From July 22-24, 2019, we convened sixty funders in Washington, DC for our annual Funders Institute to learn about removing barriers to advance racial equity from the ground up. Held in conjunction with the National Conference on Ending Homelessness, program participants learned about what other funders are doing to advance racial equity, Native homelessness, how to engage in advocacy at the congressional level, and how to support grantees in doing racial equity work.

Resources related to specific conversations are linked to in the agenda below.

For information and resources on racial equity and homelessness, visit our Racial Equity Resource Page.

You can also learn more about what participants took away by reading the Funders Institute recap by Marci Lu, senior program officer at the William J. and Dorothy K. O’Neill Foundation. We'll soon be posting another reflection from Erik Houser, Director of Communications and Public Affairs for the Campion Advocacy Fund.

On February 20, 2019, nearly 50 funders convened in San Diego at the 2019 Funders Forum to learn about unsheltered homelessness and building both public and political will to end it. Held in conjunction with the National Alliance to End Homelessness's Solutions for Individual Homeless Adults national conference, attendees had the opportunity to learn about unsheltered homelessness, responses to address unsheltered homelessness from communities across the country, how funders can support the work to end it, and how to build the public and political will to change the system.

For information and resources on unsheltered homelessness, visit our Unsheltered Homelessness Resource page.

Read more about the 2019 Funders Forum in the convening recap by Kristin Williams of the Sherwood Foundation.

The 2018 Funders Institute was held in Washington, D.C. in conjunction with the National Conference on Ending Family and Youth Homelessness. In addition to our one-day Institute, the event continued through the National Conference on Ending Homelessness. Each day featured workshop sessions planned by Funders Together with content and discussion exclusively for private funders. Below is the agenda for the Institute outlining the various sessions that were offered along with resources that supplemented the topics covered.

The 2018 Funders Forum was held in Los Angeles in conjunction with the National Conference on Ending Family and Youth Homelessness. Seventy individuals representing 34 different foundations and United Ways joined us as we explored philanthropy’s role in preventing and ending family and youth homelessness.

This year's Funders Institute was held in conjunction with the National Conference on Ending Homelessness in Washington, D.C and followed a new format. In addition to our 1-day Institute, the event continue through the National Conference on Ending Homelessness. Each day featured workshop sessions planned by Funders Together with content and discussion exclusively for private funders. Below is the agenda for the Institute outlining the various sessions that were offered along with resources that supplemented the topics covered.

On Thursday, May 25^th , in partnership with the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, funders met for a breakfast conversation, discussing the federal landscape as well as what is happening at a local level and how philanthropy can engage in opportunities around core priorities.

For the past two years, Funders Together to End Homelessness (FTEH) ran a Community of Practice focused on funders’ roles in ending youth and young adult homelessness. This community, Foundations for Youth Success (FYS), brought together philanthropic leaders -- large, national funders as well as those working at the community level -- to identifying best practices and implement effective solutions for our young people. Throughout this two-year initiative, members participated in regular virtual meetings and came together in person twice a year.

CEO, Amanda Andere, met with funders for a networking happy hour during this year's FPN Statewide Summit on Philanthropy.  It was a wonderful event, where Funders Together Florida members and other funders working on housing, homelessness, and related issues including health and education shared ideas on homelessness.    

After months of speculating who will be the next President of the United States, November 8th finally revealed the answer. We are now in the "post-election" phase and focusing on the important work of the Administration transition and ensuring homelessness efforts remain a priority. 

Prior to the Heartland Alliance A Nation That Works Conference on October 25^th, we invited funders to join Funders Together and Heartland Alliance staff to discuss the importance of employment and economic security in ending homelessness.