Fundraising Archives

Kris Kepler: On Radical Hospitality and Unexpected Leaders

Editor’s Note: This interview in our Feminist Giving IRL series features Kris Kepler, CEO of mobile hygiene pioneer LavaMaeX, which brings hygiene and other critical services to the unhoused.

1. What do you wish you had known when you started out in your profession?

I left my corporate job over three years ago to work in the non-profit sector. I craved a role in social impact, I wanted to give more, and I’ve never looked back.

Kris Kepler, CEO of mobile hygiene pioneer LavaMaeX. (Image credit: LavaMaeX)

When I started, I wish I would have known the power of embracing failure, saying “I tried my best,” being okay with it and not defeated by it. I have learned to look at those moments with curiosity and optimism and know that failure brings great opportunity for change both personally and professionally.

Creative Action Institute: Raising Spirits for Gender Equality

Boston Musicians to Perform in Global Benefit for Gender Equality and Environmental Sustainability organization Creative Action Institute

Boston, Oct. 24: Boston-based performers Amy Fairchild and Carla Ryder will join eight musicians and artists from across the globe for a virtual music festival that will raise money to support Creative Action Institute’s work to advance gender equality and build a more sustainable planet.

Amy and Carla will be performing sets as part of Raising Spirits, Creative Action Institute’s online event taking place October 24^th at 4:00 pm EST. They are joining performers from New York City, Cincinnati, Seattle, Kenya, Cameroon, Bristol (England) and Oxford (England) in this one-night-only event.

Creating STEM Environments for Women to Thrive: Olu Ibrahim

Editor’s Note: This interview in our Feminist Giving IRL series features Olu Ibrahim, Founder & CEO of Kids in Tech.

1. What do you wish you had known when you started out in your profession?

As fundraising becomes more professionalized, as a collective, our industry [the non-profit industry] is neglecting the human element of the work we do. Rarely do we have the opportunity to attend professional development workshops that invite us to step back, explore and embrace our humanity. We must center, explore and embrace our humanity in fundraising. Fundraising for social change is about a lot of heart work. It is the heart work that will change our world for all. I too love data and the information it provides but let us keep that in mind.

It’s so easy for women to get in that space where you’re just everything to everyone all the time. We should be telling women and girls to take care of yourself, because that way, you’ll have more to give to those around you.

Black Leaders Call for $1 Billion Decade-Long Investment in Black Girls

On September 15, the 57th anniversary of the 1963 Birmingham, Alabama church bombing that killed four Black girls, a group of prominent Black women launched the Black Girl Freedom Fund. The group’s open letter and social media campaign mark the beginning of a one-billion-dollar effort championing Black girls and their families.

The open letter from the Black Girl Freedom Fund notes that while Black Lives Matter attracts strong philanthropic support, “Black girls and young women still remain adultified, victimized by violence, and erased from the very same social justice movement for which they continue to risk their lives.”

The letter demands that Black girls receive the attention and support they deserve:

Black Girls Dream Fund Launches with Support from WDN, Others

(Sept. 10, 2020) SOUTHERN BLACK GIRLS AND WOMEN’S CONSORTIUM LAUNCHES BLACK GIRLS DREAM FUND

The $100 million fundraising initiative will support making Black girls’ dreams a reality

Black Girls Dream Fund launches with support from Women Donors Network, Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation, Lucy and Isadore B Adelman Foundation, Collective Future Fund, and the Momentum Fund. (Image Credit: Black Girls Dream Fund)

ATLANTA – Today, the Southern Black Girls and Women’s Consortium (SBGWC) kicked off a 10-year fundraising initiative to raise $100 million to financially empower the goals of Southern Black girls and women in the United States through the Black Girls Dream Fund. The new Fund seeks to fundraise and shift current grantmaking efforts in the South, channeling greater resources toward organizations that are intentionally supporting and empowering Black girls and women.

Lessons for Philanthropy from Black Women Leaders

I’ve lived and breathed women’s philanthropy for much of my career, from the cubicles of corporate philanthropy, to the living rooms of philanthropists, and the open-office workspaces of nonprofits both large and small. While constantly assured I was in the most “game-changing” and “innovative” conversations on giving, rarely can I recall speaking about the contributions of Black women in philanthropy.

When you ask most people to name philanthropic leaders, the list is usually populated by their family members plus a few American tycoons. Industrialists of the early 20th century such as Andrew Carnegie, Henry Ford and John D. Rockefeller come to mind, as do the technology and finance titans of today. Reflecting the historic racial divisions in financial wealth in America, philanthropic history and communities largely reflect the charitable actions of white ultra- wealth.

Cast Your Vote and New Listings in our Knowledgebase

Thank you to all the readers and new subscribers who are joining us daily. It’s really great to feel the Philanthropy Women community growing. As editor, I want to alert readers to the resource of our Gender Equality Funder Database. This is the place where you can find funders for gender equality across categories of corporate, private, and family foundations.

vote gender equality knowledgebase — Protesters take a knee for George Floyd at protests in Uptown Charlotte, North Carolina on 5/30/2020 (Image credit: @clay.banks)

We aim to list all funders for gender equality in both the U.S. and globally and have been steadily building this database out for over a year. We now have over 500 listings and are currently adding about 8 new entries to the database every week, so we hope these additions are helping feminist nonprofits find more resources for their work.

Equality Can’t Wait Holding Webinar on August 4

Editor’s Note: The following announcement is from Lever for Change, a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Affiliate, which is facilitating the Equality Can’t Wait Challenge.

Equality Can’t Wait will be holding a webinar for prospective applicants to their funding competition.

Please join us Tuesday, August 4, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. Central for a Q&A webinar to learn more about Equality Can’t Wait Challenge and ask questions. Please sign up for the webinar and note that the webinar will be recorded then made available shortly after.

On Thursday, September 10, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. Central, we’ll host a second webinar for registered applicants to provide a technical demonstration of the online application platform and to answer questions.

Caress Gives $1 Mil as Founding Donor to IFundWomen of Color

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J., June 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Throughout history communities of color have been affected by systemic racism and societal injustice. The global pandemic of COVID-19 has further highlighted the ongoing economic, health and social inequities communities of color face. As a brand that aims to empower and uplift women, we recognize that, women of color entrepreneurs and small business owners face specific challenges and lack of access when it comes to starting or sustaining their businesses.

Today, Caress has announced a $1,000,000 investment over the next 2 years to support women of color entrepreneurs through a founding partnership with IFundWomen of Color. IFundWomen of Color (IFWOC), is the leading platform for diverse entrepreneurs to raise capital through crowdfunding, grants, and coaching. Through this partnership these entrepreneurs will receive the support needed to stay open, re-open, and ensure their long-term success. Beginning with a $500,000 immediate relief donation to support 200 women of color entrepreneurs, already in the IFWOC community, with funding and IFWOC group coaching, mentorship, and connections needed to sustain their businesses.

Givebutter: A Better Way to Crowdfund the Future of Feminist Giving

More than 90% of campaigns on GoFundMe ultimately fail. And for those that succeed, hidden fees and exorbitant processing charges put extra hurdles between nonprofits and funding their work. This paints a grim picture for crowdfunding, especially online giving for feminist campaigns.

What if there was a platform that combined the ideals of crowdfunding with versatile fundraising methods like direct donations, event sales, and donations through social media?

Givebutter, a (mostly) free giving platform for nonprofits, schools, student groups, sports teams, and companies, offers a convenient, easy-to-use, and–most important at all–transparent giving system that could transform the future of giving.

Category: Fundraising