Jaime Sharp's Blog

"How much do we really know about how the ultrarich give their money away?" said Whizy Kim for Vox. "It’s surprisingly hard to say. This week, the Chronicle of Philanthropy published its annual ranking of the top 50 donors from 2022, a list it compiles by asking nonprofits what gifts they received and philanthropists what gifts they gave. It’s a list dominated by Silicon Valley billionaires with sprinklings of Wall Street investors, real estate magnates, media moguls, and heirs and heiresses of industry, who gave hundreds of millions (and in a few cases, billions) to private foundations, universities, and medical centers."

From Ford Foundation: "Mellon, Ford, Getty, and Terra Foundations today announced Advancing Latinx Art in Museums (ALAM) – the new initiative represents the second phase of a multi-year funding collaboration seeking to nurture and prioritize US Latinx art. The funding partners have committed a combined $5 million to the initiative, which will provide ten grants of $500,000 to institutions in support of the creation and formalization of ten permanent early and mid-career curatorial positions with expertise in Latinx art."

From the MacArthur Foundation, "Black feminist organizers are addressing the systemic challenges facing democracy, yet Black feminist organizations receive less than half of one percent of foundation giving world-wide. MacArthur, along with several other funders, is supporting an effort to rectify this disparity. 'We work on many different issues, but we are united by a common conviction: It’s time to fund Black feminist movements like we want them to win.'"

An open letter to philanthropy

In rare moments in philanthropy, history and opportunity meet, and donors everywhere are presented with a chance to contribute to a dramatic leap forward. These moments bring an opening to make generational progress on the most pressing issues of our time. A space for courage to confront philanthropy’s broken promises and practices of the past. A vehicle to shift resources—quickly and deeply—to our most innovative leaders at the forefront of change. We are writing today because we believe that the Black Feminist Fund is that opportunity. And this is our time. As a growing community of individual donors, institutional leaders, and donor advocates, we urge you to join us while momentum is on our side.

From American's for the Arts: "For more than 80 years, the Urban Land Institute (ULI) has been helping shape land-use decisions to improve the built environment of our communities. In a new report—Creative Placemaking: Recommendations from and Impact of Six Advisory Services Panels—ULI uses six case studies to demonstrate how creative placemaking can spark a cultural rebirth in real estate projects, revitalize communities, and boost returns on investment for developers. In addition to making the business case and process for bringing art and culture to the early design process of a real estate development projects, it also provides best practices about how to plan, finance, implement, and manage projects."

"In this line of work, I have met lots of amazing funders. Shoutout to all the brilliant philanthropy professionals who are working hard and often without much fanfare to change the ridiculous systems that make fund seeking so painful and ineffective," said Vu Le for Nonprofit AF. "On the other hand, many foundations have a condescending belief that they know what’s best for nonprofits, and that they are like a mentor to these poor misguided organizations. A sort of 'benevolent paternalism.' It leads to some terrible funding practices that we need to do away with."

"The Kenneth Rainin Foundation co-hosted the pilot for a new series, 'Let’s Talk,' in partnership with Bay Area artist Beatrice Thomas of Authentic Arts & Media in December. Over fifty artists, arts workers and funders joined us for our first event to examine the central question: what do artists need to thrive? Below I recap the talk and what we learned, and share upcoming session dates for 2023."

"The goal of the “Let’s Talk: What Artists Need To Thrive” series is for the Foundation’s Arts Team to engage in meaningful dialogue and be more accessible and transparent, especially with artists who have historically been unacknowledged by or excluded from philanthropy. We will apply what we learn to improve how we advance equity and support diverse, visionary Bay Area artists."

From New York Foundation for the Arts: In conjunction with the opening of Cycle 17 of our Rauschenberg Medical Emergency Grants, NYFA has scheduled two live online information sessions. We hope to reach even more artists from across the country who may be eligible, and in need of critical financial support for medical, dental or mental health emergencies. Interested artists can ask questions directly during the sessions; a recording will also be posted online by March 4.

"Last month, 'Avatar: Way of the Water' captured the world’s imagination. But you don’t have to travel to Pandora to witness the magic of the water or the power of community action to make a change," said Henry Olaisen for Next City. "For eight years, as leader of the Betty Wright Center in Palo Alto, a warm-water therapy facility open to the public, I saw this kind of magic every day. It taught me a lesson that holds true for anyone seeking greater equity in any healthcare system: If we are to design systems and facilities that are truly for the people and with the people (known as patient-centered care), we must carefully listen and learn from people with disabilities when designing facilities and programs."

From the Mellon Foundation: "The Mellon Foundation today announced Imagining Freedom—a $125 million, multiyear grantmaking initiative supporting arts and humanities organizations that engage the knowledge, critical thinking, and creativity of millions of people and communities with lived experience of the US criminal legal system and its pervasive forces of dehumanization, stereotyping, and silencing. As one of the Foundation’s core Presidential Initiatives, Imagining Freedom exemplifies Mellon’s vision to create just communities enriched by meaning and empowered by critical thinking."