Nancy Lindborg Will Lead $7.7 Billion Packard Foundation
By Alex Daniels
Senior Editor, Foundations
January 21, 2020 | Read Time: 2 minutes
The Packard Foundation has named Nancy Lindborg, a veteran nonprofit and government agency leader, to serve as its next president and chief executive.
Lindborg replaces Carol Larson, who worked at the grant maker for 30 years, half of which she served as president. Larson announced plans to depart last February. Lindborg plans to start in August. Until then, Craig Neyman, Packard’s chief financial officer, will serve as interim president.
The $7.7 billion foundation plans to spend $354 million this year on grants to fight climate change, protect the environment and support scientific research, reproductive health, and other causes.
Since 2015, Lindborg has served as president of the U.S. Institute of Peace, a nonpartisan federal organization dedicated to preventing and resolving armed conflict globally. Before that, she was the assistant administrator for the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Bureau for Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance. Prior to her work in the public sector, Lindborg led Mercy Corps, a global humanitarian-assistance nonprofit, for 14 years.
“Nancy’s global experience, deep integrity, and inspiring vision will increase the Packard Foundation’s impact and accelerate our efforts to solve some of the world’s most challenging problems,” said David Orr, chairman of the foundation’s Board of Trustees.
Climate Focus
Under Larson’s leadership, Packard was among a group of grant makers that made large, early grants to fight climate change, joining with the Hewlett and McKnight foundations in 2009 to create ClimateWorks, with a combined $1 billion initial grant. Over the next decade, Packard deepened its climate-change commitment. Lindborg’s résumé does not list work directly related to climate change. But, Orr noted in a statement, “issues like global climate change and reproductive rights and health care are increasingly interconnected, transcend borders, and demand urgent action.”
He added: “We are delighted to have Nancy lead us as we navigate the challenges and opportunities that face us and the world in the years to come.”
