler is not a non-profit organizations. Your donations are not tax deductible, and no agency is endorsing it. If this business is operating as a for-profit, there is no way to prove it's operating legally.

The 'In the News' section does feature articles from some top news and entertainment organizations; however, when I clicked on the top story from the Nightly News with Brian Williams, The Wheelchair Recycler story had been removed. And so it appears this is an example of an organization that at one time maybe have been operating on the up and up, it is no longer doing so.

I have reached out to The Wheelchair Recycler via email, inquiring about its non-profit status and some other documents nonprofit organizations must make available to the public. I will make available any response I receive.

I had debated simply removing the original post, but ultimately decided that it was important to address this. The Wheelchair Recycler is not the first non-profit organization to be misappropriating funds, or operating outside nonprofit laws, and it unfortunately probably won't be the last. Not to mention all the schemes designed to look like charities designed to take advantage of sympathetic individuals.

And so, I present this as a learning opportunity. Be sure to do your due diligence before donating to an organization.

Look at their profile on GuideStar
Look at CharityNavigator
Look at their documents

Nonprofits have to make public their annual 990s, board of directors and meeting minutes. Typically you would need to request meeting minutes, but they are open to public view. Some organizations produce annual reports or additional materials for transparency.

Sunday begins Foundation Week at Nonprofit Awareness, I strongly encourage you to visit each foundation's website. There you'll find fantastic examples of accountability and transparency. These organizations really exemplify the type of information you should be looking for when considering a donation.

Penumbra Foundation

2013-01-31T09:00:00.000-05:00

The Penumbra Foundation is a nonprofit, member supported organization dedicated to preserving historical and emulsion based photography, and maintaining its relevance as an artistic and educational tool in the evolving digital age. It is a workshop based education program devoted to teaching 19th century photographic processes and 20th century emulsion based photography.

Their mission is to be a comprehensive resource for photographers at any level, who want to learn, practice, and research these photographic arts and processes. They also publicize the impact photography has had and continues to have on culture, history, and the arts. Penumbra Foundation's is cultivating a community based organization that will make available their resources to the greater photographic community.

Through their educational programs, Penumbra Foundation aims to broaden the palette of artistic and visual communication tools available to photographers, artists and visual communicators. They teach photography comprehensively, from its invention through the digital age. The foundation's goal is to develop an MFA and certificate programs, offering emulsion based curricula to educational institutions that are dismantling their darkrooms but still understand the importance and necessity of teaching emulsion based photography.

The foundation offers outreach in the form of teaching photography to those in financial need. This is focused on public schools that no longer offer emulsion based photographic programs and an Artist in Residence program. Other community outreach efforts include an artist lecture series and informal meetings to discuss the issues and trends in today's photography industry.

Partners:

International Center for Photography
Young Photographers Alliance
Contemporary Daguerreotypes
Photoville NYC

Additionally, The Penumbra Foundation's TinType Portrait Studio allows you to get your own Wet Plate Collodion tintype portrait, (the Polaroid of the 19th Century).

For more information please visit their website.

Artists for a Cause

2013-01-30T09:00:00.000-05:00

Creatively Building Better Communities

Artists for a Cause is a Stuart, Florida based, national nonprofit that improves communities by using art as a catalyst to achieve incredible results. The organization was founded in 2009 by countertenor Terry Barber, and received it's nonprofit status in 2010. It creates professional and educational opportunities for visual and performing artists whenever art is being used as a vehicle for community improvement.

Programs:

Artist Auction Packages: puts professional performance and visual artists to work, generating new sources of revenue and awareness for third party charities.
Dance for Food: is a dance performance to feed the hungry where admission cost is nonperishable food donations.
Therapeutic Music Day: sends the healing power of music into nursing homes, hospitals, assisted living facilities and the prison system.
A4AC Scholarship Program: provides arts education opportunities for less fortunate children.
Benefits Concerts: the organization has produced almost 40 performances with almost 40 charities.
Homeless Choir: performing group comprised of homeless people with the goal of creating sustainability and reintegration into society.

From my research it seems like this newer organization is still in its expansion and growth phase. For this reason I was concerned about featuring it on NA. That being said, I think it's important for potential donors to learn about nonprofits in various stages of their lifecycle. Your support has the power to make a good organization great, good ideas are always worth spreading, and quite honestly some nonprofits need your support more than others. Artists for a Cause may just be finding its way; however it's another great example of how people are using their talent and skills to help create stronger communities.

For more information please visit, Artists for a Cause.

Institute for Philanthropy

2013-01-29T09:00:00.000-05:00

The Institute for Philanthropy helps donors achieve impact. Its mission is to increase effective philanthropy in the UK and internationally, with offices in the UK and US. They pursue this by:

providing donor education
building donor networks
raising the awareness and understanding of philanthropy

The institute looks toward a world in which philanthropists from around the globe have the skills to make significant contributions to the pressing issues of their time, in their own giving and in networks and partnerships with others.

The organization's target audience and programs support: philanthropists, youth, partnerships, and advocacy.

Philanthropists: Over the last ten years the institute has built a global network of donors; working with over 200 wealthy families and individuals from Europe, North America, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East

Youth: Through the Youth and Philanthropy initiative, they have reached nearly 115 UK schools, educating more than 20,000 students each year, and granting over £600,000 to UK charities alone.

Partnerships: The institute has worked with 30 of the 57 UK's community foundations as well as foundations from Central and Eastern Europe. They have worked with leading charitable organizations, such as:

The Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund
The Oak Foundation
The Omidyar Network
The Rockefeller Foundation
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

Additionally, they've worked with leading financial institutions, such as:

Barclay Wealth
Credit Suisse
Deutsche Bank
JP Morgan Chase

Advocacy: Successfully advocated for the UK government to provide tax breaks on gifts of shares.

Programs:

The Philanthropy Workshop: Established in 1995 by the Rockefeller Foundation and now a project of the Institute for Philanthropy, this workshop is geared towards entrepreneurs and inheritors who are increasingly dedicating their time and capital to philanthropy; for those looking to maximize the impact of their giving. Up to 14 participants attend three one-week sessions over the course of the year, one in Europe, one in the United States, and one in the developing world. (At $30,000 USD plus travel expenses this workshop is not for the casual donor).
Think Philanthropy: The institute believes philanthropy must constantly evolve to meet the needs of the ever-changing world. Think Philanthropy works to drive the innovation and evolution of philanthropy. It is an ongoing series of projects, papers, talks and days of learning, based on original research. which discusses the most pressing issues in the field and the latest thinking and strategic philanthropy trends.
Next Generation Philanthropy: Guides the younger generation of wealthy families as they engage in their personal, business, or family philanthropy. This is achieved through a series of inspiring and challenging case studies, site visits, and audiences with leading civil society thinkers.
Youth and Philanthropy Initiative: A unique schools program that empowers young people to tackle issues in their local community. It also raises awareness among young people of philanthropy's role in supporting local and global communities.
Community Foundation Essentials: The aim of this program is to:

introduce participants to the elements of strategic philanthropy and advanced thinking on working with donors
demonstrate to participants how they can achieve a high level of engagement with donors; helping them to be strategic and effective
take their donor communication and relationship skills to the next level

For more information, please visit the Institute for Philanthropy's website.

The Army Historical Foundation

2013-01-28T09:00:00.000-05:00

Founded in 1983, the Army Historical Foundation (AHF) is dedicated to preserving the history and heritage of the American Soldier. The foundation seeks to educate future Americans to fully appreciate the sacrifices that generations of American Soldiers have made to safeguard the freedoms of this nation.

AHF is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, not a government agency, which means it relies on membership, donations, and grant support. Foundation funding helps refurbish historical Army buildings, acquire and conserve Army historical art and artifacts, supports Army history educational programs, research and publication of historical materials on the American Soldier, and provides support and counsel to private and governmental organizations committed to the same goals as AHF.

Additionally, in September 2000, under a Memorandum of Agreement with the Department of the Army, AHF became the official fundraising entity for the National Museum of the United States Army. The foundation is actively engaged in support the museum by carrying out a $200 million capital campaign. The aim of the museum is to:

Honor our soldiers
Preserve our history
Educate the public
Inspire currently serving and future soldiers

For more information, please visit the Army Historical Foundation website.

Kitechild

2013-01-27T09:00:00.001-05:00

Kitechild works to elevate the standard of care for orphaned children through sustainable micro-projects. The Kitechild network, with more than 35 orphanages in 11 countries, is grounded in long-term solutions, transparency, and efficiency, so they are able to achieve visible and measurable results in the well-being of the child.

Launched in 2010, by two UCLA graduates, the organization envisioned using the power of the internet in the age of social media to provide a unified solution to many of the challenges orphanages face while providing resources and opportunities to orphans in the developing world.

Kitechild's programs support orphanages that adopt a hands-on approach to child care as opposed to the traditional large institutional format. The organization aims to help its members overcome some of the challenges facing orphanages and threatening the well-being and healthy development of each child. The challenges include:

The cost of supplying energy. Kitechild's sustainable micro-projects promote development of renewable sources of energy and the reduction of energy consumption.
Orphanages are severely understaffed: the average ration is 15 children per adult, (the ideal is 5 child per adult). Kitechild works with field partners to facilitate training in best practices.
The lack of transparency in running and managing homes makes it difficult for donors and benefactors to see where their funds are being allocated and how they can create long-term change. Kitechild requires in-depth project proposals and media feedback so donors can see the direct impact of their of their contributions.
Orphanage directors lack knowledge of how to attract support and exposure to their efforts or they lack the time to do it. Kitechild uses free mediums like social media networks and the Kitechild Network to promote the efforts of its orphanage members to potential donors, volunteers, and corporate sponsors.

The following programs address these challenges:

Online Sustainable Projects: uses existing networks to obtain funding for sustainable micro-projects featured on their homepage. They work closely with orphanage partners to develop these projects, then use online promotion and marketing to fund them. Projects focus on: food security, income generation, self-sufficiency, and community caretaker training.
Inspiration Series: aims to expose at-risk foster youth in local LA County to potential careers in the arts through unique interactive events.
Leather Bands for Learning: partnering with Lucky Flirts Jewelry, every bracelet purchased raises money to contribute to the educational costs of the orphans in the Kitechild Network, (tuition, uniforms, books).

Kitechild's blog is fully of impact stories, which I highly recommend reading. Potential donors are able to review profiles on each orphanage in the network, so contributions can be directed to specific orphanages and projects.

For more information on this great organization, please visit Kitechild's website.

The B Lab & B Corporations

2013-01-26T09:00:00.000-05:00

Since we've dedicated this week to articles about for-profit companies that are giving back in a big way, I thought it would be helpful to provide some information on B Corporations, and introduce the intersection of the non-profit and for-profit world. As you may have noticed many of the companies featured this week are certified B corporations.

B Lab is a non-profit organization entrepreneurs committed to using business to solve social and environmental problems through three initiatives:

Certified B Corporations - use the power of business to solve social and environmental problems. To become a certified B corporation, companies must take the free, confidential B Impact Assessment, which measures a company's impact on communities, employees, and the environment. Today the number of certified corporations is 681, in 24 countries and 60 industries.
Passing Legislation - through the leadership of the community of certified B corporations, laws have been passed in 11 states, (and moving forward in 16 more), to create a new type of corporation- the benefit corporation- that best meets the needs of socially conscious entrepreneurs and investors. Benefit corporations have the same business model as traditional corporations; however they have higher standards of corporate purpose, accountability and transparency.
GIIRS Ratings and Analytics - is a rating agency and analytics platform for impact investors. It gives investors the tools they need to analyze the impact of their investments with the same rigor as they analyze their financial risk and return.

Now, I must admit, I was feeling a little uncertain about B corporation certification and B Lab when I first read about them. But, in true non-profit... and B corporation fashion, the organization is extremely transparent, with some big players in the for-profit and non-profit world involved in this movement.

First, B Lab has published an annual report that is easily accessible on their website. Their pioneer investors for GIIRS Ratings and Analytics include the Rockfeller Foundation, J.P. Morgan, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and 20 other big wigs. Finally, you can learn more about B Lab, but checking out their GuideStar profile.

Wondering if you'd recognize a certified B corporation? Well why not read about, Ben &Jerry's, here.

If you're interested in becoming a Certified B Corporation, you can take the B Impact Assessment, here.

For the socially conscious consumer, Certified B Corporation has a directory of companies that meet their criteria, from financial services to energy provides. The company profiles include their B Impact Assessment rating.

Smile Squared

2013-01-25T09:00:00.000-05:00

'Rethink what and why you buy.'

In summer 2010, Eric Cope and his wife went to Central America on humanitarian mission. There they discovered how the lack of sufficient dental hygiene impacts a child's life. From this experience, Smile Squared was born.

The mission of Smile Squared is to give every child the health and confidence that comes with clean teeth. For every toothbrush purchased, another toothbrush in donated to a child in need. They believe even small everyday products, like toothbrushes, can have a big impact on the world. The company's goal is to offer practical, sustainable solutions to help improve the overall health and educational needs of children around the world.

Smile Squared encourages everyone to "think about the products we buy: Where will this product end up when I'm done with it? Is it a fair trade product? BPA free? Can my purchase have a direct impact on someone else who needs it?"

The website and concept are pretty simple. You can buy an child or adult size toothbrush ($5.95 each), and for every toothbrush purchased, another is donated. The toothbrushes feature 100% biodegradable bamboo handles and come in a 100% recyclable box.

What I particularly like is their option to purchase toothbrushes and have your purchase(s) donated as well. May of the companies I've researched have some very compelling causes they are supporting, and I'm often disappointment that I can't just donate 100%. Smile Squared allows you to do just that. Imagine how great a change $5.95 can make.

Here's what Eric Cope had to say:

"I never set out to have a toothbrush business, but felt compelled to start Smile Squared after volunteering at a dental clinic in Guatemala in 2010. Needless to say, teaching children how to brush their teeth, seeing painful and preventable issues in their mouths, and realizing this lack of oral hygiene contributed to bigger issues (overall health and even self-esteem; kids were too ashamed to smile). Many of these kids didn't have access to a toothbrush, and there were some that shared theirs with family members. It struck me that a basic necessity like a toothbrush, is truly a luxury item to many in this world. I just wanted to do something about it, and thought that creating a sustainable for-profit business was more of a long term solution than simply donating toothbrushes. We feel blessed to work with GREAT non-profits like International Justice Mission, Buckner International, Save Their Smiles, Give Kids A Smile, Feed The Children and Save The Children (Hurricane Sandy relief) to name a few. Since 2010, our donated toothbrushes have been (or will soon be) distributed in the US, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Haiti, Uganda, Kenya, Cambodia, Philippines, Columbia, Peru, and Dominican Republic. This is certainly something to smile about."

For more information, please visit Smile Squared.

Better World Books

2013-01-24T09:00:00.000-05:00

Better World Books (BWB) was founded in 2002 by three college friends who started selling textbooks online to make money and ended up forming a pioneering social enterprise- a business with a mission to promote literacy. They believe education and access to books are basic human rights. BWB uses the power of business to change the world. They collect and sell books online to donate books and fund literacy initiatives worldwide. There are over 8 million new and used titles to purchase.

All books are shipped free, and in case you're concerned about your eco-footprint, every order shipped is carbon balanced with Green-e Climate certified offsets from 3Degrees, a leading green power and carbon balancing services firm.

Impact:

To date BWB has:

donated over 7,048,615 books
raised $13,446,219.11 for literacy and libraries
reused/recycled 97,959,917 books

So far, 58 million books have been converted into $10.4 million in funding, and over 40,000 tons of books have been saved from landfills. Books are collected through a network of 2,300 college campuses and 3,000 libraries.

Programs:

Book for Book - for every book purchased, BWB donates a book to someone in need.

LEAP (Literacy & Education in Action Program) - funds literacy and educational nonprofits and libraries for specific projects- the frontline of the fight to reduce global poverty through education. Several times a year, BWB invites literacy-focused organizations to apply for grants to support high-impact literacy projects. Then BWB selects the projects they feel "have the biggest bang for the buck." Projects are funded through BWB's General Literacy Fund, which means they make grants in addition to the regular stream of revenue earmarked for libraries and their nonprofit partners.

Donations - BWB sells new and used books, so you can donate your books (via one of their drop boxes or mail) and they will be sold online to help raise funds for nonprofit literacy organizations.

Partners:

BWB's four primary literacy partners:

I urge you to visit Better World Books' website to review their mission and values, read about their impact and buy some books! (They even have gift certificates).

Indosole

2013-01-23T09:00:00.000-05:00

Indosole's mission is to salvage old motorbike tires and other trash from landfills and give them new life. The company helps reduce the size of landfills and supports skilled Balinese artisans and their families. All products are handmade by the Balinese artisans and materials are sourced from the islands of Indonesia. The company employs fair trade practices and has a production process that does not contain fuel powered machines. If that wasn't enough, Indosole also donates their shoes to children in need, living in orphanages.

To date over 11,000 tires have been repurposed, creating over 22,000 pairs of shoes. Indole's quest is to save one million tires from the landfill.

For more information, or to purchase a pair of their super stylish footwear, please visit the Indosole site.

You can also support Indosole by supporting their Kickstarter project. They are seeking $50,000 to help increase their production and impact.