Donor Advised Funds

Austin, Texas, is the top spot to be an entrepreneur, make movies, get fit, have a dog, and eat barbeque—but as recently as a decade ago we ranked near the bottom of per capita giving. While other Texas cities, like Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio, have a long history of philanthropy,…

In conjunction with our 90th Anniversary, the Connecticut Community Foundation hosted our first online giving challenge, Give Local Greater Waterbury and Litchfield Hills in November 2013. This post is part of the #CF100 Series of blog posts. The Council on Foundations is marking the 100th…

The Council on Foundations and CF Insights today released Guideposts for Growth and Aspirations,the field’s most comprehensive report on U.S. community foundation assets, gifts, and grants. The data were collected from 285 U.S. community foundations, including those representing more than 90…

At the Council on Foundations Annual Conference in Washington, D.C., some funders were expressing a move toward a new way of doing business with their grantees. Accountability has long been a theme in grantmaking. It has traditionally been top-down – foundations being held accountable to the people…

“The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen at once.” Albert Einstein Imagine this: a well-intended, charitably-inclined person of wealth creates a trust in the year 1514. This generous benefactor, deeply committed to an altruistic objective, funds the philanthropic cause without…

  Silicon Valley Community Foundation is in the heart of the San Francisco Bay Area, close to the campuses of companies like Google, Facebook and Apple. Companies like these have made the region a leader in the global economy and a hub of innovation. The Bay Area is home to a diverse population of…

Lessons Learned Julie Leeth, Executive Vice President for the Community Foundation of the Ozarks says many lessons emerged from the effort to develop and sustain the Rural Schools Partnership. Here are some of her takeaways about how to get strong alignment and support behind a major initiative…

The Community Foundations of Canada’s Vital Signs is an annual community check-up, conducted by community foundations across Canada – and now around the world – that uses data to measure the vitality of our communities. The effort started in the late 1990s at the Toronto Community Foundation (TCF…

  This post is part of the #CF100 Series of blog posts. The Council on Foundations is marking the 100th anniversary of the nation’s first community foundation, The Cleveland Foundation, by highlighting the roles of community foundations with this series. The Lincoln Community Foundation, along…

  This post is part of the #CF100 Series of blog posts. The Council on Foundations is marking the 100th anniversary of the nation’s first community foundation, The Cleveland Foundation, by highlighting the roles of community foundations with this series. It’s amazing what generous people will do…

This blog was originally posted on "Knight Blog" the blog of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. It is republished here with permission. Last year, as Giving Days became increasingly popular, Knight Foundation looked for a way to help the community foundations organizing them make these…

A brand new conference experience – Philanthropy Exchange – supercharges the Council on Foundations' Annual Conference with enhanced networking opportunities, an inclusive perspective on the shared values of the field, and a focus on the issues that matter to you. Join over a thousand of your…

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…

Nonprofit leaders are accustomed to justifying their need for operating support in appeals to potential donors. In a “proposal letter” written in June 1788, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart makes his case to benefactor Johann Michael Von Puchberg: “If you will do me this kindness, I shall primo (being thus…