AARP Foundation Launches Impact-Investing Program
The philanthropic arm of the advocacy group seeks $70 million for projects aimed at helping older Americans.
By Alex Daniels
Contributor
Utah Preschool Program Yields First ‘Pay for Success’ Payout
Goldman Sachs will reap financial gains for funding a Utah program that showed positive results in keeping kids out of special education. It is the first time a U.S. social-impact bond has paid off for the investor, The New York Times writes.
New Tool Aims to Pinpoint Human Needs to Help Fight Poverty
The new Human Needs Index will track demand for food, clothing, housing, energy, and more to help nonprofits and policy makers implement long-term solutions.
By Eden Stiffman
Senior Editor
Gay-Rights Focus Turns to Stopping Violence and Intolerance
With a favorable ruling from the Supreme Court on gay marriage, activists are setting their sites on transgender issues, fighting discrimination in places like Uganda, and getting more financial support.
By Rebecca Koenig
Contributor
Designer and Immigrant Activist Are Among MacArthur ‘Genius’ Winners
One winner of the $625,000 stipend, Alex Truesdell, makes special tools and furniture for children with disabilities. Another founded a university in Ghana.
By Maria Di Mento
Senior Editor
Crowdfunding Website Kickstarter Reincorporating as Public Benefit Corporation
Setting itself apart from other successful tech start-ups that have gone public or sold for millions, Kickstarter is reincorporating as a public-benefit corporation as a way to ensure that the company’s mission will not be compromised by its profits, The New York Times reports.
New IRS Rule Likely to Make Impact Investing Easier
The agency offers guidance to grant makers just days before Kresge announces it will commit 10 percent of assets to social investing.
By Alex Daniels
Senior Editor, Foundations
Foundations and Banks Team on $70-Million Housing Effort
The Strong Families Fund, spearheaded by the Kresge and Robert Wood Johnson foundations, Goldman Sachs, and KeyBank, aims to support quality affordable housing and better access to social services for low-income families, reports the Associated Press.
Target to Change Giving Focus From Schools to Wellness
The retail giant is ending its signature education-focused giving program and shifting its philanthropic focus to health and wellness efforts, such as promoting good nutrition and active lifestyles, writes the Star Tribune.
New Guide Helps Small Foundations Expand Impact Investing
The free online publication is for foundations and individual donors looking to achieve social good as well as financial returns from their investments.
By Eden Stiffman
Senior Editor
Learning From Zuckerberg’s ‘Naïve’ $100-Million Mistake
Veteran journalist Dale Russakoff discusses what philanthropists should know about the billionaire Facebook founder’s well-intentioned push to transform the Newark, N.J.'s troubled school system.
By Megan O’Neil
Contributor
Tech Mogul Tries New Model to Draw Silicon Valley Giving
Tech entrepreneur Alexandre Mars and his Epic Foundation aim to reshape Silicon Valley philanthropy by steering donations to the kind of small social-service charities typically overlooked by the tech set, the San Francisco Chronicle writes.
Have Museum — Will Travel: Bringing Artwork to the People
Three museums are installing replicas of iconic paintings around their cities to the surprise and delight of residents.
By Rebecca Koenig
Contributor
Campaign Seeks $250,000 From Crowdfunding for Drought Relief
The effort in California was started by a coalition of California businesses and nonprofits and is backed by a pair of philanthropists.
By Eden Stiffman
Senior Editor
Australian Fund Manager at Leading Edge of Pro Bono Trend
The Wall Street Journal looks at an emerging trend of money-management firms whose stock pickers work without pay and a portion of proceeds go to charity, focusing on Australian firm Future Generation Global Investment.
‘Fortune’ Magazine Hails Firms That Tie Profit and Social Aims
Vodafone, Google, and Toyota lead the business magazine’s inaugural “Change the World” list of corporations that are “doing well by doing good.