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How Funders Can Build and Sustain Cross-Sector Partnerships
Though many of us support partnerships between grantees, our role is often limited to grant-related financial transactions. Time and again in our work at the Crimsonbridge Foundation, we’ve found that going beyond grants to be partners alongside our grantees has a multiplying effect on our philanthropic dollars. One example is our decade-long partnership with the... Read More
Summer Listening: Try These 9 Social Good Podcasts
Summer road trip? Day at the beach? Looking for something new for your playlist? Check out these popular podcasts to enrich and elevate your giving—and be sure to let us know what else you’re listening to! The Life You Can Save The Life You Can Save works to change the culture of giving in affluent... Read More
Take a Step Back and Think About Your Impact
This spring in Minneapolis, a group of funders met at the Minneapolis Jewish Federation to learn about updates to their grants management software and step back to think about their impact. As we started to talk about impact, I was asked the two questions I hear in almost every discussion on the subject: What is... Read More
Perpetuity or Spend Down: It’s Not a Binary Decision
Getting clear on your foundation’s lifespan is one of the most fundamental decisions your board will make. It affects virtually everything else you do. Think for a moment of the difference in, say, a 25-year lifespan or one of perpetuity when it comes to setting grantmaking priorities, managing investments, engaging the next generation, or running... Read More
Funders Pool Resources to Provide Capacity Building to Their Region’s Nonprofits
Grantmakers are known for asking questions. We ask our nonprofit applicants to tell us about their mission, programs, budgets, and ability to sustain the programs that we fund. We also try to understand the challenges they face and the plans to overcome those challenges. Sometimes, however, we can learn even more by listening to the questions they... Read More
Daring to Dream
I was driving my daughter to her summer job, and we were sharing: Thoughts, feelings, hopes, dreams. I went first. “I had a dream last night that a large snake rose from the laundry basket.” Not being a snake person in any way-shape-or-form, I was still shaken a bit. “Hmm,” responded 17-year-old Sophia. “My dreams... Read More