Funders Together Resources

Advocacy Resources

As part of an ongoing effort to provide support and programming on advocacy, we've compiled resources that can aid you in starting and continuing the conversation in your work to prevent and end homelessness.

The Legal Limitations on Lobbying

Funders can and should be advocates for policies and funding streams that can end and prevent homelessness. Understand the legal restrictions on private foundations’ advocacy efforts with this resource.

Other Resources

Bolder Advocacy: An Initiative of Alliance for Justice

A Foundation’s Guide to Advocacy

Published by Council on Foundations, this report explains “lobbying” versus networking and includes a step-by-step guide to contacting policymakers.

Barr Foundation and MASSCreative's Webinar: Political Advocacy 101

Leveraging Limited Dollars: How Grantmakers Achieve Tangible Results by Funding Policy and Community Engagement

This report from the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy discusses best practices and the impact of philanthropic dollars devoted to advocacy.

View blog posts on advocacy

Please contact Amanda Andere or Lauren Bennett if you would like to discuss advocacy issues further.

On Wednesday, January 17, Funders Together hosted a webinar with our national partners around what’s been happening with policy and budget issues at the federal level.

An accurate census count is essential to our efforts to prevent and end homelessness. The numbers from the 2020 Census will be used to determine funding and service levels for the next ten years. We know that along with individuals experiencing homelessness, racial minorities, immigrants, young people, and people in poverty are historically hard to count. The 2020 Census is already facing new challenges including budget constraints, online response, and scaled back door-to-door outreach and canvassing.

As a field, the homelessness sector has experience and expertise counting these individuals. As funders, we can support our grantees to help ensure a fair and accurate count. Additionally, funders across the country are coming together to support local planning, inform policy makers, and to educate nonprofits.

The links below are a culmination of resources provided by our partners and members. If you are interested in having additional conversations on how the 2020 Census will specifically impact our efforts, please reach out to Lauren Bennett at [email protected].

Upcoming Learning Opportunities

From Funders Together

Taking a Stand on the 2020 Census

Funders Together to End Homelessness, along with nearly thirty other philanthropy serving organizations (PSOs) and funders, contributed to an amicus curiae brief to contest the proposed citizenship question on the 2020 Census. The brief, submitted to the Supreme Court, provides concrete examples of how philanthropy relies on census data to support their missions, and, in turn, why the citizenship question is detrimental to efforts to effectively serve and invest in their communities. 

Webinar Recording: Philanthropy & the 2020 Census: What a Fair and Accurate Count Means for Ending Homelessness

In this webinar, we explored where current Census operations are, why philanthropy investing in housing and homelessness programs should care about the count, what some of the concerns and barriers are to counting people experiencing homelessness, and how funders can be an integral part in fair and accurate Census efforts in their community. We also heard from the Polk Bros. Foundation in Chicago on its role in the Illinois Count Me In 2020 campaign, how it supports efforts outside of funding, and the importance of bringing in funders from other sectors through mindful collaboration and coordination.

General Information

United State Census Bureau

• Area Census Offices for the 2020 Census
• 2020 Early Area Census Offices List
• Why Your Foundation Should Become a 2020 Census Partner
• How The Census Will Invite Everyone To Respond

From Our Partners

United Philanthropy Forum

• A Call for Philanthropy to Help Meet Unprecedented Challenges Facing the 2020 Census
• Census 2020: Why an Accurate Count Matters to Philanthropy
• A Critical Moment for the 2020 Census and Why Philanthropy Should Care
• Foundation Sign-on Letter: The Funders Census Initiative under the leadership of the Bauman Foundation circulated a sign-on letter for foundations. 

Funders' Committee for Civic Participation

• Census 2020 Resources
• Participate. Convene. Invest. – A Call to Action for Philanthropy
• 7 Things Funders Can Do To Support Local Update of Census Addresses (LUCA)
• Key 2020 Census Funder Milestones
• Census 2020 State Landscape Scan
• Citizenship Question Supreme Court Decision Day Funder Resource Guide

The Leadership Conference Education Fund

• Will You Count? People Experiencing Homelessness in the 2020 Census

Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality

• Citizen Question Non-Response:A Demographic Profile of People Who Do Not Answer the American Community Survey Citizenship Question
• Counting People Experiencing Homelessness: A Guide to 2020 Census Operations

Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees

• 2020 Census resource page

Brennan Center for Justice

• Where Things Stand in the Citizenship Question Lawsuits (Oct 12, 2018)

National Conference of State Legislatures

• 2020 Census Resources and Legislation

National Community Action Partnership

• 2020 Census Service Based Enumeration 

From Our Members

Raikes Foundation: A Fair and Accurate census is Critical to the Future of Our Youth

Barr Foundation: How Is Philanthropy Responding to the Citizenship Question?

Polk Bros Foundation: A Call to Remove Citizenship Question from 2020 Census

Annie E. Casey Foundation: Census Campaign Materials- To elevate issue of young child undercount

I was recently asked what was the most meaningful part of my work with Funders Together. Without hesitation, I answered with what I reflect on daily: I am blessed to be among people who tirelessly work for their community, our country, and, most importantly, people they may never meet; because they believe ending homelessness is imperative to our humanity. That housing is not only a basic right, it is the pathway to opportunity.

The debate about tax reform is heating up, as the House and Senate have each introduced their own versions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act this month. The House voted on its bill two weeks ago, and a vote is anticipated in the Senate this week.

On Thursday, September 14, Funders Together hosted a webinar focused on what’s new with the federal budget and how it affects funding for homelessness and related programs.

“How should we respond?” Funders Together CEO, Amanda Andere, asks the question of philanthropy in light of the recent events in both Charlottesville and Texas.

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.

Another budget cycle is upon us, and philanthropy's involvement in understanding the budget process and how to be participate in the budget debate is key to ensuring programs that work to prevent and end homelessness remain adequately funded. Steve Berg, Vice President for Programs and Policy at the National Alliance to End Homelessness, and Martha Toll, Executive Director at the Butler Family Fund dive into why the budget matters and what to do about it. 

A statement from Funders Together to End Homelessness on Dr. Ben Carson's confirmation as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development