190 grants & PRIs for $29.3 million
Since inception in 1982:5,772 grants & PRIs for $475.4 million
NOTE FROM MEYER MEMORIAL TRUST: In the spirit of full transparency, we are sharing with you FSG's evaluation as it was provided to us. We anticipate pursuing the strategic portfolio programs set out below, but plan to work closely in the coming months with our nonprofit, government and private partners, particularly in the fields of affordable housing and restoration of the Willamette River basin to identify, refine, and implement our multi-year strategy.
The Meyer Memorial Trust is a private, independent foundation whose mission is to “invest in people, ideas and efforts that deliver significant social benefit” to Oregon and Clark County, Washington. Since it began operating in 1982, the Trust has awarded more than $410 million in grants and Program Related Investments (PRIs) to support arts and culture, education, health, social welfare, community development, and environmental conservation and restoration.
Over its first 25 years, The Meyer Memorial Trust has become a valued institution, and never envisioned a point at which its work was done. The Trust’s leaders have always recognized the importance of evolving as an organization. In the Trust’s first annual report, Charles Rooks, the founding executive director, reflected ‘Without minimizing the significance of our activities thus far, it is important to recognize that we are in the early stages of an evolutionary process that will stretch over many years.’” Anticipating that the Trust will continue to be a leader in Oregon and Clark County, Washington for many generations to come, this reflection remains true today.
As one of the most significant philanthropic resources in the region, the Trust’s first 25 years of grantmaking have been largely responsive, with the majority of funds being distributed through the general purpose grantmaking program. Grants have covered six broad programmatic areas, though the allocation of funding to each area has varied year-to-year. While this approach to grantmaking fills a range of important needs, it can also be difficult to clearly identify priorities and understand where the Trust is making an impact when it is operating in a responsive mode.
In many ways, the Trust has already been moving down a path of greater focus, clearer priorities, and a broader set of philanthropic tools. In recent years, the Trust has begun to explore new strategies, recognizing its responsibility to evolve and consider the full range of options available to a foundation. Establishing itself as a leader in the area of Program Related Investments, the Trust has approved more than $16 million in PRIs. The Trust has also taken on a leadership role in public education reform. Its first major focused initiative, the Oregon Small Schools Initiative, was a joint effort in partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to improve high school achievement, close the achievement gap for low income and minority students, and raise graduation rates across the state. In 2004 the Trust joined four other foundations through Foundations for a Better Oregon in launching a second education initiative – the Chalkboard Project, an ambitious statewide effort to improve public K-12 schools – that has successfully brought the education discussion to the forefront in Oregon.
Informed by these experiences, and seeking to provide leadership that can produce positive change and momentum in tackling some of the region’s most pressing and persistent problems, the trustees decided to explore a more proactive and targeted approach to the Trust’s grantmaking. Thus, in the summer of 2006, the trustees began a strategic planning process to determine where and how the Trust could best use its resources to enhance its social impact.
The Trust retained FSG Social Impact Advisors, a nonprofit consulting firm focused exclusively on working with philanthropic organizations, to guide it through the strategic planning process.
The Trust had several motivations for engaging in a strategic planning process.
Increased Social Impact: To have an even greater impact on some of the state’s toughest social problems – taking a longer-term perspective, actively identifying high-priority needs, providing sustained and focused support, concentrating on systemic change, and exercising greater leadership.
Greater Clarity of Purpose: To help guide and coordinate the foundation’s activities and to enable the Trust to clearly articulate to stakeholders its mission, priorities, and the role it hopes to fill in the community.
Continuous Improvement: To evolve into an organization that can continually learn from its grantmaking, improve upon its activities, develop deeper relationships with nonprofits across the state, and increase its impact.
A foundation strategy is grounded in two key concepts: strategic positioning and value creation, which are explained below.
Strategic Positioning
A true strategy is not a mission statement, which focuses only on internal considerations such as the organization’s values and capabilities. Nor is it a needs assessment, which focuses primarily on external perceptions of priority problems. Instead, true strategy positions the foundation at the intersection of internal and external views and asks: which pressing social problems are we uniquely qualified to address?
A strategy involves explicit choices of what to do – and what not to do. This clarity enables the Foundation to tailor its entire operations to support the strategy. At the same time, the shared vision makes it possible to define success measures to track the Foundation’s social impact and communicate persuasively about its intent and accomplishments.
Value Creation
Exemplary grantmaking programs focus resources on a few social problems and leverage funder expertise to create value. In FSG’s 1999 Harvard Business Review article, “Philanthropy’s New Agenda: Creating Value,” FSG founders Michael Porter and Mark Kramer discuss how grantmakers can leverage their expertise to select the most effective grantees, attract additional funding, assist grantees and share knowledge gained from their philanthropy. Employing all four forms of value creation increases the Foundation’s ability to achieve social impact.
The strategic planning process took place in three phases over seventh months (September 2006 – March 2007).
Phase I: Landscape Assessment (September – November)
This first phase explored both the internal and external factors influencing the Trust’s ability to create value. The internal process consisted of conversations about organizational values, experience and expertise, and the relevance and success of existing strategies and processes. The past five years of the Trust’s grantmaking and collaborative initiatives were reviewed and assessed. An additional 80 interviews were conducted with external stakeholders across the state to understand community perspectives on the Trust’s contributions and capabilities as well as perspectives on where and how the Trust could best create value going forward.
This initial input surfaced a list of potential issue areas for further research: education, access to health care, affordable housing, restoration of the Willamette River, developing clusters of sustainability-driven businesses, nonprofit capacity building, and the arts. During this phase, available studies of the state’s needs in each of these areas were reviewed and interviews were conducted with program staff and 35 issue-area experts. The major sources and volume of philanthropic funding in Oregon addressing each of the above areas was identified. Based on the synthesis of this research, the trustees identified areas well-suited for proactive investment (specific areas where the Trust would identify desired positive change and develop a plan for working with stakeholders to achieve that change).
Phase II: Strategy Development (October – February)
In this phase, research continued to shape the Trust’s future strategy. The Trust’s new strategic portfolio design was developed and the balance of proactive versus responsive grantmaking was also determined.
The proactive initiative concepts were further refined through additional research on best practices and funding needs, as well as two focus groups on Willamette River restoration and affordable housing to test ideas with local stakeholders. Possible program options within each proactive funding initiative were identified.
Phase III: Action Plan (January – March)
In this final phase, an action plan was developed – including goals, outcomes and evaluation measures for each component of the portfolio, relevant organizational implications, and a plan for communicating changes externally.
Many different factors emerge throughout a foundation’s strategic planning process that shape decisions. As an example, a funder may prioritize issues where they are perceived to have deep relationships or experience. Or an issue may be attractive because there appears to be emerging consensus on the importance of a need, but limited coordination or planning. Or an issue may be a priority given the legacy of the foundation, and be important to explore because of its particular resonance with the mission and values of the organization.
For the Trust, the strategic decision making process blended internal values and visions for the future with input from the Trust’s key stakeholders – a variety of past and current grantees, other foundations active in the area, community leaders, potential grantees. The process also incorporated analysis of grantmaking activity across Oregon and southwest Washington. These sources of input were then supplemented by research to identify potential opportunities for a private funder with MMT’s resources and values to increase its impact in the region. The Trustees used all of the data available during this rigorous process to shape a new direction that builds from its past and opens up new opportunities for the future.
Throughout the process, the Trustees reflected on the values and priorities that should be integrated in the strategic plan. They articulated a desire to proactively identify opportunities to make a difference, saying that “It’s incumbent on us to really understand the needs in this state, and how to play a role in addressing them.” They also expressed an interest in taking a longer-term visionary perspective, focusing more on systemic change and exercising more leadership – whether this is behind-the-scenes or a more visible role. The Trustees hoped to be among the first to support initiatives that are critical to the state, increasingly considering levers beyond grantmaking to achieve important goals. Additionally, they expected to hold the Trust to the highest standard among its peers, hoping the Trust becomes a national model for how private regional foundations can make a difference in their communities.
The Trustees also expected that even as they became more focused on specific goals, the Trust would continue to make grants in response to community needs and have processes that remained open to the region’s nonprofits. Discussion emphasized the importance of a balanced approach, one Trustee saying, “I would hate to see us become a one track organization …there is a value in being a broad-based provider.”
Going forward, the Trustees also hoped to identify opportunities to bring in additional funding and collaborate with others where appropriate, possibly replicating the Chalkboard model of partnerships in other areas. And above all, the Trustees emphasized that any new strategy should ensure the ‘highest and best use’ of the Trust’s resources.
Interviews with 80 external stakeholders across the state revealed that the Trust is viewed with respect across the region, having credibility with a diverse set of community stakeholders and a unique ability to signal other funders. Stakeholders referred to the Trust as “the platinum standard,” emphasizing that “locally, you don’t talk about foundations without talking about Meyer,” and “if you have a Meyer grant, it’s like a good housekeeping seal.”
Many were impressed by the Trust’s excellent due diligence, citing that “they do their homework, with thoughtful, excellent in-depth analysis of grants.” They commended the calculated risks the Trust is able to make on the strength of its rigorous proposal review process. “Meyer is willing to take chances where they see a need and where there is a clear mission and plan on how to address a need. They are not taking reckless chances, they are taking thoughtful chances.”
Stakeholders saw the Trust as accessible and open, with high-caliber staff and board of Trustees. The Trust was “viewed as more approachable than most foundations…people know the program officers and feel like they see the Trustees.”
Although stakeholders saw the Trust as influential and increasingly accessible, they expressed many questions about its specific impact and decision-making process. Interviewees commented that “I can’t tell you what they are focused on,” and “what they are interested in and what they are looking for is unclear.” The Trust “has not articulated its role as a funder…I’m not sure what its priorities are.”
Many – particularly those who are not grantseekers – perceived the Trust as funding tangible things and making conservative choices – “I see them funding a variety of things, like the museum and opera.” The Trust is often seen as “a conservative funder” that funds “established, safe organizations,” “children’s programs, arts, and non-controversial mom and apple pie types of issues,” and “issues that are warm and fuzzy.”
On the other hand, the Trust is also seen as “a critical partner in capital projects.” The important role the Trust plays in funding capital projects in the state was underscored by stakeholders in more rural areas. “In rural Oregon, we don’t have the wealth base that you find in an urban area. For a county like this one [rural], Meyer’s willingness to help fund a capital project is absolutely pivotal.” While most hoped support for capital projects would continue in the future, many advised the Trust to be selective in supporting capital and encouraged it to seek the highest leverage options, making sure to always make the best use of Trust resources.
Many also perceived the Trust to be Portland-focused, rather than consistently representing the interests of the state of Oregon. Some attribute this simply to being based in Portland, “Meyer is viewed as a major funder, but with little local presence [in Central Oregon].” Others recommend the Trust become more intentional about its geographic impact and commitment to rural areas. “Unless they have a change of heart and decide only to fund the metro area, they have an obligation to do good funding in rural communities.”
Among those who have received grants, many perceived the Trust as distinctive in its willingness to fund large, multi-year grants. Past and present grantees applauded the Trust’s willingness to fund efforts that build organizational capacity and support longer term work. Meyer “is the exception to the rule [to the practice of most foundations] in giving operating grants with no strings attached.” One grantee noted, “the capacity building grants and the multi-year funding that allows organizations to grow has been very helpful.”
As the Trust’s most visible proactive initiative, Chalkboard has led many community stakeholders to think about the Trust in new ways. External observers believed that the Trust’s overall reputation, resources, and success with Chalkboard give it license to play a more proactive role in the region. In fact, they challenged the Trust to lead change, with clear priorities and with and the trustees and executive director playing an even more visible role.
The Grassroots Grants Program is highly valued by community stakeholders, particularly in rural parts of the state. Stakeholders expressed strong hopes that the program should be continued, and potentially expanded. As one staff member remarked, “The nonprofit sector is the best of our society. The small grants effort gets at the heart, emotion, and community value of small nonprofit endeavors.”
The Trust has made significant contributions to Oregon and southwest Washington nonprofits over the past 25 years across a wide variety of issue areas, geographies, and projects. An examination of the past three years of grantmaking revealed that general purpose grants have consistently accounted for the majority of Trust dollars.
While the Trust supported six different areas through its Responsive Grant grantmaking, the allocation of resources to these areas has varied over the years, with little consistent emphasis. Overall, the Trust’s most significant recent grants commitments have been in the areas of education, housing and human services, health, and arts and culture.
There are several other trends that are consistent patterns in the Trust’s grantmaking:
• Almost half of the Trust’s general purpose dollars from 2003-2005 have supported capital projects.
• The majority of the Trust’s grant dollars have supported organizations in the Portland area. Of the grant dollars directed to more rural areas of the state, most are Responsive Grant grants dedicated to capital projects, or distributed through the Grassroots Grants Program. In 2005, 36% of Grassroots Grants Program dollars went to rural counties, but 80% of Responsive Grant and 100% of PRI dollars were directed to organizations in more urban areas.
• In 2004, 49% of the Trust’s Responsive Grant grant dollars supported multi-year grants, and in 2005, 67% of its grant dollars were multi-year commitments.
• The Trust is experienced in the use of PRIs, with over $16 million invested in the areas of economic development, affordable housing, community facilities development, environmental protection, and the arts.
• Small grants accounted for half of all grants but less than 10% of distributed funds from 2003-2005.
When one examines the ten private foundations contributing most significantly to organizations in the region, the Trust stands out for the significant contributions it makes to health and human services, where it is the most significant funder outside of the public sector. It is also notable that the environment and affordable housing are two of the categories receiving the least amount of funding – in these areas, the Trust is one of the only contributors.
These grantmaking patterns and perceptions helped guide the Trustees as they decided how to shape the grantmaking portfolio going forward.
Going forward, the Trust is shifting to a more strategic portfolio, with the expectation that it will be better using its resources to deliver significant social benefit to the region.
The Trust challenged itself to discover where it could have the most significant impact in Oregon. It received input from a range of community leaders and examined its internal experience and values to determine which areas it could best address proactively.
The Trustees explored many possible areas, ultimately focusing on issues where there was a strong external need, a fit with internal expertise, and where they felt the Trust could fill a unique void – be it the need for additional funding or leadership. The planning process was designed to identify opportunities that reflected the needs of the state and built from the Trust’s history, values, interests, and capabilities. Using these criteria, some areas emerged as issues where the Trust expects to take a leadership role. These issues will become Strategic Action Initiatives, and a significant portion of the Trust’s resources and energy will be directed toward achieving specific goals. Over time, these Initiatives will evolve and new issues will emerge as the Trust revisits its priorities every few years.
General purpose grantmaking will continue, but will become a more competitive process. Important issues that were not identified as current Strategic Action Initiatives, such as improving access to healthcare, will continue to be eligible for funding through the responsive grantmaking process.
A new Nonprofit Capacity Building Program will be specifically designed to strengthen local nonprofits, enabling organizations to reach and continually strive for higher standards of excellence. Additionally, the Trust will expand its Grassroots Grants Program to enhance its ability to provide expedient support to smaller organizations. This balanced portfolio approach will equip the Trust with multiple tools to address a wide variety of community needs.
Strategic Action Initiatives are areas in which the Trust will work to achieve progress toward specific goals. The Trust will proactively seek out specific partners and funding opportunities, rather than accepting unsolicited proposals. The Trust will begin by launching three strategic action initiatives designed to address important needs in Oregon: High Quality K-12 Public Education, Access and Availability of Affordable Housing, and Restoration of the Willamette River Basin.
High Quality K-12 Public Education
The Trust has historically been a very strong supporter and funder of public education and related programs and would like to continue to be a leader in improving K-12 education in the state. The impact of the $25 million partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to create the Oregon Small Schools Initiative (OSSI) has extended across the state, and by the fall of 2007, more than 8% of all Oregon high school students will be in small schools. Through Foundations For A Better Oregon and Chalkboard, the Trust has played a critical role in bringing the education discussion to the forefront in Oregon and is now recognized as a credible player in education reform.
The Trust wants to continue to be a leader in both of these initiatives. It plans to continue to support OSSI, as well as provide financial and human resources to Chalkboard to help it advance the statewide policy discussion and push for education reforms.
The education initiative will aim to raise graduation rates and college or work readiness for high school students across the state by continuing to support OSSI, including the Teaching and Learning Initiative and additional funding needs identified by Oregon Small Schools Initiative staff as the effort evolves, and evaluation results surface new priorities.
Working closely with Foundations For A Better Oregon and the Chalkboard Project, the Trust will expand its commitment to public K-12 schools and students across the state. There are several “fundable” Chalkboard priorities that can benefit from private funding as they get off the ground – through pilot projects or incubating Oregon-specific programs that benefit from best practices around the country. The measures it will explore to improve student achievement for all students in Oregon include:
1. Continuing to provide operational support for Chalkboard Project
2. Providing funding to pilot the Creative Learning and Student Success (CLASS) program in up to five districts in order to increase teacher effectiveness and expand career opportunities, professional development, and compensation for teachers
3. Helping launch a Statewide Principal Leadership Academy based on best practices from other statewide models
Access and Availability of Affordable Housing
Affordable housing is another area that appears ripe for the Trust’s focused efforts. It is an area of high need and one in which the Trust has substantial expertise. In 2005, 74% of Oregon’s very-low-income households were cost burdened by housing, meaning they spent more than 30% of their income on housing costs, and Oregon’s rate of homelessness is 50% higher than the national average. Trust staff and trustees have substantive experience funding housing-related projects, and MMT is unique in using PRIs to support housing organizations. Moreover, the Trust is one of the only foundations funding housing efforts in Oregon, and external stakeholders identified two critical needs the Trust could help fulfill: providing more nimble sources of capital for affordable housing preservation and development, and strengthening the capacity of organizations in rural areas to expand the stock of affordable housing in their communities.
Given all of these factors, the Trust believes that it can leverage its philanthropic resources, leadership abilities, convening power and credibility to make a significant impact in affordable housing in Oregon.
Through new efforts in this area, the Trust aims to help preserve and increase the number of affordable housing units by providing developers with a source of more nimble and risk-tolerant capital. It will structure a new fund that makes new types of flexible loans available to developers for pre-development work, construction financing, and other longer-term funding. The Trust will also focus on increasing the quality and supply of affordable housing in more rural areas by strengthening the operations of community development corporations and other related organizations outside of the Portland-metro area. This will entail identifying specific capacity building needs of housing organizations in more rural areas, and then providing multi-year capacity building resources and a grants program that best meet these needs. Finally, the Trust will evaluate opportunities to provide financially sustainable tenant support services.
Restoration of the Willamette River Basin
The Trust wants to adopt a visible, ambitious initiative to build off its success with the Chalkboard Project in a way that would significantly improve the lives of Oregonians across the state. Home to 70% of Oregon’s population and the source of 75% of the state’s economic output, the Willamette River basin is one of the defining features of the state’s geography and its economic livelihood. It is located entirely in the state of Oregon, with its destiny largely in the hands of Oregonians.
The Willamette River Basin currently faces a disastrous future if nothing is done to restore its health. The river is too warm for salmon, too polluted for swimming, with high mercury levels resulting in fish consumption advisories. Furthermore, even greater population growth and development is expected to put pressure on the basin’s limited environmental resources. The population living in the Willamette River basin will nearly double by 2050, from 2.3 million to 4 million. Taking action now to protect and restore health of the Willamette is an urgent issue that is critical to the state of Oregon. And while Governor Kulongoski has named Willamette Restoration as his top environmental priority, he asserts, “no one group can accomplish this critical goal alone - it´s going to take all of us working together to restore the health of the Willamette.”
The Trustees view this issue as timely and ripe for intervention. They see an opportunity for leadership that the Trust might be well-suited to fill. Not many local private funders currently contribute substantially to river restoration, and restoration efforts are largely uncoordinated across many types of organizations, from grassroots groups to government agencies. Leveraging its ability to bring people together, and learning from the process it underwent with Chalkboard, the Trust will look for the opportunity to help lead and catalyze a coordinated restoration effort, attracting new resources, and making sure there are organizations in place that can get the work done. The Trustees view this as an area where the Trust could make a significant impact in improving the lives of Oregonians and focus group discussions further bolstered the notion that the Trust could play a valuable role in addressing this issue.
The Willamette Restoration initiative will focus first on evaluating opportunities to catalyze the development and implementation of a coordinated restoration effort for the entire river basin. It will begin with building a coalition of interested funders that can leverage funding and convene policy advisors and stakeholders to assist with this analysis. This group will mobilize to develop a common set of goals and a well-coordinated, prioritized action plan. These funders will ask individual groups to align their activities by taking responsibility for implementation of specific pieces of the plan, and then fund efforts accordingly.
Once the collaborative is launched, the Trust can focus on specific aspects of the plan where its resources can be appropriately used, such as monitoring and evaluation work, or expanded community outreach. The Trust will work to accelerate the pace of restoration by funding additional projects like efforts to inspire residents to become stewards of the basin, connecting landowners to practical restoration tools by enhancing the Oregon State’s database, and supporting field-based education. The Trust will also consider supporting the development of what could become a national model of market-based ecosystems restoration by funding the ecosystems marketplace.
Nonprofit capacity building is an area where the Trust has extensive knowledge and deep experience. It has a history of providing significant technical assistance and capacity building grants and the organization is in a unique position to see patterns and identify needs across the nonprofit sector. In addition, the Trust is relatively unique among private foundations in being willing to fund significant multi-year grants for capacity building, complementing the work of the Ford Family Foundation, which focuses exclusively in rural areas. Given all of these factors, the Trustees feel an obligation to provide support and leadership designed to strengthen the capacity of nonprofit organizations across the region.
The nonprofit community in Oregon and Clark County, Washington has a number of challenges. The nonprofit landscape in the region is rapidly changing and highly fragmented, with thousands of small and undeveloped nonprofit entities, half of which report less than $100,000 in expenses. These nonprofits differ by stage of development, and their technical assistance needs vary greatly based on their size, maturity, and available resources. Additionally, partnership and collaboration opportunities are often missed – because nonprofits may be working in relative isolation.
Given the needs in the state and the Trust’s history and expertise in this area, the Trust feels that it is in a position to expand its support for nonprofit capacity building, dedicating resources more intentionally and doing more than just funding individual grants. While this will be an area that the Trust regards as strategic, this work is seen not as an initiative, but as an ongoing effort.
A new Nonprofit Capacity Building Program will be designed to strengthen the resources, efficiency, and effectiveness of the region’s nonprofit organizations. This program will:
1. Provide grants for nonprofit capacity building – designed to help an organization achieve specific goals – and occasional grants to organizations that support the field
2. Provide smaller grants for technical assistance through a dedicated grants program – grants of up to $10,000 will be made for the short-term use of resources that result in knowledge transfer or skill improvement (e.g., planning, research, board and leadership development, and training and professional development for staff)
3. Provide non-grant support in the form of a curriculum of educational programs focused on organizational development needs (e.g., budget forecasting), select networking opportunities, a leadership development program, and a database of technical assistance providers who have been referred by regional nonprofits
General purpose grantmaking will continue to fill important needs, but the Trust will shift to a more selective process, given that a smaller pool of funds will be available to support this program. While the Trust expects to hold itself and nonprofits to a higher standard, it will also be dedicating a portion of its resources to help the nonprofits reach those standards. The Trust will also issue occasional Requests For Proposals to stimulate proposals in high need areas, such as increasing access to health care for youth and rural Oregonians and nurturing business innovation in the area of environmental sustainability.
Staff and Trustees also have a strong interest in continuing to use PRIs as a creative tool and will expand the overall pool of investment capital available to nonprofits in the region. In fact, the Trust is notable among foundations in its broad experience with PRI’s, having directed funds to many issue areas, including economic development, affordable housing, community facilities development, environmental protection, and the arts.
Another important aspect of the new strategy is expanding support to smaller organizations through a streamlined grant application process. Throughout the strategic planning process, the Trust heard from stakeholders across the state how important some of these smaller investments were to individual organizations – sometimes filling a gap that was hard to fill through other means, or serving as seed capital for a growing effort. Grants through the Grassroots Grants Program have also been one of the most successful ways the Trust has addressed needs in smaller communities across the state.
However, over time the Support for Teacher Initiative has become less relevant to the Trust’s strategy and the opportunity to provide greater support for teachers and administrators exists in working through the K-12 public education initiative. Both Trustees and staff observe that this program has had little impact on the education system, and is not aligned with the Trust’s broader goals for public education. Assessment of this program revealed, “the amount of money [teachers] were given was relatively small, and it did not have much effect in transforming the system.” Given the overwhelming consensus that the Trust’s dollars could be put to better use elsewhere, this program will be discontinued, with the Trust enhancing its commitment to strengthening public education through other efforts.
The Trust’s shift to a new portfolio will be a gradual process. Not all changes will happen immediately. In order to ensure a smooth transition, the Trust will spend the summer preparing for the launch of its new portfolio in the fall. For several months, the Trust will defer accepting new proposals, focusing staff time on developing the internal processes, procedures, and documents to effectively execute the new strategy and implement new grants programs. On September 17th, 2007, the Trust will begin accepting applications under its new guidelines.
The Trust views this as the first step in a longer journey. The Trust will always be evolving so that it can continuously improve its ability to invest in people, ideas, and efforts that deliver significant social benefit to Oregon and southwest Washington.
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About FSG Social Impact Advisors
FSG Social Impact Advisors is a mission-driven social enterprise nonprofit organization dedicated to accelerating social progress by advancing the practice of philanthropy and corporate social responsibility in three ways:
• Advice: Advise leading foundations, corporations, governments, and nonprofits on how to increase their social impact – offering experienced, data-driven counsel in four areas: strategy development, evaluation, and corporate social responsibility
• Ideas: Publish ideas and findings as part of a commitment to accelerating social progress
• Action: Incubate and launch long-term initiatives in collaboration with our clients, funders and partners
With offices in Boston, San Francisco, Seattle, and Geneva, our international team of full-time consultants combines the highest standards of strategy consulting with a deep understanding of philanthropy and the nonprofit sector. We invest heavily in research to learn and to develop new ideas, and our thinking is regularly featured in such publications as Harvard Business Review, Stanford Social Innovation Review and The Chronicle of Philanthropy.
For more information, please visit www.fsg-impact.org.
