Welcome Emily!
Northern California Grantmakers is pleased to announce that Emily Katz Kishawi is joining as chief alchemist, to distill the knowledge gained from philanthropic experience and communicate our acumen and passion for bettering this corner of the world.
“As we ramp up our partnerships for formidable change, Emily’s constitutional curiosity and her penchant for strategy will be a boon,” said NCG's President and CEO Ellen LaPointe.
Emily brings nearly a decade of consulting for non-profits and philanthropies. She enjoys digging deeply into an organizations’ driving purpose in the world, in part by sparking conversations that surface their unique value. A true believer in the power of clarity, she has often pressed her clients to embrace a singular brand promise, and to articulate the values, personality, messaging architecture and calls to action that bring the promise to life.
Her work has propelled clients in many fruitful directions, from City Slicker Farms’ edible West Oakland gardens, to the Ford Foundation’s community philanthropy initiatives. Emily’s branding, marketing and messaging has touched a spectrum of social good, including nursing workforce, East Bay worker-mobilization, conflict-resolution, legal aid, international aid and a handful of socially-minded businesses.
Emily carries a fundamental optimism in the power of philanthropy to upend persistent wrongs. Before consulting, Emily helped unleash the power of women’s talent and energy at the Women’s Funding Network, just as the organization was reinventing itself to focus on the root causes of inequality. She built initiatives to capitalize on the sophistication and strength of longtime members while helping newly emerging foundations find their feet.
“I was born in San Francisco and have lived most of my life in Northern California. I’m excited to add my energy to moving the resources of philanthropy toward the liveliness and breadth that I most love about this place,” Emily said.
Her work has centered on social justice, whether negotiating tense community relations as a board member of San Francisco Women Against Rape or developing community outreach in the post 9-11 environment through the American Arab Anti Discrimination Committee. Currently, Emily serves on the boards of Equal Rights Advocates and the Arab Film Festival, where she deploys her enthusiasm for marrying strategic communication with revenue development toward organizational growth.
Emily lives in San Carlos with her middle-school twins, and refreshes her perspective in meditation retreats and mud runs.
Join us in welcoming Emily to the NCG community!