1225 Results for “” in Knowledge Center

Knowledge Center | Article

Strategy and Evaluation: The Twin Engines of Effective Philanthropy
January 8, 2021 | S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation
This essay provides a fast-paced tour of grantmaker approaches, launching with the advent of long-range planning in the 1980s and visiting scenario planning, social return on investment, human-centered design, big data, and other developments that have influenced practice. The author lands on strategy and evaluation as the anchor approaches that will fuel greater philanthropic impact in the new decade. This Read More
Knowledge Center | Tool

Rehearsing the Future: An Introduction to Developing and Using Scenarios
January 8, 2021 | S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation
Scenarios are stories about different future environments in which today’s decisions might play out. We cannot predict the future. However, by thinking creatively and rigorously about a range of scenarios, we can rehearse future possibilities and prepare for what might be next. In the summer of 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic raged, job losses mounted, and the movement for racial Read More
Knowledge Center | Article

Sooner Rather Than Later, Chapter 3: 2018-2020
January 7, 2021 | S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation
In 2009, following five decades of Foundation growth and impact, the Board of Directors for this family philanthropy chose to spend down all assets. In the words of its founder, this decision reflected a commitment to finding lasting solutions to California’s critical challenges “sooner rather than later.” The spend-down horizon was initially set for eight years and then adjusted to Read More
Knowledge Center | Article

Sooner Rather Than Later, Chapter 2: 2014-2017
January 7, 2021 | S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation
In 2009, following five decades of Foundation growth and impact, the Board of Directors for this family philanthropy chose to spend down all assets. In the words of its founder, this decision reflected a commitment to finding lasting solutions to California’s critical challenges “sooner rather than later.” The spend-down horizon was initially set for eight years and then adjusted to Read More
Knowledge Center | Article

Sooner Rather Than Later, Chapter 1: 2009-2013
January 7, 2021 | S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation
In 2009, following five decades of Foundation growth and impact, the Board of Directors for this family philanthropy chose to spend down all assets. In the words of its founder, this decision reflected a commitment to finding lasting solutions to California’s critical challenges “sooner rather than later.” The spend-down horizon was initially set for eight years and then adjusted to Read More
Knowledge Center | Report

Sooner Rather Than Later, Prologue: 1957-2008
January 7, 2021 | S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation
In 2009, following five decades of Foundation growth and impact, the Board of Directors for this family philanthropy chose to spend down all assets. In the words of its founder, this decision reflected a commitment to finding lasting solutions to California’s critical challenges “sooner rather than later.” The spend-down horizon was initially set for eight years and then adjusted to Read More
Knowledge Center | Article

Spending down: Laurie Dachs answers questions for family philanthropies
January 7, 2021 | S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation
In October 2020, Nick Tedesco, president and CEO of the National Center for Family Philanthropy (NCFP), talked with Lauren B. (Laurie) Dachs, president and vice chair of the board at the S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation, about spending down all assets. The Foundation was founded in 1957; in 2009 it became a limited-life philanthropy and completed its spend down at Read More
Knowledge Center | Impact Story

Learning from Each Other: The Dyson Foundation
January 5, 2021
Note: The following are excerpted from essays written by Anne E. Dyson, M.D. and Robert R. Dyson; they were originally published in the 1996 and 1997 annual reports for The Dyson Foundation and re-released in 2001 as part of NCFP’s Living the Legacy guide. Celebration of a Life: From the 1996 Report He left quite a mark on this world, Read More
Knowledge Center | Impact Story

Honoring the Founder: The Meyer Memorial Trust
January 5, 2021
Note: This essay was written by Charles S. Rooks and originally published in the Meyer Memorial Trust Annual Report, 1994-1995); it was re-released in 2001 as part of NCFP’s Living the Legacy guide. The 1994-95 Fiscal year was the last one in which the Trust was governed by its original five trustees. In May, slightly over 13 years after the Read More
Knowledge Center | Impact Story

An Introduction to Trustee Education for Family Foundations
January 5, 2021 | Katherine Tyler Scott
Note: This article was written and released in 2001 as part of NCFP’s Living the Legacy guide. A Rich Tradition of Service: Volunteer Leadership for The Public Good Americans have established a deep, rich tradition of volunteerism. From the Pilgrim’s Social Compact of 1620, which emphasized government based upon consent and “care for each other’s good,” to the present day Read More

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