Spring is a wonderful time for starting new projects and planting the seeds for what we hope will flourish and grow throughout the rest of the year. So it is in this springtime spirit of grassroots growth, abundant nurture and bountiful harvest that we embark on our philanthropy blogging journey from the San Francisco outpost of the Foundation Center. We will use this space to highlight regional philanthropy news and local nonprofit happenings, successful grantseekers whom we can learn from, tools you can use in our library and online, and to notify you about upcoming programs or highlight lessons learned from recent programs.
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Here is a list of some of our newly released tools, resources, and upcoming programs:
- According to the our new report, Key Facts on Corporate Foundations, giving by corporate foundations increased 6.6 percent in 2007 to an estimated $4.4 billion.
- The Spanish translation of our classic Guide to Proposal Writing, Guía para escribir propuestas, was just released.
- The Foundation Center will offer Funding for the Environment programming throughout the month of June in all of our five offices. Gain insight into your local environmental funding community and learn about incorporating green practices into your nonprofit operations. View the Environment Month calendar for San Francisco.
- Over the next couple of months we are bringing our popular Proposal Writing Basics class to nine cities throughout California in partnership with the James Irvine Foundation to prepare arts organizations to apply to the Irvine Foundation's new Creative Connections Fund. Please see the Irvine web site for more details about the Fund. For more information and to register for the free training programs, visit our web site.
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Featured Grantmaker of the Week: Yesterday Target's San Francisco Bay Area region hosted a community celebration for its grantees at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, which reminded us about their local contributions to corporate philanthropy, upcoming deadlines, and how nice it is when grantmakers stop what they are doing to take a moment to thank their grantees for their hard work and dedication. In 2007, Target provided $3 million to nonprofit organizations in the nine county Bay Area, and an additional $880,074 to K-12 schools in this region. Target is known for its commitment to giving 5% of its income to its communities, a unique mark of distinction in corporate philanthropy. Target is now accepting grant applications online through May 31, 2008. The Target grant program focuses on three areas: Arts, Early Childhood Reading, and Family Violence Prevention. Visit Target.com/grants to complete and submit an application or for more information.
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So, some seeds have been planted here, and we hope you will help us by making this a community garden project of sorts. Do you have a grantseeking success story to share or local grantmaking announcements to feature? Let us know via comments or contact Janet Camarena at jfc@foundationcenter.org.
Happy Spring Seeding Everyone!
-Janet Camarena, Director, SF Office
