Public Foundations
Public foundations are grantmaking public charities that gain their funds from a variety of sources, which may include foundations, individuals, corporations, or public entities. Public foundations may engage in fundraising, and may seek broad public financial support. They may or may not have endowments. There is no legal definition of a public foundation, but most dedicate a significant portion of their annual budgets to grantmaking. Most community foundations are also grantmaking public charities.
Since public foundations may be defined in different ways, and there is no official IRS or legal definition of public foundations, it is difficult to arrive at statistics that are fully representative of the field.
Below is everything on our site for public foundations. We strongly recommend that you use the navigation or our search feature to find what you're looking for on our site. Please also visit cof.org/programs-services/public-grantmaking-charities for curated public foundation content.
What Does Accountability Mean in Philanthropy?
At our Chicago learning session, I was inspired by the approaches of colleagues from the MacArthur, Kellogg, Joyce, Grand Victoria, and California Wellness foundations, alongside friends from BoardSource and the Council on Foundations. Over the course of three days, these brilliant women (yes, they…
Health Outside the Clinic: Community Health Workers and the Future of Healthcare
During the United Nations General Assembly in late September, Heads of State, government officials, civil society, and the philanthropic and commercial private sector will convene in New York with a focus on Universal Health Coverage (UHC). UHC is a key part of Sustainable Development Goal 3…
Previewing the UN General Assembly: A Global Community of Actors
Previewing the UN General Assembly: A global community of actors
The world faces pressing challenges that require global responses – the climate crisis, entrenched inequality, migration, and more. But with international cooperation increasingly at risk, actions taken at the local level are ever…
Preparing to Lead: Be Your Authentic Self
After working in the philanthropic field for the past 10 years, the Council on Foundations Career Pathways Program gave me the opportunity—and frankly the time—to seriously consider being an executive leader in the sector. It’s not something I could always see for myself.
I am happy to say I can…
Hurricane Dorian
Disaster Overview
Hurricane Dorian made landfall in the Bahamas on Sunday, September 1 and was the strongest storm to ever make landfall in the Atlantic. Although it decreased in strength as it made its way toward the U.S. Atlantic Coast, it made a total of five landfalls -- three in Bahamas, a U.…
Our Membership Model: Why It's Time for Change
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Global Philanthropy Update - August 2019
We’re only a month away from the 74th UN General Assembly (UNGA) – and the world still has significant work to do if we are to meet the development thresholds set in the SDGs.
This slow progress combined with a new wave of gun violence and hate crimes in the United States, alongside civil…
Advice from the Field: Responding to Mass Casualty Events
Fundamentals
It is an unfortunate reality of our times that foundations must respond all too often to mass casualty events in their communities. There are immediate questions that need to be addressed and an ongoing crisis to manage if your foundation is going to raise and deploy philanthropic capital in…
More Than Just Disasters: How Natural Hazards Exacerbate Racial, Gender, and Wealth Inequalities
Philanthropy has responded generously to a range of extreme natural events over the past few years, from wildfires to earthquakes to floods to hurricanes and to heatwaves. Recent extreme natural events have exposed the vulnerability of marginalized communities – especially low-income communities…
2019 UN General Assembly Philanthropic Side-Events
This page is an archived schedule of philanthropic side-events from the 2019 United Nations General Assembly. See the most recent UNGA schedule instead.
In September 2019, representatives from government, civil society, and the corporate sector will come together at the 74th Session of the United…
Washington Snapshot: Budget Agreement Passed by House; Moving onto 2020 Appropriations Bills
In This Week's Snapshot...
Budget Agreement Passed by the House
Moving onto 2020 Appropriations Bills
Senate Approves New Defense Secretary
Student Loan Debt Legislation Unveiled
USDA Proposes to Narrow Food Stamp Eligibility
Department of Labor Resources for Hurricane Recovery
States…
2019 Endowments & Finance Summit - Plenary Sessions
Plenary Sessions
Check back here often for updates.
Opening Plenary — Meeting Obligations in a Time of Financial Volatility and Uncertainty
Thursday, September 19 | 9:15-10:30 a.m.
None of us can see into the future. But for foundation leaders, having that unique ability would be…
Global Philanthropy Update - July 2019
The United Nations' annual mid-year High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) finished earlier this week. I was in New York to join several events and enjoyed connecting with a broad variety of organizations and people working to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, including many…