Values-aligned grantmaking is becoming every day parlance in our field, with good reason: foundation professionals are increasingly conscious of the role they play in social change. Similarly, the challenges we face seem ever more difficult to solve, and the injustices individuals, communities, and the planet face are heartbreaking. Making highly effective grants across a portfolio and even across an entire foundation is the nut we are all trying to crack. Given the current moment in philanthropy, in our country, and across the world, grantmakers are looking more intentionally at their own practices and how those practices not only support them in, or inhibit them from, achieving their intended goals, but also engage and empower the communities that they serve.
Many foundations and grantmaking funds have spent the last few years identifying or codifying their values and analyzing or changing how their practices relate to their values. This is not easy work to do – analyzing and shifting grant practice – and often, it is easier done in dialogue with others, rather than in one's own head. The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation, Christensen Fund, and Disability Rights Fund are all looking at tying values to practice in different aspects of their work and have some insights and lessons learned to share. If you feel like your own foundation is grappling with some of these questions, come join us for this interactive, dialogue-based workshop where you can explore your own inquiries related to values-based grantmaking with others, and gain some practical steps you can take to reach your next values-aligned grantmaking milestone.
Join Us To:
- Learn about findings from the Hewlett Foundation’s grant practice analysis and how they view the relationship between their grantmaking practices and their guiding principles, as well as where they got stuck
- Hear about how the Moore Foundation, Christensen Fund, and Disability Rights Fund are working to align their values and practices and how they’ve solved some of the big questions that come from this work (e.g., through grantee financial review and staff training, trust-based philanthropy or participatory grantmaking)
- Workshop your own questions around aligning your foundation’s grantmaking practices with your foundation’s values, with support from facilitators who are thinking through these questions themselves
- Illuminate how you might take the next step at your foundation
Breakfast will be provided.
Speakers
Aimée Bruederle, Grants Officer, Global Development and Population, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
Aimée Bruederle is Grants Officer for the Global Development and Population program at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. She partners with program staff on the operational aspects of international grantmaking, including workflow, process, due diligence, and grants compliance. Prior to joining the Hewlett Foundation, Aimée worked as a grants manager at the Tides Foundation, managing a large portfolio of complex policy-focused and international grants. She provided technical assistance to philanthropic advisors, associates, and non-profit organizations. In other roles, Aimée managed the front office at the Independent Television Service and provided human resources and project management expertise to technology companies in Silicon Valley. Aimée holds a bachelor’s in business administration from the University of Wisconsin in Madison, Wis. In addition, she obtained a specialization in international business at the Copenhagen Business School. She earned her Master’s in Public Health with an emphasis on Women’s and Reproductive Health from Johns Hopkins University in May 2017. Her capstone project focused on adolescent reproductive health.
Miriam Billinger, Program Finance Officer, The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
As the program finance officer, Miriam BIllinger contributes a financial lens to the foundation’s grantmaking. She supports the foundation’s grant making by focusing on the financial aspects of grants including financial due diligence, project budget development and review, and grant financial reporting. She offers program finance training and serves in a consultative role on portfolio-level financial analysis. Miriam served as the foundation’s program finance officer from 2003-2008. Before rejoining the staff in 2017, she developed a nonprofit financial consulting practice in Northern California working primarily with environmental nonprofits and land trusts. Miriam lights up when she talks about the intersection of mission and money in nonprofits. She is also passionate about collecting children’s books, remote camping, and classic cars. She finds inspiration from her curious, creative, compassionate children.
Stanislava Stancheva, Grants Officer, The Christensen Fund Stanislava Stancheva is the Grants Officer for the Christensen Fund, leading our efforts to foster best practices in the field of philanthropy with a focus on tailored models and approaches to international grantmaking, impact assessment and organizational learning, effectiveness and efficiency. She oversees the Grants Management team and serves as the primary point of contact on grantmaking compliance and legal issues. Stanislava also partners with the Program teams managing our Central Asia and Global Programs, oversees Christensen’s support to mission-related Grantmaking Associations, and supports emerging collaborative funding models and Donor-Advised Funds.
Arlene Wilson-Grant, Grants Manager, Disability Rights Fund
Arlene Wilson-Grant is the Grants Manager for the Disability Rights Fund and the Disability Rights Advocacy Fund. She is responsible for managing the quality and efficiency of international grantmaking operations, practices, and data for both organizations. Arlene brings a strong background from diverse experiences in grants management and program roles. Previously, Arlene was at the Skoll Foundation, where she served as the key liaison between grantees, program, legal, and finance staff for three philanthropic entities, the Skoll Foundation, Skoll Fund, and Skoll Global Threats Fund. Prior to that she was at the Public Health Institute, where she managed federal and state contracts with for-profit companies, community-based organizations, and government entities. Prior to that, she spent nearly seven years as a Program Officer at the Sacramento Region Community Foundation where she helped donors identify effective funding strategies and developed and implemented regional grantmaking programs, coalition-building amongst key stakeholders, and communications efforts. She began her career at the Tides Foundation, working in the areas of youth development, economic development, and international grantmaking. Arlene serves on the board of PEAK Grantmaking and is a founding member of the Human Rights Funders Network’s Grants Operations Working Group. She has presented at conferences and webinars on participatory grantmaking, data and human rights funding, foundations and international development partnerships, and secure communications. Arlene received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of California, Davis.
Targeted Audience
This program is open to funders. We encourage grants management, program staff, and leadership to join us, as these questions touch all parts of a grantmaking organization.