The Power of Voice Foundations and corporate giving programs wield enormous influence. Whether local, regional, or national in scope, they command attention because of their resources, flexibility, and role in supporting innovation. At their best, they use this influence to search for next generation ideas; test new models and bring those that are successful to scale; and take advantage of philanthropy’s staying power to strengthen community resiliency, build new fields of work, and focus on issues over time. With this great influence, however, comes a great responsibility: to take an active role in securing positive change. But when, where, and how should philanthropy use the power of its voice? When, where, and how should it lift up the voice of others? These questions inspire lively discussion within the field. How well do foundations communicate their ideas? How involved in public debates should grantmakers be? Are funders appropriately respectful of and responsive to the assets and priorities of the communities they serve? Has philanthropy’s support for advocacy and policy change been too robust or too timid? The 2014 GIH annual meeting will be a time to reflect on the power of voice in all of its manifestations.
2014 Grantmakers in Health Annual Meeting
We joined Funders Together because we believe in the power of philanthropy to play a major role in ending homelessness, and we know we have much to learn from funders across the country.
-Christine Marge, Director of Housing and Financial Stability at United Way of Greater Los Angeles
I am thankful for the local partnerships here in the Pacific Northwest that we’ve been able to create and nurture thanks to the work of Funders Together. Having so many of the right players at the table makes our conversations – and all of our efforts – all the richer and more effective.
-David Wertheimer, Deputy Director at Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Very often a lack of jobs and money is not the cause of poverty, but the symptom. The cause may lie deeper in our failure to give our fellow citizens a fair chance to develop their own capacities, in a lack of education and training, in a lack of medical care and housing, in a lack of decent communities in which to live and bring up their children.
-President Lyndon B. Johnson, 1964 State of the Union Address
Funders Together has given me a platform to engage the other funders in my community. Our local funding community has improved greatly to support housing first models and align of resources towards ending homelessness.
-Leslie Strnisha, Vice President at Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland
Our family foundation convenes local funders and key community stakeholders around strategies to end homelessness in Houston. Funders Together members have been invaluable mentors to us in this effort, traveling to our community to share their expertise and examples of best practices from around the nation.
-Nancy Frees Fountain, Managing Director at The Frees Foundation