This Week at the Council - January 31, 2014
State of the Union Edition
This Week at the Council, all eyes were on President Obama's fifth State of the Union Address, though a few of us were distracted by our ever-charming Vice President. In his speech, the President declared a "Year of Action" for himself, Congress, and private citizens. He specifically called on philanthropy to help drive two major initiatives: expanding access to pre-K education and promoting economic opportunity for young men of color. Be sure to check out Washington Snapshot later today for more coverage of the speech.
Annual Conference Preparations
Preaparations are underway for this year's Council on Foundations Annual Conference – Philanthropy Exchange. The conference will provide you with enhanced networking opportunities and introduce new spotlight issues. Over a thousand leaders and practitioners from around the nation will meet in Washington, DC, this June to confer, reflect, and collaborate on the 2014 Spotlight Issue: The Role of Philanthropy in an Increasingly Polarized Society.
For more information, visit our website and be on the lookout for registration information, coming soon.
Funder Call: Investing in Manufacturing Communities
Stephanie Powers of the Council's Public Policy and Legal Affairs Team will be hosting a WebEx conversation for funders concerned with the economic health of manufacturing communities on February 5th at 3 PM EST. The Obama Administration’s Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership has produced a new IMCP Playbook that arrays existing Federal grant and technical assistance resources that can put to good use building a community collaboration strategy for sustainable manufacturing communities.
The Council’s partnership with the EPA is currently with their team working on the cross-federal E3 initiative (Economy, Energy, and the Environment) and they have asked the Council to help them gather foundation perspectives about the IMCP playbook and its potential value for local community leaders and stakeholders, including philanthropic funders. For more information or to register, contact Stephanie Powers.
Arts & Economic Prosperity
Americans for the Arts released Arts & Economic Prosperity IV: The Economic Impact of Nonprofit Arts and Culture Organizations and Their Audience. The report is the fourth study of the nonprofit arts and culture industry's impact on the economy. The most comprehensive study of its kind ever conducted, it features customized findings on 182 study regions representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia as well as estimates of economic impact nationally. Despite the economic headwinds that our country faced in 2010, the results are impressive.
Creating Effective Stories to Share with Lawmakers
On Tuesday, over 100 members joined a webinar co-hosted by the Council and the Congressional Management Foundation in preparation for Philanthropy Week in Washington. The conversation offered tips and tools for crafting an effective message to deliver to policymakers.
If you're interested in getting more information or you missed the call, resources will soon be added to our website or you can visit www.CongressFoundation.org.
Upcoming Events
February 5, 3PM EST
Funders Concerned with the Economic Health and Well-Being of Manufacturing Communities (Contact Stephanie Powers for Details)
March 3-7 | Washington, DC
Philanthropy Week in Washington
June 8-10 | Washington, DC
Philanthropy Exchange: The 2014 Council on Foundations Annual Conference
October 20-22 | Cleveland, OH
Community Foundation Centennial: The 2014 Fall Conference for Community Foundations
Do you think there's something we missed this week? Maybe you know what's going to be big in philanthropy next week. If so, drop a line to john.cochrane@cof.org and let us know!
