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Washington
September 2015 |
Doug Stamm, Meyer Memorial Trust | September always brings change: weather shifts from hot to cool, busy autumn mornings replace leisurely summer afternoons, days grow incrementally shorter. Here at Meyer Memorial Trust, in a year filled with changes, the month offers a moment to reflect on where we have been and on where we are heading. Last year, Meyer awarded more grants than ever before — 515 grants and loans just over $46 million; we are again on track to make the largest payout in the foundation’s history. But we haven’t only been making grants this year. We began outreach in several of our four priority focus areas — housing, education, the environment, and supporting a vibrant nonprofit sector.
September 2015 |
Tim Crosby, Cascadia Foodshed Financing Project | I grew up working on family farms and participating in a family foundation that supports community and environmental vitality. While pursuing a business degree, I realized that food is at the intersection of many social and environmental issues, and that the best way to preserve farmland would be to improve the economics of farming — which means figuring out how to finance good local food businesses and make them more accessible and competitive in the marketplace. This nexus of philanthropy, food and finance has come together in Cascadia Foodshed Financing Project, the latest project to join Philanthropy Northwest’s incubation platform and regional impact investing network. So what is it, and why does it matter?
September 2015 |
Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and his wife Connie, joined by Microsoft, have committed $21 million to the Washington State Opportunity Scholarship to support low- and middle-income students pursuing studies in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and health care fields. The scholarship, which Boeing and Microsoft each helped found with $25 million each in 2011, matches public and private money to deserving scholars and encourages recipients to work in Washington state once they complete their degrees.
August 2015 |
Kristen Holway, Senior Manager, Learning Practice | Philanthropy Northwest and Dr. Lori Pfingst of the Washington State Budget & Policy Center recently hosted a discussion about Washington's budget and the progress the state is making towards creating a prosperous future for all. A new report from the Washington Budget & Policy Center maps six areas: economic security, education, healthy people and a healthy environment, community development and trust, good jobs, and revenue generation. An overarching theme is that people of color are being left behind, and we emerged with four ideas on how funders can accelerate progress.
August 2015 |
Jarrad Aguirre, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation | As a MD/MBA student, I am very familiar with Gates Foundation initiatives to eradicate polio and malaria, among other infectious diseases. It is not uncommon in the classroom or the hospital for medical students and physicians to comment on the latest developments of these important efforts. So, naturally, when I got an internship with the foundation, everyone asked me: Where in global health will you be working? To their surprise, I explained I would be working with the Washington State team. What excited me most about the foundation was not polio or malaria — but rather the burgeoning emphasis on social determinants and health in here in the Pacific Northwest. As my internship comes to a close, I am more excited than ever by this opportunity.
July 2015 |
Kevin Walker, Vice Chair of Board Operations | I have had the privilege of serving on Philanthropy Northwest’s board of directors since 2010, and have found it to be a remarkable leadership development experience. Our board, like the broader membership, is made up of engaged, passionate leaders who care deeply about the communities they serve. I am pleased to share that for the first time in its history, Philanthropy Northwest is seeking nominations directly from our members for board candidates to be elected this fall.
July 2015 |
Kristen Holway, Senior Manager, Learning Practice | Drought conditions have brought wildfire season early to the Pacific Northwest. With 30,000 acres engulfed in Idaho, Oregon and Washington over the weekend, and as we approach the first anniversary of the devastating Carlton Complex Fire, I'm reminded of the interdependence of the people, government and funders in our region's disaster preparedness, response and recovery — especially long-term recovery.
