Thursday, September 22, 2011

A Challenge to Non-Profits: Invest in Women

Have you thought about how much of your organization's portfolio is invested in international stocks?  Despite a volatile US market and the problems with the European stock market, I guarantee you probably have at least 20% in international investments.  And that's without including US companies that have overseas operations.  

So, if you have 20% of your investments in global stocks, shouldn't you also be giving 20% of your grants abroad?  And where should those grants be made?  Author and New York columnist Nicholas Kristoff says, “The world is awakening to a powerful truth: women and girls aren’t the problem; they’re the solution.”

Corporations are beginning to understand what Kristoff is saying.  At President Clinton's annual philanthropy event, Merck, announced a $500-million commitment over the next decade to help reduce the number of women who die in pregnancy and childbirth.  The company will be working with Save the Children, among other groups.

The Exxon Mobil Foundation is giving $1.5-million to the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women to study how mobile-phone technology can help women entrepreneurs strengthen their business.

And Ford, Nike, NoVo and William and Flora Hewlett foundations announced a new partnership to reduce the number of girls who are forced into marriages before the age of 18.

Major corporations are taking the initiative, but ask yourselves, do you have women's health, business, or agricultural programs abroad to which you can give more funding?  Or can you initiate a cultural exchange, a women's art or music program?  One that would include a partner project with your non-profit.

Think about it and invest in women globally.  Lead the way with non-profits: organizations and institutions.  Partner with corporations.  The possibilities are endless.  And the outcome guaranteed.

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Giving by African American Women

Michele Minter
I interviewed Michele Minter, formerly with Princeton University and now vice president for development at the College Board for our book, Women and Philanthropy: Boldly Shaping a Better World, and she had some very interesting observations about giving by women of color, in particular, African American women.

Minter pointed out that women are not a homogeneous group.  "Although the strength of race and gender affiliation in philanthropy has not been studied systematically, anecdotally there is evidence that African American women are more likely to identify first as black, and then as a woman.  This is important because words have different meanings within different cultural traditions."

For instance, Minter says that the word philanthropy is not used as much in black church traditions as the word stewardship.

She also states that a stumbling block for black women's giving is that nonprofit communication materials often lack images and vocabulary that help people of color see themselves presented, making it difficult for them to identify with the cause.

And finally, Minter discusses how racial and ethnic communities have rich traditions of social structures and networks that nonprofit leaders often fail to recognize.  "If organizations want to engage black women, they should recognize the power of churches, sororities, and civil rights organizations as partners that have credibility with their potential donors," Minter says.

Keeping all these important points in mind are critical to increasing diversity in women's giving.

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Women and Peace: Women Transcending Borders

When my colleague, Carmen Stevens, and I conducted our generational research about women's philanthropy, we found that peace was the one objective all generations of women wanted.  Thus I wasn't surprised to see the article in the September 3, 2011 New York Times about the formation of a group called Women Transcending Boundaries following 9/11.  The organization was begun so women could better understand each others faiths.  One of the focuses of Women Transcending Boundaries is to organize international dinners to raise money for girls schools in Pakistan.

Just another inspiring example of women coming together to create change and bring about peace.  Further proof of the 6 C's of women's motivations to give: create, change, connect, commit, collaborate, and celebrate.  We surely celebrate Women Transcending Boundaries.