Asian American Giving

One Year after Japan: Mobilizing Giving

- by Andy Ho

Several weeks ago I gave a presentation as part of an Environmental Grantmakers Association webinar on charitable giving to Japan following the disaster there. 

According to Give2Asia, in the first few months of relief, approximately US$3.1 billion in domestic support was collected by the Japanese Red Cross, Central Community Chest of Japan and other NGOs. Of this, the Japanese Red Cross alone collected $688 million for its relief and early recovery activities.   In terms of government support, about US$4 billion for cash distribution was provided to the affected people through municipal governments.  And about US$230 million of government-based support was received from 88 countries outside Japan. 

Earlier this year, the Japan Center for International Exchange did a survey and estimates that Americans have donated $630.2 million to aid victims of Japan's disaster. This number includes individual donations, such as the $10 you gave via text, as well as donations from corporate and private foundations.  The largest single overseas source of private philanthropy to Japan following the disaster has been the United States. Americans have donated generously after numerous overseas disasters in recent years, but in dollar terms their response to the 3/11 disaster was surpassed only by the outpouring of US giving for the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and the 2010 Haiti earthquake.    

Strong people-to-people ties at the grassroots level clearly played an important role in mobilizing Americans to give. More than 60 organizations dedicated to different aspects of US-Japan exchange raised funds for Japan, collecting a total of $48 million. These include Japan-America Societies around the country, which raised more than $24 million combined, sister city organizations in 44 cities and towns, which gathered $1.7 million for their Japanese counterparts, and American alumni of the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program, which is the JET Program, which brings young college graduates in the US to teach in the Japanese school system, which raised more than $300,000.

Here's the slide deck of my presentation:

One Year after Japan: Mobilizing giving

Jessamyn Lau of Peery Foundation on Ionpoverty.tv

My friend, Jessamyn Lau is featured on Ionpoverty.tv. Jessamyn is the Program Leader of the Peery Foundation, a family foundation that invests in social entrepreneurs and leading organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area and around the world.

Ionpoverty.tv is an online video series for young folks seeking careers in economic opportunity and justice work. Hosted by Jonthan Lewis, the videos are candid conversations with accomplished social entrepreneurs, called Pathfinders.

Jessamyn speaks honestly and eloquently about her non-traditional academic and career path. As the current Program Leader at the Peery Foundation, Jessamyn proves that hard work and calculated risks truly can pay off. Jessamyn’s undergrad degree in Art is not exactly what you’d call the ideal foundation for an MBA, but she persevered and faced her fears all the way to graduation. Her “checkered career” includes everything from waitressing to teaching in China, and we think you’ll love hearing about every minute of it!

The White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders National Philanthropic Briefing

- by Andy Ho

Last month I had the honor of being one of over 200 participants for a day-long National Philanthropic Briefing, hosted by the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Over 50 foundations were represented, as well as many AAPI community organizations across the country, brought together to discuss with government agency officials about the needs in the AAPI community and population.

It’s great to have a spirit of collaboration and connectedness across sectors – in recognition that no one organization or sector, regardless of how much financial resource one has – can solve our social problems by themselves. My hope is that the energy, excitement, and momentum that’s been built off of this one meeting isn’t bogged down in bureaucracy, pointless debates, and interpersonal conflict. AAPI communities are hurting too much, and growing too much, to wait too long for a difference to be made.

Here’s an excerpt from a letter by Kiran Ahuja, Executive Director of the White House Initiative on AAPIs, following the event:

Since the National Philanthropic Briefing, we have received an outpouring of responses from so many of you. We are grateful for the input, follow up, and eager inquiries regarding next steps. While we collect your feedback and strategize around a process to move this effort forward, we wanted to take a moment and share with you a few key principles that emerged from the day.

First, this effort has bigger—and better—potential than we even originally anticipated. The groundbreaking $1 million commitment by the Ford Foundation, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the Kresge Foundation affords us the rare opportunity to think outside of the proverbial box, to commence a long and lasting conversation, and to expand the discussion to long-term solutions and long-range investments in the AAPI community.

Second, we recognize and respect our inextricable interdependence in this effort. Each of you—federal official, community leader, and philanthropic partner, alike—plays a critical and active role in achieving this kind of transformational change.

Third, the briefing only marks the beginning; moving forward we must work creatively and collaboratively to achieve these ambitious goals.

It is now up to “both philanthropic and governmental organizations to evaluate their strategic plans to ensure that the critical needs of these marginalized communities are addressed.” (Dr. Gail Christopher, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, National Philanthropic Briefing, April 2, 2012). The initial investment will enable us to map out a strategy to leverage significant philanthropic and government investment in the long-term. Through our collaboration with Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy (AAPIP), we will engage in a thoughtful and collaborative process to ensure that AAPI communities have consistent, reliable access to the resources and support they need. Both federal and philanthropic colleagues have taken note of the historic effort that we collectively embarked upon last month ( Download WHIAAPI National Philanthropic Briefing). We now look forward to your participation, your ideas, and your input.

It will be interesting and exciting to track the developments as this effort moves forward in the coming months.

New report: 2012 State of Diversity in Philanthropy

- by Andy Ho

A new report on the state of diversity in philanthropy was released today by the D5 (diversity over 5 years) coalition. This is the second annual report of D5, which is a five-year effort to grow philanthropy’s diversity, equity, and inclusion. The coalition includes 18 philanthropy organizations—and counting—with connections to thousands of grantmakers.

D5 seeks to help philanthropy achieve four big sector goals by the end of 2015:

1. Leaders: New foundation CEO, staff, and trustee appointments more closely reflect U.S. demographic trends.

2. Action: More foundations take meaningful action to address diversity, equity, and inclusion issues in their organizations.

3. Funding: Annual funding for diverse communities—from foundations and from within those communities themselves—increases substantially.

4. Data: Philanthropy has the research capacity to be more transparent about progress on diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Some of the interesting findings include this chart on foundation diversity, by ethnicity:

It is clear from these stats that foundation leadership does not reflect the diversity of the U.S. population, especially at the CEO level. In response, D5 is creating national networks of foundation CEOs, executives, and board trustees to establish stronger links between diverse communities and positions of leadership. Called Regional Association Leadership Networks, these groups have developed significantly in the past year and expect to grow in number and capacity. Using the power of networks and a coordinated, sector wide approach, D5 plans to advance our goal of new CEO, executive staff, and trustee appointments more closely reflecting U.S. demographic trends by 2015.

Organizations like AAPIP are leading the charge to get greater foundation funding to AAPI communities across the country. I’ll share more future posts about how they’re doing this, both at the community level through giving circles, and working at the national level by developing public philanthropic partnerships. It’s exciting to see these developments that will continue to grow philanthropy’s diversity.

For Fun: Philanthropy Jargon Generator

The field of philanthropy needs a bit more humor. What better way to laugh at ourselves than to create silly phrases that no one can decipher?

Check out the Philanthropy Jargon Generator. Their instructions are simple:

1.  Click the "Create Jargon" button.
2.  Watch useful phrases appear in the box.
3.  Repeat as needed, until grant application or annual report is completed.

Here are some of my favorite ones:

* develop coalition-based policymaking networks

* extend high-bandwidth strategic alliances

* extrapolate philanthropic collaborations

* drill down on impactful capacity building

Asian American Philanthropy in Silicon Valley

AAPIP (Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy) is releasing the report, Emerging Opportunities: Giving and Participation by Silicon Valley Asian American Communities this Thursday. Learn more about recent research on the motivation and inspiration that drives giving among the fast-growing Asian American community in the Silicon Valley.
 
Thursday, March 29, 2012
5:00 pm – Reception / Dinner
5:30 pm – Program & Livestream Broadcast [link below]

LinkedIn
Corporate Headquarters, Unite Room
2025 Steirlin Court • Mountain View, CA
 
The program will include opening remarks from Peggy Saika, President/Executive Director of AAPIP, as well as a presentation of the report’s key findings by principal researcher and author, Sarita Ahuja. The program will also feature key observations from one of the leading voices within philanthropy and on donor impact, Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen, New York Times bestselling author of Giving 2.0: Transform Your Giving and Our World, as well as Founder/Chair, Stanford University PACS (Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society).
 
Registration is required. Very limited seating remains. Register today at:
http://aapipsvsbmarch29.eventbrite.com
 
This program will also be broadcast via livestream Thursday, March 29, at 5:30 pm PT at:
http://www.ustream.tv/linkedin-events,
or visit www.aapip.org on March 29 for a direct link.

Asian Pacific Fund Names New Executive Director

Audrey Yamamoto will join the Asian Pacific Fund as its new President and Executive Director. Excerpted from the announcement is Audrey's background:

Audrey comes to the Fund from her current position as Executive Director of the Children’s Creativity Museum in San Francisco, an organization where she has worked since 2003, starting as Director of Marketing and Development, then becoming Director  of Programs and Experience before stepping into the Executive Director position in 2008. 

Prior to her work at the Museum, Audrey was Director of Development and then Chief Operating Officer at Plugged In, a non-profit in East Palo Alto that provided art and technology programs for the families of East Palo Alto.  

After receiving a BA in Economics from University of California, San Diego, she joined Pacific Bell’s Accelerated Management Program before earning her MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management.  

Asian Americans Encouraged to Apply 02/12/2012

Grade 2 Mandarin Immersion Teachers, Yu Ming Charter School (Bay Area). Mandarin immersion public charter school in the San Francisco Bay Area seeks experienced and dynamic teachers to provide a variety of instructional techniques to second grade students.  Yu Ming Charter School opened Fall 2011 with K-1, and will serve 150 students in grades K-2 in School Year 2012-13. We are growing into a K-8 school. 

Program Officer, David and Lucile Packard Foundation (Bay Area). The Local Program Officer Position presents the right candidate with a dynamic opportunity to provide both day-to-day support for a portfolio of grants potentially bound by specific geographic location and program focus areas. 

Multicutlural Fellowships, The San Francisco Foundation (Bay Area).  We are looking for applicants with expertise in three program areas: Community Development, Education, and the Environment.The Fellowship is a two-year, full-time program for young professionals of color with the talent and drive to create positive social change in Bay Area communities. The Fellowship provides hands-on work experience with our Program staff. Fellows receive professional development, training, and opportunities to build skills in grantmaking, convening, and project management. Fellows also benefit from networking, mentoring, seminars, professional conferences, and interactions with a range of nonprofit and philanthropic leaders. 

Philanthropy News Digest 01/30/2012

An Executive Director's Guide to Financial Leadership. There is a difference between financial management and financial leadership but do most executive directors understand this? Financial management is the collecting of financial data, production of financial reports, and solution of near-term financial issues. Financial leadership is guiding a nonprofit organization to sustainability. The ED is responsible for developing and maintaining a business model that produces exceptional mission impact and sustained financial health. This should be required reading for all EDs.

Executive liability rising for private, nonprofit firms. Before joining a board, prospects should ask the nonprofit if they have directors and officers insurance for their executive employees and board members. Surprisingly, one out of every four private or nonprofit firms do not have D & O insurance and when asked why not, 80% of nonprofits said they do not believe they need it. 

Fidelity Charitable Reports Record-Breaking Year in Grants and Contributions.  Fidelity Charitable donors made more than 380,000 grants, totaling more than $1.3 billion, to nonprofits nationwide during 2011. Donors also made record-breaking contributions to their Giving Accounts in 2011, with nearly $2.9 billion being recorded in new charitable dollars, up from more than $1.6 billion in 2010. 

A Better Way to Share Annual Reports?

Each year, nonprofit organizations spend valuable time and money on pulling together an annual report. The report may be the organizations' one and only 'about us' piece that they give to donors and prospects. It is filled with the usual list of contents, a letter from the chair and/or executive director, several stories of beneficiaries and donors, a donor list and financial statements, and maybe a listing or samples of projects showcasing its accomplishments. 

I think annual reports are important because it allows the organization to report back to their donors and the community on how charitable funds are used. In general, the organization is practicing good donor stewardship and being transparent with its work - besides, if you don't have one, funders get upset since it is the norm nowadays.

Is there a better way to reach the same goals but with less time, effort and money?

Debra Askanase at Sociabrite has a great blog piece showcasing several nonprofits that have transformed their printed annual report to a video report. She writes: 

Video is a natural medium for storytelling, and that’s what the annual report should be. There are some significant benefits to a video report: lasting content on the Web, video footage for reuse and changing a report into a discussion. 

What do you think? Would a donor be more likely to watch a short video? I think so. Especially if your donors are all holding smartphones, ipads and even the kindle fire.

Here's a sample of one from THEMUSEUM:

Asian Americans Encouraged to Apply 01/18/2012

* Center for Disaster Philanthropy seeking CEO. CDP is an exciting new venture that will change the face of emergency-related grant-making, moving it from a reactive and emotion-driven response, to one focused on increasing the effectiveness of the private donor’s dollar for the good of affected communities worldwide. CDP will offer three distinct services to donors: 1) a website and interactive portal; 2) a pooled funding mechanism with a unique preparedness, risk reduction and recovery focus; and 3) custom advisory services.

* Korean American Community Foundation is now hiring for Administrative & Communication Associate.  Reporting to the Executive Director and working in KACF’s New York City (Manhattan) office, the Associate will work with both internal and external stakeholders to support the development of donor relationships, draft correspondence, articles and other presentational  materials, manage monthly eNewsletters, website and other updates, assist with special event coordination and planning, and other tasks as assigned.  The successful candidate will have a deep interest in philanthropy and community issues, with strong writing, excellent judgment and organizational skills that will be applied across a range of duties including research communications and event planning. 

* Bank of America Seeking Student Leaders. Student leaders participate in an eight week paid internship at a charitable organization and take part in a week long summit in DC. 

* Bank of America Seeking Local Heroes. Selected heroes receive $5,000 contribution to an eligible nonprofit of his/her choice.

New Law in California Promotes Social Entrepreneurship

California passed a new law today that will support social enterprises. The new laws, AB 361 (Benefit Corporations) and SB 201 (Flexible Purpose Corporations) provides two additional forms of legal entities to consider for entrepreneurs wishing to create social enterprises. The laws primarily allows businesses to factor social good into their bottom line and is a definite win for social entrepreneurs in California.

Traditionally, entrepreneurs have been limited to two primary corporate vehicles, the corporation and the limited liability corporation.  These forms are not appropriate for entrepreneurs seeking to blend profitability with a Special Purpose (profitability with a broader social or environmental purpose). The traditional forms put the directors at risk for making decisions based at the expense of maximizing financial returns for shareholders and other issues.

The Flexible Business Corporation requires the inclusion of a special purpose in its Articles of Incorporation, provides directors with protection for making decisions based on special purposes as opposed to maximizing profits, provides shareholder protections and encourages transparency.

Her are some resources for folks that are interested in the nitty-gritty details and are thinking of starting a social business:

* Gene Takagi's Nonprofit Law Blog that has a post on this issue with handouts that you can download.

* New California Law Will Boost Social Entrepreneurship

* FAQs of the new law, the Flexible Purpose Corporation