I’m pleased to share with you that the 2015 Full Grantmakers Salary and Benefits (GSB) Report is now available for immediate download. What is the GSB Report? Published since 1980, the GSB Report is an essential foundation operations tool. The research includes responses from 951 foundations…

Although the non-profit sector in America is well developed, I’ve often heard foundation and non-profit executives discuss the challenge of attracting and keeping high-performing staff and volunteers. So imagine how that problem is magnified in the developing world, where NGOs make a critical…

When we face a new challenge, one of our first instincts is to reach out to someone for advice. By collaborating, sharing resources, and discussing common challenges, you and your peers multiply your impact and advance the common good. The Philanthropy Exchange is an online platform devoted to…

This is the Council on Foundations team reporting from the 33rd Annual Representing and Managing Tax-Exempt Organizations Conference. This conference is the best-attended EO conference in the United States, and we are thrilled to see so many of our members and colleagues here. The first day of…

I have attended a lot of conferences over the years and have always felt driven to go to as many sessions as possible, to gather information and knowledge to bring back to my colleagues at the Maine Community Foundation. This time around was no different: I set out to get the latest on National…

At the Council’s 2016 Annual Conference, two influential foundation presidents sat down with the Council’s President and CEO Vikki Spruill to share their insights into the conference’s theme of purpose. Spruill opened what became a lively discussion with The Clinton Foundation President Donna…

A year and a half before the historic US Supreme Court ruling ended discrimination in civil marriage rights for same-sex couples, foundations and nonprofit leaders of the LGBTQ movement came together to address a concern: While many activists anticipated the legal victory, many also worried that…

  Last week I joined other members of the Veterans Philanthropy Exchange in Washington DC for our first meeting since the PwC Charitable Foundation, Inc. joined the Philanthropy Joining Forces Impact Pledge. All members have agreed to support veterans and their families as they rejoin our…

Earthquakes rocked Ecuador, Japan, and Myanmar this past weekend, affecting thousands, and reminding all of us how vulnerable communities are to external disaster shocks. As reported by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck northern…

Maria Teresa Kumar grew up in Sonoma, Calif., a daughter of an immigrant field worker, and spent childhood summers in strife-torn Colombia during the drug wars and days of narcos. Shiza Shahid was raised in Islamabad, Pakistan, and was witness to the growing takeover of the Taliban before accepting…

  Last year, Rose Community Foundation created Innovate for Good, a venture to find and fund new, innovative projects to make the Greater Denver community a better place to live. The idea came largely from the Foundation’s Board of Trustees which expressed a desire to engage our community and…

United States Deputy Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Nani A. Coloretti addressed the annual conference Sunday to describe the federal government’s multi-pronged effort to support American communities and how HUD has developed new strategies in meeting the challenges of today’s population…

Executive Director of Thunder Valley Community Development Corporation Nick Tilsen described the struggle of America’s indigenous people both through history and through today’s world. Tilsen remarked how during both periods in history, differing views of the world adversely affected his indigenous…

Keynote Speaker David McCullough imparted the wisdom attained by a two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author and noted historian as it pertained to the conference’s themes of identity, purpose and place Sunday. McCullough weaved snippets of some of his meticulously researched historical subjects and…

In a special video created for conference attendees, Born This Way Foundation CEO Cynthia Germanotta stated the simple goal: “Support young people and empower them to create a kinder and braver world” for young people “are not only tomorrow’s leaders, but they are leading in tremendous ways today,…

The Jessie Ball duPont Fund has supported LISC to develop affordable housing and revitalize communities in Jacksonville, Florida. Jessie Ball duPont never worried about energy conservation or carbon footprints, and she probably never discussed affordable rents or the role of the nonprofit sector…