Today at 3: How Women Will Shape Philanthropy in the Decade Ahead
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Nonprofit News From Elsewhere
As they divorce, Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates seem set to throw themselves more deeply into causes that each of them has championed outside of their foundation. French Gates recently traveled to Washington, D.C., to talk to White House aides about paid family leave and child care. Also, her Pivotal Ventures, a limited-liability company focusing on gender equality, recently hired a lobbying firm, suggesting a sharper focus on shaping policy. Meanwhile, Bill Gates published a book on climate change this year, and his Breakthrough Energy, an investment firm focused on the issue, raised an additional $1 billion in January by recruiting some new billionaires to the effort. Both vehicles are structured in ways that allow them to support businesses, political activity, and charities, unlike traditional philanthropies, giving them more freedom and less transparency in spending the money. (Bloomberg)
Plus: See an article explaining this trend by donors to form limited-liability corporations to house their philanthropies.
The community fridge movement, which came into its own during the pandemic, remains a lifeline for some neighborhoods as hunger rates creep back up. By one estimate, the number of free community fridges rose from about 15 pre-pandemic to about 200 now. They are stocked by individuals, restaurants, and supermarkets and often include high-quality perishables that people in need might not be able to afford. As prices tick upward, some business owners who host the refrigerators say they are seeing more people coming by to collect food than they did last year. More than 20 million American adults say they do not get enough to eat, and 42 million say they can’t always afford the types of food they want, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. (Washington Post)
Surfside, Fla., Disaster and Philanthropy
- As Surfside Community Members Wait for News, They Are Inundated by Hundreds of Acts of Kindness (Washington Post)
- Fla. Attorney General Moody Warns of ‘Charity Scams’ Related to Surfside Collapse (WFLA)
- How to Help Survivors of the Surfside Condo Collapse (New York Times)
More News
- White House to Meet With Tenn. Faith, Nonprofit Leaders on Vaccine Hesitancy (ABC Memphis)
- Make-a-Wish Clarifies Policy After Confusion on Vaccinations (Associated Press)
- First Liberty Appeals Denial of Tax Exemption for Group Alleged to Have Republican Ties (Newsweek)
- Iowa Charity Performed Exorcisms, Billed Medicaid, Stiffed Workers (Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier)
- Senate Leader Says UNC’s Chief Fundraiser Should Quit Outside Work (Raleigh News & Observer — subscription)
- Philadelphia Museum of Art Names Diversity Officer Following Difficult Year (Philadelphia Inquirer)
Correction
Monday’s Philanthropy Today mistakenly said that the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater had gone dark in 2004 for eight years due to debts. That was the Dance Theater of Harlem.