Image credit: Passakorn Prothien on istock.com A new report from the London-based consultancy Altrata suggests that charitable donations are increasingly becoming “hyper-concentrated among a small group of ultra-wealthy mega-donors.” The report’s findings suggest that the ultra-wealthy are wielding increasing influence across the philanthropic sector, which has far-reaching implications for charities, nonprofits, and philanthropies seeking and/or relying upon charitable donations. “Everybody is rushing to the top of the pyramid.” In a press release from Altrata, Lily Family School of ..read more

Image credit: Peggy Anke on Unsplash Philanthropic giving for climate mitigation has remained relatively stagnant over the past few years, despite the climate crisis escalating across the globe. Data published by ClimateWorks Foundation found that out of a total $811 billion given globally, only an estimated $7.8 billion to $12.8 billion went to climate mitigation in 2022. And some areas of climate change philanthropy are even more critically underfunded than others.  What’s behind donor hesitancy when it comes to organizations working for climate justice? How can environme ..read more

Image credit: Rawpixel on istock.com We’re in the middle of a historic and long-overdue uprising of worker power in the United States. Working people who’ve been told their whole lives to be grateful for a job—any job—are finally, understandably, fed up. As billionaire profits increase while wages remain stagnant and inflation looms, record numbers of Americans have quit their jobs. Those who haven’t quit are increasingly joining unions or finding other ways to organize—and going on strike. These seismic shifts in the labor market will hopefully presage a new era of worker voice and ..read more

Image credit: Markus Spiske on Unsplash Frontline youth movements have played a critical role in every social justice issue, from police reform to immigrants’ rights—and the youth climate justice movement is no different. Youth activists have already shifted the momentum and the narrative on why the climate crisis is happening and who is responsible. We’ve pushed back against the fossil fuel industry’s greenwashing campaigns, exposing their false sustainability efforts and their “youth washing” efforts to co-opt youth activists. We’re leading fossil fuel divestment campaigns across o ..read more

Image credit: nappy on pexels.com Neighborhoods are sacred spaces. When you have lived, worked, and organized in a community for a long time, you become attached to people, landmarks, and familiar sights. The places that we call home are imbued with meaning and history. So, when change is on the horizon in the places where we live our lives, community members need to be active participants. In March 2023, in Inglewood, a largely Black and Latinx suburb of Los Angeles, a new community studio incubator opened for Black creatives and local Black businesses. The incubator was a pilot pro ..read more

Filmmakers of color play a crucial role in our cultural landscape. Their unique lens allows them to tell diverse stories, many of which would otherwise go untold. Yet, too often, they are underfunded and underresourced. People of color remain the least represented demographic in filmmaking, both on screen and behind the camera. But Color Congress is working to change that and is calling upon funders to do the same. Founded in 2022, Color Congress defines itself as “an ecosystem-builder committed to organizations led by people of color (POC) that serve nonfiction filmmakers, leaders, and audie ..read more

Image credit: cocarinne on www.pexels.com During the Civil War, American newspapers played a major role in shaping public opinion and, in many cases, helping give pseudo-intellectual heft to racist ideologies. Among the many newspapers guilty of such behavior was the Sun, today known as the Baltimore Sun, whose news coverage and editorial opinions promoted racist ideas and profited substantially from running advertisements for the selling of enslaved people and offering rewards for those enslaved people who had escaped. The Washington Post similarly benefited from such ads. The profits of ..read more

Image credit: cottonbro studio on pexels.com Nonprofits faced significant workforce shortages last year, continuing a years-long trend that has left the nonprofit sector in a “crisis” that is hurting the individuals and communities they serve. Those are among the findings of a new report, 2023 Nonprofit Workforce Survey Results: Communities Suffer as the Nonprofit Workforce Shortage Crisis Continues, recently released by the National Council of Nonprofits. The report, based on a survey of some 1,600 nonprofits across the United States, builds on a 2021 survey conducted while the COVID-19 ..read more

“Simply put, Black women are the backbone of modern day philanthropy.” So asserts a new book, Portraits of Us: A Book of Essays Centering Black Women Leading Philanthropy, edited by Toya Nash Randall, former board chair of Black Foundation Executives and “curator and catalyst” of Voice. Vision. Value., the digital platform that published the book in partnership with Blacks in Philanthropy Networks and Regional Associations of Grantmakers. Despite their many and powerful contributions to the sector, Black women have been both underrepresented and underappreciated in the landscape of American p ..read more

Image credit: Jason Weingardt on Unsplash How can philanthropy effectively support narratives of liberation? As people who traverse the interconnected areas of narrative and philanthropy, this question has been at the center of our work for decades—and we have seen many missteps and promising practices along the way. Recently, both of us attended an international gathering that sought to provide answers. Over four days in October, a convening organized by International Resource for Impact and Storytelling (IRIS), Puentes, and the Global Narrative Hive brought together more than 120 p ..read more