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From the @nytimes editorial today on what the feds must do: "What’s needed is a blank-check promise to provide the money necessary for employers to pay workers."
Organized philanthropy has no choice but to follow suit. So far, that hasn't happened. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/10/opinion/coronavirus-unemployment-small-business.html
Organized philanthropy has no choice but to follow suit. So far, that hasn't happened. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/10/opinion/coronavirus-unemployment-small-business.html
Who's leading in the philanthropy community right now? Smart, progressive, family foundations like @thelibrafound, which is doubling its giving from $25 million in 2019 to $50 million in 2020.
https://www.thelibrafoundation.org/2020/04/the-libra-foundation-doubles-grantmaking-in-2020-including-their-latest-docket-22-million-to-social-justice-organizations/
#fundraising #philanthropy 1/x
https://www.thelibrafoundation.org/2020/04/the-libra-foundation-doubles-grantmaking-in-2020-including-their-latest-docket-22-million-to-social-justice-organizations/
#fundraising #philanthropy 1/x
And the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation, which has found ways to effectively double its grantmaking payout. https://www.ncfp.org/2020/04/06/bold-and-generous-giving-by-the-mary-reynolds-babcock-foundation/
#fundraising #philanthropy
2/x
#fundraising #philanthropy
2/x
And @akonadi_oakland which is putting $1m from its endowment to grants for "people of color-led organizations and initiatives in Oakland that are on the frontlines of responding to communities impacted by COVID-19."
https://mailchi.mp/akonadi/solovecanwin?e=581dc6d838
#fundraising #philanthropy
3/x
https://mailchi.mp/akonadi/solovecanwin?e=581dc6d838
#fundraising #philanthropy
3/x
And @WallaceGlobal which has announced that it will give away 20% of its endowment in 2020, an extraordinary commitment in this time of need.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/randalllane/2020/04/09/hey-jack-dorsey-this-is-the-right-way-to-give-away-1-billion/#574efa4375f7
4/x
https://www.forbes.com/sites/randalllane/2020/04/09/hey-jack-dorsey-this-is-the-right-way-to-give-away-1-billion/#574efa4375f7
4/x
These foundations join a roster of "philanthropy-serving institutions" like @familygiving in calling on organized philanthropy to "significantly increase their grant spending during this crisis."
https://www.ncfp.org/2020/04/02/ncfp-signs-joint-statement-promoting-greater-payout/
5/x
https://www.ncfp.org/2020/04/02/ncfp-signs-joint-statement-promoting-greater-payout/
5/x
Right now, from what I can see, the #philanthropy field is being led by these foundations, all of which have spent years organizing themselves for crisis moments like the one we are in.
Where are the Big Foundations in all this? 6/x
Where are the Big Foundations in all this? 6/x
They are fighting the last war, i.e., the Great Recession, calling for better communication, no surprises, more flexibility for grantees.
Important, yes, but it misses the point. Their assets, from what I've read, remain untouched, unused.
https://www.cof.org/news/call-action-philanthropys-commitment-during-covid-19
6/x
Important, yes, but it misses the point. Their assets, from what I've read, remain untouched, unused.
https://www.cof.org/news/call-action-philanthropys-commitment-during-covid-19
6/x
In my field, nonprofit journalism, the consequences on this incredibly conservative and passive response to the massive destruction of the US media system is near criminal imo. (Yes, I'm actually furious about this). 7/x
As @Revkin tweeted earlier today, the 28,000 lost newsroom jobs reported by @nytimes creates a "nasty feedback loops that is making effective #covid19 communication amid an accompanying #infodemic even harder."
https://twitter.com/Revkin/status/1249001725316550662
8/x
https://twitter.com/Revkin/status/1249001725316550662
8/x
And let's be clear about this: the weak response, to date, of Big Philanthropy - even if we just look at support for journalism - translates into human suffering and death and enduring crisis.
9/x
9/x
If the philanthropy"majors" don't stand up their giving right now, and do it at scale, we will look back and see a massive failure of institutional and individual leadership.
If not now, when?
10/x
If not now, when?
10/x
There is another philanthropic wealth holder that is failing to step up: the nearly $30 billion held in Donor Advised Funds (DAFs), led by corporations like Fidelity, Vanguard, Schwab, etc.
https://ips-dc.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Warehousing-Wealth-IPS-Report-1.pdf
11/x
https://ips-dc.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Warehousing-Wealth-IPS-Report-1.pdf
11/x
With DAFs, donors "contribute" to an entity like Fidelity Charitable, which is set up as a 501c3, and get an immediate tax deduction.
Fidelity, though, is under no obligation to distribute this money on any time schedule. They can - and do - warehouse these funds.
12/x
Fidelity, though, is under no obligation to distribute this money on any time schedule. They can - and do - warehouse these funds.
12/x
I don't have more updated info, but the @Ips_dc study from @Chuck99to1 reports that in 2016, DAFs paid out only 20 cents on the charitable dollar under management. 13/x
So here's one thing that could happen right now: a change in tax regs that would REQUIRE DAF managers to payout these funds with a reasonable time period - let's say, two years upon receipt - or risk losing their 501c3 tax exemption. (h/t to @davenow and @VinceDaily on this).
