Update from the Council on Foundations:

In the last week of July 2010, torrential rains caused devastating floods in large parts of Pakistan. As many as 1,500 people have died in what officials have called Pakistan’s worst flooding in 70 years and has affected the lives of nearly 14 million people, according to estimates from the United Nations. The number is expected to grow significantly as flood waters pass through Southern parts of the country and as information from remote areas become more available.

Situational Information and General Resources on Disaster Grantmaking

To assist its members, colleagues, and the field with leadership and guidance on global disasters, the Council on Foundations compiles timely, crisis-specific resources, available at www.cof.org/disasterresponse, including links to eight principles for disaster management, legal FAQs, and templates for your foundation’s disaster preparedness and recovery plans.

In addition, below are resources specific to the Pakistan floods:

*The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)

*ReliefWeb: A project of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. This website serves as a clearing house for ongoing situational reports on the Pakistan floods.

*AlertNet: A humanitarian news network from the Reuters Foundation that provides detailed news updates on the extent of damage and ongoing humanitarian relief efforts.

*InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S.-based international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), lists their members responding to the floods in Pakistan.

*Give2Asia launched a Pakistan Flood Relief Fund after receiving initial commitments of $30,000 from private donors wishing to help survivors.

We encourage members to let us know of your response efforts by sending them to info@PhilanthropyNW.org.

By Sue Bennett
Learning Manager
Philanthropy Northwest

At last week’s “Reflections on Philanthropy from Today’s Leaders” event with Diana Scearce, more than sixty attendees considered new ways to build networks for social change – picture foundation and nonprofit leaders earnestly drawing maps with colored pencils to illustrate linkages, nodes and relationships in their own networks. Social networks are not new, as anyone who is a neighbor, parent, member of a faith community, volunteer organization or school knows well. What is new is the ways in which we can use technology to communicate and build networks intentionally.

Networking can be as simple as increasing awareness or as complex as building a collaborative movement toward a shared goal. Diana discussed how to assess the health of your network and ways to develop and strengthen it. Five important principles to consider: weaving community, accessing diverse perspectives, building and sharing knowledge, mobilizing people and coordinating resources and action.

Many thanks to speaker Diana Scearce, senior consultant for the Monitor Institute, for generously sharing her materials and insights. Also, check out Diana’s article, “Working Wikily” (Stanford Social Innovation Review, Summer 2010) for more in-depth information about working wikily.

Thank you to our series co-sponsors: Social Venture Partners, the UW Evans School’s Nancy Bell Evans Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy and Washington Women’s Foundation.

By John Colgan
President
Yakima Valley Community Foundation

If the Yakima Valley Community Foundation (YVCF) received a dollar for every time we brag about the Community Foundations National Standards, our adding machines would be smoking.

I was hired as CEO when YVCF was established in 2004. Quite literally, from my very first day on the job, all I heard from my new-found colleagues around the state of Washington was this: “Comply with the National Standards as soon as you can.” They knew something I didn’t know, and I was eager to learn what it was.

Six years later, I am happy to share some advice. Despite its age, think of your community foundation as a newly christened ship about to embark on a long journey. Destination: better tomorrows.

How do we get there from here?

Think of the standards as the most up-to-date and easy-to-read map that charts the safest, fastest, and smoothest course to guide you on your voyage—an assemblage of best practices to steer you toward excellence and success.

Why do I think this is good advice?

Donors are impressed by the “seal of excellence” YVCF earned, confirming our compliance with the standards. After reading what one donor (Helen Jewett) had to say in the YVCF 2008 annual report, a gentleman dropped by my office a few months later to say he had named YVCF as the sole beneficiary of a very large estate. When I asked him why, he replied: “Helen told the community you run a tight ship. If you’re good enough for Helen, you’re good enough for me.”

Nonprofit colleagues also comment on the organizational qualities they see in YVCF. When they do, I am quick to note that we owe a great deal of our speedy advancement to the decision to act in accordance with those 35 Tabs that the Council’s Community Foundations Leadership Team forged on our behalf.

And, at a recent board meeting, a member commented that our first six years have been marked by a “squeaky-clean” record of achievement. Not two seconds went by before our director of programs added “Let’s hear it for those National Standards!”

At YVCF, everyone brags about “the standards.” We look forward to adjusting them when needed because it means we are continuously learning and expanding our horizon. And with the Council on Foundations helping us navigate toward better tomorrows, we know we are on the right course.

Originally posted on Re: Philanthropy, the Council on Foundations blog.

By Janelle Zakrzewski
Program Manager, Corporate Services
Philanthropy Northwest

Expedia, the Bellevue-based online travel company and new Philanthropy Northwest member, recently hosted their third annual “CANstruction” competition benefiting local social service provider Hopelink. The competition encourages teams of employees to dream up and build travel-themed sculptures from needed food drive items, and has become a pillar of the company’s local corporate citizenship efforts.

“In a business climate where resources are limited and demands on employees are ever-increasing, effectively engaging in community initiatives requires creativity,” said Expedia corporate citizenship manager Megan Prine. “Expedia’s CANstruction competition taps into our employees’ innovative and competitive nature, provides leadership opportunities, and is a unique way for us to encourage support of Hopelink’s End Summer Hunger Campaign.” This year’s competition featured seven teams of employees using food drives, bake sales, and other creative means to purchase food items needed to build sculptures such as the Great Wall of China, a London double decker bus, the New York City skyline and a larger-than-life slot machine, to name a few.

“CANstruction” creations were available for public viewing when Expedia hosted Bellevue’s “Live at Lunch” concert on July 14. Attendees were also invited to donate additional food items to Hopelink. Prine added, “CANstruction helps bring attention to the increasing demand on food banks throughout our community.”

Hopelink officially judged the “CANstruction” creations on July 15, and awards for Best in Show and People’s Choice were made for the JACKPOT slot machine, while Best Use of Most Needed Items went to the Egencia Castle sculpture. Overall, 14.436 pounds of food and $14,000 (which includes employee donations and a company match) were donated to Hopelink through “CANstruction”.

Check out Expedia’s “CANstruction” video to learn more.

By Mindie Reule
Program Manager, Public Policy
Philanthropy Northwest

Last Friday, Philanthropy Northwest convened the Human Services Funding Collaborative to host Washington State policymakers and members for an in-depth briefing about the Washington State Benefit Portal Partnership Project. We are enthusiastic about hosting events like this one—as a membership organization, our mission is to connect funders to each other so that they can achieve more with their giving. (Increasingly, this means working with government officials, as well as our foundation and corporate members.) The Boeing Company, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and United Way of King County co-sponsored the event which, in addition to providing valuable information about an exciting project, also offers insight into the collaborative process.

Governor Chris Gregoire and the Department of Social and Health Services, along with a network of community partners, have spent the last year designing a public-private partnership which will expand access to federal, state and local benefits for eligible populations in need. This idea, simple in the telling, but complicated in its implementation, has required a serious commitment of time, energy and patience by all involved. The group has persevered because the creation of an electronic portal, coupled with community outreach, has the very real potential to significantly help families and children and to bring millions of new dollars into Washington State. This kind of project has been successfully implemented in other states, including Ohio, Wisconsin, Florida, and Colorado, reminding those involved that they are driving towards an achievable goal.

About 25 members and community partners attended the meeting here at Philanthropy Northwest. Department of Social and Health Services Secretary Susan Dreyfus thanked funders for their interest and involvement and reiterated that this project is a priority for her department. She reviewed the funding gap that remains—explaining that philanthropic dollars (with partial matches from the federal government) will be needed to close the budget gap and begin building the portal this year. State House Representative Mary Lou Dickerson underscored the legislature’s commitment to the project and several grantmakers explained why they are prepared to invest in it: David Okimoto of United Way of King County, Gina Breukelman of Boeing and David Bley of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

True partnerships are not easy, and this one is no different. There were people in the room who have been working to streamline access to benefits for ten or even fifteen years. Now that the project is closer to reality, it’s important to reflect on how it achieved this level of partnership. Simply put, funders, community groups, state agencies, city governments and the legislature worked hard to overcome uncertainties about each other. They made a time-intensive commitment to work openly and collaboratively, recognizing that the project could not be achieved any other way. In short, they took risks.

While efforts to close the funding gap are ongoing and success, while within reach, is still uncertain, I think there is reason to celebrate. Public and private funders are learning to work together. While the true measure of the effort will be improved support for families and children in Washington State, the lessons we learn in this effort will guide us as we address other social issues deserving our combined efforts. This is good news for those of us who believe we are all, truly, better together. If you are interested in learning more about the Benefit Portal Partnership Project or connecting with the project’s experts please let me know.

By Mindie Reule
Program Manager, Public Policy
Philanthropy Northwest

As Philanthropy Northwest’s first program manager for public policy, I have spent my first months on the job meeting with members, getting acquainted to  philanthropy across the region and staffing the Public Policy Committee. I wanted to take this opportunity to let you know about our public policy activities this summer.

Benefit Portal Member Briefing
This Friday, July 16th, state and community leaders will brief Philanthropy Northwest members about tremendous progress that has been made on the Washington State Benefit Portal Partnership Project. We’re so excited to host this event. If you were part of Philanthropy Northwest’s Human Services Funders Collaborative, you know that this idea has been “in the works” for years and now we’re finally at a place—thanks to the hard work of many and a very exciting public-private partnership—where this project is so close to being realized. There is still time to RSVP!

District Days
Each year, many of our members travel to Washington, D.C., to meet with our Members of Congress. Face to face meetings with elected officials and their staff allow us to explain and help them better understand the vast contributions our sector makes to society. Philanthropy Northwest, along with the Council on Foundations, encourages you to meet with your Members of Congress while they are home for the August recess. If you are interested in arranging a meeting or would like more information, contact me.

Montana Economic Development Summit
Philanthropy Northwest, the Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation and Montana Nonprofit Association will present a session at Senator Max Baucus’ Montana Economic Development Summit in Butte, Montana, this September. The session will discuss innovative economic development programs emerging from the nonprofit sector. If you fund economic development programs in the Northwest, please let me know about them.

I Want to Hear from You!
Do you fund advocacy or public policy programs? Are you interested in learning more about it? As we develop our public policy program we want to hear from our members about how Philanthropy Northwest could better support your public policy work. Please contact me with ideas and stay tuned for a members-only lunch and teleconference to talk about what kinds of public policy programs you’d like to see from Philanthropy Northwest this fall and next year.

By Alaina Smith
Communications Manager
Philanthropy Northwest

On June 24, 30 funders gathered at the Alaska Community Foundation for the Alaska Funders Group Meeting. I admit I was surprised at such a great turn out on a sunny, warm(ish) day in Anchorage – until I remembered it’s a lot easier to fit in work AND play when you have nearly 24 hours of daylight.

We were welcomed by the new CEO of the Alaska Community Foundation, Candace Winkler. Candace started at the foundation in May, and while her “Top 40 Under 40” award is still sitting on the floor of her office, she and her staff have been busy with a family philanthropy event, an Anchorage schools project, and supporting the Petersburg affiliate in its efforts to meet a Rasmuson challenge grant. No time to hang art on the walls!

Building on the meeting theme of community giving, we heard from Mike Heatwole, vice president of public affairs for the Pebble Partnership, a mining project in southwest Alaska. In 2008, the Partnership established the Pebble Fund, a five-year, $5 million commitment to support community-led initiatives in the Bristol Bay area where the company operates. To ensure the Fund operates independently from the company, it is administered by Alaska Community Foundation, and grant decisions are made by a board comprised of community members.

After a year of planning, research and conversations about needs and opportunities in the region, the Fund made its first round of grants in March of 2009. While the company initially planned to devote a significant portion of the Fund’s resources to renewable resources, fish and energy, the demand for economic development support has been high. To date, the Fund has invested more than $2.4 million in southwest Alaska, in projects ranging from a high school and middle school culinary arts program to a dock crane that will help fishermen in Dago Creek move heavy fishing equipment and freight being shipped to the community.

We also heard from Dale Tran, COO of Kaladi Brothers Coffee. Kaladi coffee is beloved from Wasilla to Soldotna, the Whistler Olympic Village to military bases in the Middle East. But Dale emphasized that Kaladi isn’t just about coffee. The business was founded on two equal ideas: coffee and community. The company vision is to be both a “standard by which all other coffee shops are judged” and a “catalyst for community.”

Kaladi Brothers gives back to the community in myriad ways. The company donates coffee and offers free space for meetings and events. Owner and founder Tim Gravel hitches the Kaladi “Café on Wheels” to his truck to bring coffee to community events, free of charge. In 2010, the company saw an 80% increase in funds raised from customer giving – in a recent campaign, Kaladi Brothers donated $1 to a fund for a fallen Anchorage police officer every time a customer used Foursquare to check in to a café.

Summing up the company giving policy, Dale said: “Instead of talking about ‘why we can’t,’ we ask ourselves ‘why can’t we?’” Amen to that.

By Sue Bennett
Learning Manager
Philanthropy Northwest

On June 11, the Philanthropy Northwest Capacity Building Learning Circle convened for the third time this year. Our first two meetings focused on defining capacity building and looking at frameworks for cataloging investments and understanding strengths and gaps in communities. This session moves from the theoretical to the practical as we listen to two different case studies, presented by both the funder and grantee.

Case Study 1: Social Venture Partners and Explorations in Math

Lynn Coriano and Stephanie Cherrington tell the story of how they worked together to build the organization and what they learned in the process.

Case Study 2: Red Lodge Area Community Foundation and Boys and Girls Club of Carbon County

Joan Hughes and  Jody Ackerman discuss developing a custom, six-session training for nonprofits in collaboration with Montana State University, as well as a current effort to gather nonprofits planning capital campaigns together. Moderated by Paul Shoemaker, Social Venture Partners.

Note: This case study was presented via videoconference, so the film and sound quality is not as clear as the first presentation.

Next up for the Learning Circle: planning capacity building sessions at the Philanthropy Northwest 2010 Annual Conference. Stay tuned for session descriptions – we hope you will join us at Semiahmoo!

By Mindie Reule
Program Manager, Public Policy
Philanthropy Northwest

On June 1, Governor Chris Gregoire officially announced that Washington state submitted its application for the U.S. Department of Education’s Race to the Top competition. Philanthropy Northwest would like to take this opportunity to recognize the philanthropy community’s contributions to this effort. A group of Washington funders—including corporate giving programs, family foundations and a community foundation—came together to make Washington’s Race to the Top application a reality.

There was no requirement that the state seek support from private funders, but Bezos Family Foundation, the Boeing Company, JP Morgan Chase, the Laird Norton Company, Microsoft Corporation, Nesholm Family Foundation, Raikes Family Foundation, and the Seattle Foundation saw Race to the Top as an opportunity for education leaders in Washington to join forces to augment the education reform process. These funders pooled their resources to support Washington’s Race to the Top application efforts by making a grant to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI). This grant allowed OSPI to a hire professional consultant to help the cash-strapped state government agency complete the application.

This effort is a perfect example of the role foundations can play in education reform. No foundation in the world has enough resources to fund the cost of public education, but foundations can fund smaller projects—like this grant to OSPI—that will potentially leverage more federal dollars for education.

The collaboration of government agencies, nonprofit organizations, school districts, labor unions and funders that went into putting this application together was remarkable and the process itself was good for Washington. Even if Washington doesn’t get funding, this group has a detailed plan to continue to address education reform in Washington and going through this process has only made those efforts stronger. We hope that funders across the region will continue to push the envelope for continued improvements in our public education system.

You can view the full application that was submitted to the Department of Education here.

By Grant Williams
Chronicle of Philanthropy*

Sen. Charles E. Grassley, senior Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, is asking the Council on Foundations for information about the need for a proposed change in the way foundations pay excise tax on their net investment income.

Supporters of the proposal, which Mr. Grassley said is pending in the Senate as an amendment to a tax bill, say such a change would simplify the tax code for foundations and encourage grant makers to give more during the current economic hard times.

Foundations currently are subject to a 2-percent or a 1-percent tax. They can qualify for the lower rate in any year in which the percentage of assets they directed toward charitable distributions is larger than the average percentage of their distributions during the previous five years.

While the two-tier tax was intended as an incentive for foundations to give more, some lawmakers and foundation officials have argued it has had the opposite effect. They say it pushes foundations not to raise their grant making significantly in any one year because that increase would raise the average donation amount, thereby requiring the organizations to continue to give at a higher rate in subsequent years to avoid the 2-percent tax rate.

The proposed change would eliminate the current two-tier excise-tax system and replace it with a flat rate of less than 2 percent.

In a letter to the Council on Foundations, which supports the change, Mr. Grassley, of Iowa, said he supports the concept of simplifying the excise tax but thinks any change should be considered in the context of “larger reform” with hearings and formal study.

What’s more, he said, “while some claim that simplifying and flattening the rate will increase payout, it is not clear to me that will be the actual result.”

Mr. Grassley asked the Council on Foundations for background information, including how many private foundations actually pay the investment income excise tax.

ED: Click here to view the Council on Foundations’ response.

*Originally published in the Chronicle of Philanthropy, June 10, 2010.