Skoll, Ford and Others Work with Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors on How to Listen More to Nonprofits & Speak Less
Over the past year, the Skoll, Draper Richards Kaplan, Ford, and Porticus Foundations, working with Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, have partnered to investigate how to more effectively apply their resources toward large societal problems like education, racism, poverty, healthcare, and hunger. The conclusion they came to is that their grantmaking practices may have been all wrong.
Adva Saldinger, reporting for Devex, described the impetus behind their effort. “Foundations talk about wanting to help catalyze systems change and scale solutions, but too often their structures, the way they fund, and their relationship with grantees make those goals a challenge.”
This group of foundations recognized that while among their grantees there are “many organizations today…helping to solve seemingly intractable problems, and demonstrating the possibility of moving beyond incremental change to real transformation,” their efforts seem hard to replicate and grow. . .