FN&C Now

Volume 7, Number 3 – January 18, 2006 IN THIS ISSUE NEWS COVERAGE: The Trust for Civil Society in Central and Eastern Europe updates its mission; Schwab Fund for Charitable Giving surpasses $1 billion; New York grantmakers focus on the long term for Gulf states; Robert Wood Johnson Foundation names first distinguished fellow JUST PUBLISHED: Survey finds Minnesota giving increased after two-year decline; corporate giving on the upswing, report says AT THE COUNCIL: Time's running out to register for the Institute for New Grantmakers and 2006 Family Foundation Conference; sign up for Breaking News NOW ONLINE: TechSoup NetSquared conference planning ON THE MOVE: Honorable Harvey E. Schlesinger and Delores Kesler (The Community Foundation); Lynn Campion and Barbara Hartley (Johnson); Gary B. Pruitt and Patricia Salas Pineda (Irvine); Fred C. Setzer (Dayton); Peter Madonia (Rockefeller); Linda Wong (California Community) NEWS COVERAGE NEW MISSION: The Trust for Civil Society in Central and Eastern Europe was launched in 2001 to promote the development of civil society in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. Its main objective has been to help organizations and citizens working for the public good make the transition to independent, active and viable networks. But, after three years of operation and an assessment of its grantmaking in 2004–2005, the trust has decided to change its approach and—in a more substantive and contextual way—will help mobilize civil societies to address critical issues in the trust's seven countries. According to Executive Director Rayna Gavrilova, the change was needed because it has "become clear that the visible gaps in the social fabric call for a much more substantive and engaged approach than was initially imagined." In the coming months, the trust will open a grant application process for all seven countries with a broadly defined, but definite, number of priorities. Read more: http://www.ceetrust.org/news/20060101.html . $1 BILLION MILESTONE: Donor contributions to the Schwab Fund for Charitable Giving have passed the $1 billion mark. In 2005, the donor-advised fund received approximately $510 million, more than double the $225 million in contributions received in 2004. Fund President Kim Wright-Violich says much of the fund's success stems from its "charitable asset management" option, which allows high-net-worth individuals—those with accounts of at least $250,000—to nominate an independent investment advisor to manage their donated assets. The fund, which has approximately $840 million in assets, achieved the milestone as it ended its most productive year for making charitable grants. The biggest beneficiaries of the fund's grants in 2005 were relief efforts for victims of Hurricane Katrina, the South Asian tsunami and the Pakistan earthquake. Read more: http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/01-06-2006/0004244058&EDATE . THINKING LONG-TERM: The New York Regional Association of Grantmakers (NYRAG) gathered members of 30 grantmaking organizations to discuss long-term strategies for keeping philanthropy in action after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated Gulf states. As a group, NYRAG members have contributed more than $88 million to hurricane relief, recovery and rebuilding. The 30 organizations are member of NYRAG's hurricane task force, which discussed recovery strategies at its initial meeting immediately after the hurricanes. Although attention to the Gulf Coast may be fading nationally, the task force is now working to maintain a sense of urgency and bring together a broad mix of people, from neighborhood leaders to corporate CEOs, to forge redevelopment plans and ways to stimulate the region's economy and culture. Read more: http://www.nyrag.org/press_release3759/press_release_show.htm?doc_id=336775 . FIRST FELLOW: The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) named C. Tracy Orleans its first distinguished fellow. The fellow position was created to shape the direction of philanthropy in solving the nation's pressing, complex health and healthcare challenges. The position recognizes outstanding professionals who are national thought leaders and provides them with wider opportunities for scientific and programmatic leadership to help RWJF achieve its mission and goals. Orleans has served as a RWJF senior program officer and senior scientist since 1995 and has been responsible for developing and managing some of the foundation's most significant science-based initiatives. Over the next three years, Orleans will play a significant role in advising RWJF's leadership on promising directions for research and programs, as well as synthesizing and communicating results of the foundation's research. Read more: http://www.rwjf.org/newsroom/newsreleasesdetail.jsp?id=10389 . JUST PUBLISHED GIVING INCREASES: According to a new report from the Minnesota Council on Foundations, after two years of decline, charitable giving in the state increased in 2003-the first improvement since the recession following the attacks of September 11, 2001. Giving in Minnesota, 2005 Edition, found that charitable giving totaled $4.39 billion in 2003, up 5 percent (2.9 percent adjusted for inflation) from 2002. Individuals in Minnesota contributed 78 percent of the state's charitable dollars in 2003, or $3.43 billion, while the state's 1,296 foundations and corporate giving programs gave $958 million to nonprofits, an increase of 7 percent (5 percent adjusted for inflation). Read more, purchase the full report or download a summary (PDF): http://www.mcf.org/MCF/about/mcfnews/gim_060105.html . CONTRIBUTIONS RISING: Charitable giving by 189 of the largest U.S. companies and corporate foundations totaled $7.8 billion in 2004, according to The Conference Board's 2005 Corporate Contributions Report. The total represents 65.8 percent of the estimated $12 billion in corporate charitable giving in 2004. The report, which also compared 133 of the largest U.S. companies and corporate foundations between 2003 and 2004, found that contributions to worthy causes increased by 22 percent. The board believes these matched cases provide the most accurate analysis of year-to-year trends in U.S. corporate giving. The report also found that survey respondents gave $6.3 billion to U.S.-based organizations in 2004, while international giving totaled $1.45 billion. Health and human services remained a top priority for corporations, receiving approximately 54 percent of U.S. contributions. Read more or purchase the report: http://www.conference-board.org/utilities/pressDetail.cfm?press_ID=2791 . AT THE COUNCIL TIME'S RUNNING OUT: The Council on Foundations and Washington Grantmakers are cosponsoring the Institute for New Grantmakers, January 19–20, 2006, in Washington, DC. The institute is designed to introduce newcomers to the nuts and bolts of grantmaking. Led by experts in philanthropy, attendees will learn about the core competencies of grantmaking practice, new trends and best practices, ethical decisionmaking and foundation stewardship. The institute also offers new grantmakers an excellent opportunity to speak with seasoned grantmakers in a small, collegial setting while networking with other foundation staff. Council members may register for the Washington Grantmakers member rate of $675. Find out more: http://www.washingtongrantmakers.org//WG//Programs/Planning/Planning_Institute.asp . FAMILY FOUNDATIONS: Register for the Council on Foundations' 2006 Family Foundation Conference in Honolulu, January 29–31, 2006 (preconference workshops begin January 28). The conference theme, From Principle to Practice: Navigating Your Course, focuses on improving the field's performance and raising its level of excellence by applying the new Stewardship Principles for Family Foundations. Speakers include Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle (invited); Steve Case, cofounder of America Online Inc. and chair of the Case Foundation; and Nainoa Thompson, president of the Polynesian Voyaging Society. Postconference trips will offer grantmakers hands-on experiences with Hawaiian philanthropy and grantmaking models in environmental conservation, innovative education, culture preservation and more. Register or find out more: http://int2.cof.org/conferences/family2006/index.htm . FREE NEWS SERVICE: Breaking News is a free, daily e-mail newsletter summarizing the top articles—mostly from national and regional newspapers—about philanthropy. Breaking News is available to Council members, as well as members and staff of our colleague organizations. Subscribe by e-mailing your name, title and foundation name to media@cof.org. NOW ONLINE CONFERENCE PLANNING: TechSoup NetSquared, the project to increase nonprofit effectiveness through web-based social tools, is asking the tech and nonprofit communities to get involved in the planning process for its conference May 8–9, 2006, in San Francisco. The conference will build upon six months of online discussion and collaboration about how nonprofits and nongovernmental organizations can best use new web tools such as podcasting, social bookmarking and blogging to achieve their missions. To encourage a lively dialogue, the NetSquared website has dedicated an entire section to the conference planning process, where visitors can offer suggestions for speakers, topics and other agenda items. Make a suggestion or find out more: http://www.netsquared.org/conference/conference-suggestions . ON THE MOVE The Community Foundation in Jacksonville, Florida, elected the HONORABLE HARVEY E. SCHLESINGER chairman and DELORES KESLER trustee LYNN CAMPION was appointed chair of the Helen K. and Arthur E. Johnson Foundation. She replaces BARBARA HARTLEY, who resigned after holding the position for 27 years. The James Irvine Foundation named GARY B. PRUITT board chair and PATRICIA SALAS PINEDA vice chair. Read more: http://www.irvine.org/irvine_news/press_releases/2006/01-09_Pruitt_Pineda.shtml . FRED C. SETZER is now chair of The Dayton Foundation. Read more: http://www.daytonfoundation.org/121605pr.html . The Rockefeller Foundation appointed PETER MADONIA chief operating officer. Read more: http://www.rockfound.org/AboutUs/FoundationAnnouncement/128 . LINDA WONG was hired as director of civic engagement at the California Community Foundation, a newly created position. Read more: http://www.calfund.org/3/release_jan3_2006.php . SUBSCRIBE FN&C Now is published by the Council on Foundations to keep you in the loop by sharing news between bimonthly editions of Foundation News & Commentary magazine (FN&C Now Web archive: http://www.foundationnews.org/now/index.htm ). Please feel free to forward this message to your friends and colleagues who might enjoy it. To subscribe (it's free) to FN&C Now, send an e-mail to fncnow@cof.org . Questions or comments about FN&C Now? Contact Paula J. Kelly at 202/467-0261. To contribute a news item for consideration, please e-mail fncnow@cof.org . To unsubscribe, send a blank e-mail to leave-fncnow-4832R@int1.cof.org . To subscribe to Foundation News & Commentary, an award-winning magazine, please send an e-mail to fncsubs@cof.org , or visit our website at http://www.icnfull.com/cgi-bin/cobolscript.exe?cof/cofmain.cbl . Council on Foundations 1828 L Street, NW Washington, DC 20036 202/466-6512 webmaster@cof.org last update: 3.27.06