Project Updates
Dear Friends of the Diversity in Philanthropy Project,
Thank you for your continuing interest in the important work and goals of the Diversity in Philanthropy Project (DPP). We are pleased to share with you the exciting work that has been underway since our last communication. We welcome your comments and encourage you to write us with any thoughts you have in response to our e-newsletters and Web site at: info@diversityinphilanthropy.org.
DPP Update
It has been an exciting year for the Diversity in Philanthropy Project and our many partners. We are proud of what has been accomplished.
As we write, we are in final preparation for the May 2009 Council on Foundations Annual Conference in Atlanta, GA, where the topics of diversity and inclusion will once again be significantly featured on the agenda. During the Conference, we will share an update of our activities over the last year and our plans for the future. Click here to preview this report.
In our final COF Annual Conference appearance, DPP and COF staff will convene a session entitled Diversity and Effectiveness in Philanthropy: A Leadership Exchange on Next Steps Opportunities for the Field - a high-level panel discussion, to be held on Monday, May 4 at 2:30pm EDT in Atlanta.
Panel participants will include: Sterling K. Speirn, President and CEO, W.K. Kellogg Foundation (Michigan); Diane Kaplan, President and CEO, Rasmuson Foundation (Alaska); Carol A. Goss, President and CEO, Skillman Foundation (Michigan); and Aaron Dorfman, Executive Director, National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (Washington, DC). Theresa Fay-Bustillos, Trustee, Council on Foundations and Vice-Chair of COF's Inclusive Practices Committee, will serve as the panel moderator.
In this session, participants and panelists will explore diversity, effectiveness and the debate swirling around these issues across our field. The goal is to move the conversation along to a new point of understanding - even if there is no consensus - and to identify opportunities to come together to meet remaining challenges.
For the last several years, featured panels like this one have provided us with critical opportunities to engage a broad spectrum of field leaders in dialogue on diversity and inclusion issues. We anticipate another round of rich conversations that will continue to advance this important work.
Voices and Resources from the Field
We also want to alert you to some significant new resources that were recently uploaded to our Web site. These include:
Community Economic Development Philanthropy, prepared during the fall/winter of 2008 by Massachusetts-based consultant Christine Robinson, President of Stillwaters Consultation and former Director of Poverty Programs for the Moriah Fund. The report, the third case study in our ongoing series, highlights the diversity-enhancing strategies and insights of more than a dozen leading community economic development grantmaking experts from across the United States.
Council of Michigan Foundations Newswire article, “CMF’s Symposium On Diversity & Inclusion Sparks Discussion, Ideas And Hope” reports on CMF’s March 2-4 Symposium on Diversity & Inclusion in Philanthropy: The Michigan Experience. The Symposium was co-convened by DPP to kick off the five-year initiative, Transforming Michigan Philanthropy Through Diversity and Inclusion, which seeks to increase the effectiveness and accountability of organized philanthropy in Michigan.
The David and Lucile Packard, James Irvine, and William and Flora Hewlett Foundations announced the creation of the Community Leadership Project, an $8 million, three-year commitment to strengthen grassroots organizations led by or serving people and communities of color in three geographic regions of California. Visit the Project's Web site.
Foundation Diversity Policies and Practices Toolkit, produced by The California Endowment, shows the breadth of diversity as it is addressed throughout many aspects of grantmaking. The toolkit offers a sampling of the statements, forms and templates currently employed by leading foundations, for the purpose of helping other interested funders to advance their own inclusion efforts. Download the toolkit here.
Take Action - Sign On To Our Principles and Practices
Leading philanthropic research institutions have recently cited a common finding: there appears to be greater diversity among foundations with organizational diversity policies and dedicated practices in place1.
The DPP Advisory Board formulated its Common Principles and Promising Practices for leading foundations and philanthropic networks to endorse and apply in their respective institutional settings. In recent months, these instruments have been formally adopted by leading foundations and regional associations, including The California Endowment, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, Ohio Grantmakers Forum and the Council of Michigan Foundations, with new organizations signing on every day.
If you'd like to sign on to our Principles and Practices, please click here and let us know the extent to which our Principles and Practices resonate with your organization or with you as an individual field leader.
The Debate Continues...
In our Latest News section, we've posted additional statements, reports and opinions from various organizations and field leaders - including Gara LaMarche, The Atlantic Philanthropies, Steve Gunderson, Council of Foundations, William Shambra, the Hudson Institute and Aaron Dorfman, National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy - continuing the debate around last month's social justice grantmaking criteria report from the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy.
These publications and commentaries, along with other useful information and resources, are available for review and analysis here on our site. As always, we urge you to add your own perspective to the discourse via our blog or by emailing us your comments at info@diversityinphilanthropy.org.
Thank you again for your interest and engagement in this work. We look forward to a lively discussion at COF this year and to partnering with many of you in the months to come.
Sincerely,
Robert K. Ross, MD
President & CEO
The California Endowment
DPP Advisory Board Chair
Stephen B. Heintz
President & CEO
Rockefeller Brothers Fund
DPP Advisory Board Co-Vice Chair
Sterling K. Speirn
President & CEO
W. K. Kellogg Foundation
DPP Advisory Board Co-Vice Chair