Linking Good Business and Good Philanthropy

To the Editor:

There is an interesting sidelight to your article on entrepreneurs who came from the non-profit sector (“Entering Another World,” April 9).

Decades ago, when Gary Hirshberg directed the New Alchemy Institute, he was a grantee of the Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation. Today, Mr. Hirshberg and the foundation have a new relationship.

Noyes is an investor in Mr. Hirshberg’s business, Stonyfield Farm, as part of our program of mission-related venture capital. Stonyfield has proved to be a highly successful investment, helping to build our asset base and to increase our grant-making dollars.

Given the foundation’s program in sustainable agriculture, Stonyfield is also an investment that adds value to our grant making. It offers a commercial solution to issues that we also address with our grant dollars, including efforts to save family farms and reduce the use of agricultural chemicals and biotechnology. The investment in Stonyfield is part of the foundation’s overall effort to show that asset management and philanthropic mission can be linked successfully to the benefit of both.

Stephen Viederman
President
Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation
New York