Philanthropy Women

Sports 4 Life Delivers Big Benefits for Girls of Color

Sports 4 Life is a national initiative co-founded by the Women’s Sports Foundation (WSF) and espnW. It was established in 2014 and seeks to increase participation of girls of color in youth sports. It has so far impacted over 60,000 girls of color, and its recently released report shows gains in girls’ leadership, self-esteem, confidence and perseverance resulting from their participation in the program.

2020 has been defined by the COVID-19 pandemic and calls for racial justice. Improving the physical and mental health—and leadership capacities—of girls of color is one way to help them navigate COVID and beyond. The WSF and espnW (“a voice for the woman who loves sports”), Sports 4 Life partnership is funding local sports programs, filling in the gaps to access and opportunity that often confront girls of color.

Guiding A New World: Global Gender Lens Giving in COVID

Editor’s Note: The following event highlights some of the most authoritative leaders in feminist giving including Sarah Haacke Byrd, Executive Director of Women Moving Millions, Tuti B. Scott, feminist expert on gender lens grantmaking and gender lens investing, Melanie Brown, Senior Program Officer for US Policy and Advocacy at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and Lucy Lee, Senior Associate for Volition Capital and Lotus Circle Bay Area convener. More virtual strategizing is taking place all the time to amplify feminist giving, and this free webinar will be a great chance for those working in the sector to learn more.

Philanthropy New Zealand and Asia Foundation are hosting a webinar on how gender lens philanthropy can serve the community during COVID. (Image credit: Philanthropy New Zealand)

Virtual Event – A New World is Possible: Gender Lens Philanthropy in a Time of Covid-19

Revealing Women’s Economic Value: A Chat with Berit Ashla

One thing COVID has shown us is new ways to appreciate women’s economic value and professional contributions to the world. A case in point that directly impacts me: many insurance companies during COVID have waived copays for psychotherapy (I’m a psychotherapist in my other day job), essentially granting many people an open door to emotional care, unrestricting access to an area of health care that had been previously blocked by confusing and expensive deductibles and co-pays. In doing so, this action also added economic value to mental health counseling, which is primarily done by women, in a new way.

Berit Ashla, Vice President of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, recently spoke with Philanthropy Women about how COVID is revealing women’s economic value, particularly in the care economy. (Image Credit: Berit Ashla)

Another case in point: the need for nurses, a profession comprised mostly of women. Suddenly this profession, which has always been sort of taken for granted, is front and center and absolutely vital to our survival. The result: the need for nurses has driven up wages and bonuses for the work.

Becoming Champions for Women and Girls, Zonta Changes Its Name

Zonta International Foundation, a global charitable organization working to empower women and girls, has announced a change of name to the Zonta Foundation for Women. The purpose of this repositioning is to elevate visibility and better align the foundation’s name with its globally recognized mission and commitment to women and girls worldwide.

Over the last century, Zonta has contributed more than US$45.9 million to empower women and girls and expand their access to education, health care, economic opportunities, and safe living conditions. The 2020-2022 grant cycle will provide US$5,280,000 for programs that address the root causes of gender discrimination and have the potential to bring about positive and sustainable societal changes.

Popular Event at Texas Women’s Fdn Raises Nearly 1 Million

Texas Women’s Foundation’s 35^th Annual Luncheon Featured America Ferrera, Award-Winning Actress and New York Times Bestselling Author

Luncheon Raised More Than $926,000; 2,000+ Guests Attended and, Over 24 Hours, Another 11,000 Viewed Event

DALLAS, Texas, October 7, 2020 – Texas Women’s Foundation held its 35^th Annual Luncheon, presented by Toyota and powered by The Dallas Mavericks, on September 29, featuring a conversation with America Ferrera, award-winning actress, director, producer, The New York Times best-selling author and activist. The conversation was moderated by Laysha Ward, Executive Vice President and Chief External Engagement Officer for Target. As the principal fundraiser for the Foundation, the luncheon raised more than $926,000.

WFN to Prez Candidates: Speak Now for Women and Girls

Women’s funders demand presidential candidates go on the record on issues affecting women and girls in final debate

SAN FRANCISCO — This week’s second and final presidential debate, scheduled for Oct. 22, 2020, is the last chance to question the candidates side-by-side about the issues most important to women and girls — especially women and girls of color. Women’s Funding Network issued an open letter, signed by prominent women’s funders, to the debate’s moderator to demand that the candidates answer a range of questions to give voters the information they need about how each candidate plans to achieve equality and justice for all women and girls.

Full text of the letter:

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.

A Bloody Problem: Dominika Kulczyk on Ending Period Poverty

A bloody problem: period poverty, why we need to end it and how to do it

Dominika Kulczyk launches new report on period poverty and joins a group of world-class philanthropists as part of a partnership with Founders Pledge

Kulczyk Foundation and Founders Pledge launch first-ever report on effective funding recommendations to address period poverty
Dominika Kulczyk, a Polish philanthropist and businesswoman, provided seed funding for the pioneering report and calls upon the international community to unite efforts and commit to ending period poverty
Report finds lack of developed and existing evidence base in the field on the most effective interventions to address period poverty
Eight organisations including Days for Girls and Irise International highlighted as best practice

[15 October 2020, London / Warsaw] – Kulczyk Foundation, a Polish private family foundation, and Founders Pledge, a community of entrepreneurs committed to finding and funding solutions to global challenges, have launched a new report on period poverty. A bloody problem: period poverty, why we need to end it and how to do it – which reviews the current state of funding and solutions to ending period poverty – finds that there is no unified approach to data collection, fundraising or implementation of period poverty programmes.

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.

How Desai Foundation Drives Social Change for Women in India

Nonprofit ventures each have a unique story and journey, with some expanding their capacities and impact dramatically as they grow and mature. This seems to be the case with the Desai Foundation, now a public nonprofit, which exists to promote health and livelihood for women and children, primarily in India, with plans to expand this work in the U.S.

Megha Desai, President of The Desai Foundation, served as host of The Lotus Festival, taking guests on a variety of virtual adventures over the course of an hour and a half. (Image Credit: Desai Foundation)

I recently had the opportunity to join the Desai Foundation for its annual Lotus Festival, a fundraiser and educational event that the foundation holds every year. This year with COVID, the event was also offered online, making it more accessible, and prompting the organizers to ensure that participants joining online would get a full experience of all that the foundation is about.