Foundations' 21st-century obligation: Align your endowments with mission
Foundation: Nathan Cummings Foundation
... 26% poverty rate to our nation's rampant wealth inequality — many philanthropic leaders are awakening to philanthropy's moment of...more

Resonance: A Framework for Philanthropic Transformation
Foundation: Knight Foundation, Public Welfare Foundation, McKnight Foundation, Nathan Cummings Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation
Philanthropic organizations whose endowments and influence can be traced back to industries that relied on exploitation and the extraction of...more

New $20 Million Fund Aims to End Workplace Sexual Harassment
Foundation: NoVo Foundation, Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, Ford Foundation, Nathan Cummings Foundation, Unbound Philanthropy, Unbound Philanthropy, Open Society Foundations
Following the Time's Up legal defense fund, which raised $22 million since January 2018, the philanthropy world has actively responded to sustain...more

The Economy Is Changing—and So Must We: A New Charge for Nonprofits
Foundation: Ford Foundation, Nathan Cummings Foundation
This includes writing on employee ownership, cooperatives, social enterprise, community development finance, anchor institutions, the growth...more

Amid Rising Alarms About Big Tech, What Is Philanthropy's Role?
Foundation: Knight Foundation, Ford Foundation, Nathan Cummings Foundation, Hewlett Foundation, Laura and John Arnold Foundation
Last fall, we talked to Barry Lynn, director of Open Markets, about what role philanthropy could play in countering the growing—and increasingly, ominous—power of Big Tech. Lynn and his team had...more

In the Era of Trump and Climate Change, Why Stockpile Surging Assets?
Foundation: Nathan Cummings Foundation
Five percent. It's a figure that rules the behaviors of so many foundations, and causes great frustration for nonprofits and those of us who follow the sector. It's the minimum percentage of assets...more

Mission Alignment Marks Next Frontier of Endowment Investing
Foundation: Ford Foundation, Nathan Cummings Foundation
“Our decision reflects our values and our aspirations, our assessment of the market, and the opportunity for NCF to both join and leverage a chorus of philanthropic and private sector investors...more

Nathan Cummings No Longer Just Experimenting with Impact Investing
Foundation: Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Ford Foundation, Nathan Cummings Foundation
NPQ has often written about the use of impact investing by philanthropic institutions. This month, one of the leaders in that trend, the Nathan Cummings Foundation (NCF), based in New York City,...more

Nathan Cummings No Longer Just Experimenting with Impact Investing
Foundation: Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Ford Foundation, Nathan Cummings Foundation
NCF began this change in investing strategy in 2013 when it committed $6.5 million to social and climate impact. Then, Sharon Alpert ... Investment committees and nonprofit boards in general should...more

Nathan Cummings Foundation's Going 'All In' Was A Long Time In The Making
Foundation: Knight Foundation, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, F.B. Heron Foundation, Ford Foundation, McKnight Foundation, Nathan Cummings Foundation
NCF, of course, is one of a growing number of major foundations embracing impact investing. About a year ago, the F.B. Heron Foundation announced it had officially moved to investing 100% of its $300...more