Since its creation in 2001, The Brinson Foundation has focused in the areas of education and scientific research in order to create a world where all people are valued and committed to improving the world in which we live. As the foundation works to achieve this big goal, it has found that maintaining a strong commitment to its values - such as forming strong, collegial and collaborative relationships with its grantees - is critical to its success and influential in shaping its practices.

Given the immense diversity of foundations, it is a challenge to talk about any aspect of foundation behavior that goes beyond the minimum required in law and public policy to reach prescriptions for the behavior of foundations across the board. In truth, when discussions occur around issues of accountability, transparency, and disclosure, despite some 100,000 extant foundations, the conversation is implicitly about the larger, higher profile foundations, omitting scads of less visible philanthropic entities that in many communities constitute the philanthropic arena.

How does a foundation that prides itself on close personal contact with its beneficiaries over an 86-year history totally revamp, modernize, and streamline itself, all without losing its long-time connection with grantees and without losing sight of the founder’s original vision?...

Family foundations, by their very nature, are complex. With significant involvement of family members on the board and sometimes in operations as well, there can be layers of generations, widely divergent views and the need to preserve positive family relationships.  This complexity is a challenge but...