And — here’s your bonus — Vida Joven will teach you, dear fundraiser, volumes about state-of-the-art donor-centered, donor-worshipping, donor-appreciating, make-your-donor-very-happy comms

Tom Ahern

June 1, 2021 | How tos

The Vida Joven story amazed me from the start: since 1996, this determined (and for many years all-volunteer) orphanage has rescued thrown-away children from the merciless, dangerous gutters of Tijuana (in 2019, TJ was the “most murderous city” on earth, statistically) … and yet … eventually … those very same VJ-rescued kids mostly go on to college.

The Baker Hughes Foundation Contributes $250,000 to Support UNICEF COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution

The Baker Hughes Foundation

May 31, 2021 | Giving Around Texas

The Baker Hughes Foundation has announced a $250,000 grant to the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) in support of its efforts to end the pandemic through equitable COVID-19 vaccine distribution and other support for the world’s most vulnerable populations. UNICEF has been appointed by the Global Vaccine Alliance to help ensure delivery of 2 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses in 2021 to over 180 countries. This… Read more »

How Covid – 19 will change nonprofits for years to come: Over 12 months of disaster philanthropy, new global data reveals the state of the world’s nonprofits and insights on how funders can help

CAF America

May 24, 2021 | Press Releases

CAF America, America’s nonprofit leader in international grantmaking, offers a current analysis of the impacts of COVID-19 on the world’s charities in a new report titled 12 Months Later: The State of the World’s Nonprofits, The Voice of Charities Facing COVID-19, Volume 7. The survey included nonprofits worldwide that have survived the pandemic’s often devastating financial effects. It provides insight into how charities have… Read more »

Survey: Attitudes, Views and Values Around Health, Equity and Race Amid COVID-19

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

May 24, 2021 | News

The pandemic has not demonstrably shifted views on the connection between race and health among those most affected by COVID-19, despite communities of color and those with lower incomes being hit the hardest. Many see COVID-19 as a moment for change, with improving access to health care as the shift they most want to see. COVID-19 has upended the lives of people living in… Read more »

Nearly 90% of Affluent Americans Gave to Charities in 2020, and Nearly Half Gave for Pandemic Relief, Finds Study from Bank of America and Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy

The Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy & Bank of America

May 24, 2021 | Funders and Foundations

In a year dramatically disrupted by the pandemic, affluent Americans’ generosity didn’t waver, according to preliminary findings from the 2021 Bank of America Study of Philanthropy: Charitable Giving by Affluent Households. The vast majority of affluent Americans, nearly 90%, gave to charity in 2020. And nearly half (47%) donated to charitable organizations or financially supported individuals or businesses in direct response to the pandemic.

At a time when education systems are facing the challenges of the pandemic – and field trips are on hold – the Perot Museum of Nature and Science is launching an engaging 10-part, STEM-focused virtual series called The Whynauts

Perot Museum of Nature and Science & Groove Jones

May 24, 2021 | Events

At a time when education systems are facing the challenges of the pandemic – and field trips are on hold – the Perot Museum of Nature and Science is launching an engaging 10-part, STEM-focused virtual series called The Whynauts.   Designed to make science relevant, exciting and accessible, the academically aligned episodes feature charismatic scientists along with diverse youth actors ages 10-15. They will… Read more »

Sharoll and Bryan S. Sheffield ’01 commit $15 million to the Cox School of Business

SMU

May 16, 2021 | Giving Around Texas

A $15 million gift from Sharoll and Bryan S. Sheffield ’01 to SMU’s Edwin L. Cox School of Business will empower future entrepreneurs by creating new technology-equipped collaborative spaces. Their generous commitment will establish Bryan S. Sheffield Hall, part of the future Cox School renovation and expansion project, which will provide students with innovative learning environments, enabling Mustangs to develop critical skills that are vital to success in today’s evolving workplace. 

Goldfish pay more attention than humans (but goldfish can’t make gifts)

Tom Ahern

May 2, 2021 | How tos

Read a chapter from Tom’s new book… as usual… it’s fabulous!   Chapter 14  Goldfish pay more attention than humans (but goldfish can’t make gifts) Every day thousands of messages aim for your brain, to reach your heart, mind . . . and wallet. It’s a well-funded assault, too . . . via web, streaming TV, your car’s radio, free newspapers, magazines, roadside advertising, flyers pinned… Read more »

New Partnership Seeks to Protect 18 Million Square Kilometers of Ocean Over Next Five Years

Conservation International, The Pew Charitable Trusts, the Global Environment Facility, Minderoo Foundation, and the Rob and Melani Walton Foundation

May 2, 2021 | Environment

The ocean covers about 70% of Earth and provides a suite of vital services to humanity, but the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services reports that threats ranging from unsustainable fishing to climate change could leave more than half of marine species at risk of extinction by 2100. Building resilience of our ocean while boosting fisheries, marine-based livelihoods, and economies is possible, in… Read more »

To Mitigate Flooding, States and Communities Increasingly Turn to Nature

Mathew Sanders, Pew Trust

May 2, 2021 | Environment

As many around the U.S. mark the 51st Earth Day, communities and states are increasingly recognizing that smart conservation can help people as well as the natural world. One example of this is the growing adoption of nature-based solutions to mitigate flooding. Such strategies include replacing impervious surfaces such as asphalt with gravel to allow rainwater to seep into the ground, converting developed areas… Read more »

The coronavirus effect on global economic sentiment

McKinsey & Company

May 2, 2021 | Impact & Sustainable Investing

April 2021 Update:    In our latest McKinsey Global Survey on the economy,1 executives’ views are as decidedly positive as they were in March—even as the pandemic continues to dwarf other risks to growth. It’s an especially acute risk in India, where the week after the survey was in the field, the number of daily COVID-19 cases set a new world record.2   Globally, 73… Read more »

McNay Acquires Major Artworks by Women Spanning Last 100 Years

The McNay Museum

May 2, 2021 | Arts

The McNay Art Museum has acquired three extraordinary artworks by Jane Peterson, Deborah Butterfield, and Letitia Huckaby. These new acquisitions were purchased with support from a generous, anonymous gift of $500,000 for artwork in memory of celebrated Texas artist, Madeline O’Connor (1931-2002). O’Connor, whose career spanned 30 years, is represented in the McNay’s Collection through two artworks from the late 1990s: Woodstork and Cross/Plus.… Read more »

Explore elephant Springs at the Fort Worth Zoo

Fort Worth Zoo

May 2, 2021 | Strong Communities

The Fort Worth Zoo’s Board of Directors and Executive Director are thrilled to introduce the Zoo’s newest habitat, Elephant Springs, which includes multiple lush, green spaces and various watering holes for Asian elephants and greater one-horned rhino to roam. “We are thrilled with these amazing new habitats and I must thank the citizens of Fort Worth, who continue to be so generous in their… Read more »

San Antonio Zoo to Become World’s First Bio-Domed Zoo

San Antonio Zoo

May 2, 2021 | Strong Communities

The San Antonio Zoo released images and announced a plan to create a bio-domes system over the entire zoological facility, which spans both sides of Highway 281. The zoo is calling these new features Zoo-Dome®. The zoo has been consulting industrial designers like Elon Musk and engineers worldwide to design these first-ever Zoo-Domes. The design was inspired by structures such as The Heydar Aliyev… Read more »

National Partnership to Reinvent Child Welfare Expands

U.S. Children’s Bureau, Casey Family Programs, the Annie E. Casey Foundation and Prevent Child Abuse America

May 2, 2021 | Strong Communities

Thriving Families, Safer Children: A National Commitment to Well-Being — a first-of-its-kind effort of the U.S. Children’s Bureau, Casey Family Programs, the Annie E. Casey Foundation and Prevent Child Abuse America — has expanded its reach to include child welfare jurisdictions in 22 states that stretch from coast to coast and a sovereign tribal nation. In announcing the addition of sites in 16 states,… Read more »

GE Foundation Commits up to $100 Million to Increase Diversity of Young People in Engineering

GE Foundation, FHI 360

May 2, 2021 | Grants Available

The GE Foundation is committing up to $100 million to create the Next Engineers program – a global college-readiness initiative to increase the diversity of young people in engineering. The program will focus on underrepresented students in grades eight to 12 (ages 13 to 18), provide hands-on exposure to engineering concepts and careers, and ultimately award scholarships to pursue engineering degrees. Over the next decade, the goal is to reach more than 85,000 students in approximately 25 cities globally, inspiring the next generation of engineers to build a world… Read more »

Top Racial Justice Movement Leaders Demand Largest Asset Managers Fulfill Racial Justice Commitments in Open Letter

Majority Action, The Service Employees International Union (SEIU)

May 2, 2021 | Strong Communities

Over 140 of the country’s top racial justice leaders and their allies are calling on the largest asset managers to uphold their 2020 commitments to racial equity. Leaders including Rashad Robinson, President of Color Of Change; Alicia Garza, Principal of Black to the Future Action Fund; Rev. William J. Barber II, President and Senior Lecturer at Repairers of the Breach; Derrick Johnson, President of… Read more »

Report on Youth Unemployment in the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic

The Schultz Family Foundation

May 2, 2021 | Strong Communities

The pandemic sparked extraordinary unemployment rates among youth, stemming from youth’s concentration in retail and hospitality jobs that were affected by mandates to contain the virus, along with youth’s inability to telework in these jobs. State-level data show that youth unemployment was particularly concentrated in parts of the country where states introduced stricter containment measures, and these measures had a greater influence on unemployment… Read more »

Cisco Commits $100 Million to Help Address Climate Crisis

Cisco

May 2, 2021 | Corporate Responsibility

There is a consensus among citizens around the world that action is needed to combat climate change. And yet many citizens feel disengaged either because they don’t think that one person can make a difference or because they are paralyzed by the enormity of the crisis. This coupled with the fact that less than two percent of all philanthropic dollars are being spent to address the fight against climate change means that many bold climate solutions are not being developed due to a lack of action and investment.