The Oakland-based foundation's leader speaks about its work, its reaction to Trump’s attacks on social justice and equity, and how funders can work together to respond. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) Reports: tinyurl.com/bdh6e4y8 #RacialJustice #Philanthropy #CommunityOrganizing

This year saw 14 new donors commit to giving away most of their fortunes to charitable causes. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) Reports: tinyurl.com/effbs7up #GivingPledge #BillionairePhilanthropy #MajorDonors #WealthGiving #PhilanthropyTrends #LivingDonors #ImpactGiving #NewGildedAge

The Carnegie name has long been synonymous with libraries. In honor of the nation's 250th anniversary, Carnegie has awarded gifts of $10,000 to every Carnegie library in the U.S. www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/a-repub...

Very few ultra-wealthy people support efforts to bring about systemic economic change. There are, however, some exceptions to note. @martharamirez.bsky.social Reports: tinyurl.com/ycxzy859 Check out all the articles here: tinyurl.com/28xk5d8j #BigPhilanthropy #WealthGap #MegaDonors #Billionaires

As part of @insidephilanthropy.com's series on the new Gilded Age, we take a look at the few billionaires who have sought to address the wealth gap at a systemic level. www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/class-t...

As trust in the press hits all-time lows, there’s actually a lot that funders can do to help restore confidence in a critical institution for democracy. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) Reports: tinyurl.com/2m4nudts #Journalism #LocalNews #Philanthropy #MediaLiteracy #Disinformation

For all the good that philanthropy has done to support journalism, especially when its comes to preserving and expanding the local news ecosystem, it may all be for naught if the majority of people don’t trust the information they’re receiving.

Backed by donors like Ron Terwilliger, the NGO is working to develop scalable ways to build homes for the billions worldwide who lack access to adequate housing. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) Reports: tinyurl.com/576v2nvy #HousingIsAHumanRight #AffordableHousing #HabitatForHumanity

As homelessness in the U.S. reaches record levels, here's what some major billionaires are funding. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) Reports: tinyurl.com/dx7rxdnj #HomelessnessCrisis #HousingForAll #Philanthropy #AffordableHousing #WealthGap #SocialImpact #HousingJustice #EndHomelessness

Even as philanthropic funders writ large seek to address homelessness — with mixed success — billionaires’ relationship to the homelessness crisis is a complicated one.

The shutdown showed that for all philanthropy can and should do to address hunger and poverty, it’s ultimately the government that is responsible for the wellbeing of its people. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) Reports: tinyurl.com/3aaam6m2 #FoodSecurity #SNAPBenefits #PovertyCrisis

As this administration and a Republican-led Congress continue to make broad cuts in federal funding, philanthropy has been met with mounting pressure to play a bigger role in funding human services programs, including SNAP.

California’s special election prompted some funders to act quickly to ensure access to the polls. Maintaining and growing that support will be key going into 2026. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) Reports: tinyurl.com/2t5t3d26 #DemocracyFund #ElectionProtection #VotingRights

The 83-year-old heir and rail entrepreneur Timothy Mellon is one of Trump’s top political donors. His recent gift, meant to pay troops during the government shutdown, has raised eyebrows. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) Reports: tinyurl.com/2p9rjken #TimothyMellon #MegaDonors

"The possibility remains that [Timothy] Mellon is trying to influence military personnel to his or Trump’s favor, while also giving the White House a way to argue that as Democrats extend the shutdown, big Trump donors have the troops’ interests in mind."

As the federal government threatens to revoke the 501c3 status of nonprofit organizations, a new California law will allow organizations to continue to receive grants and contracts from the state. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) reports: tinyurl.com/3aakwvav #NonprofitLaw

“In the spirit of trying to figure out how to protect a...crucial part of California’s resilience and resistance to the Trump administration’s agenda, we wanted to ensure that California would be in a position to continue to...grant and contract with our nonprofit organizations that we depend on.”

Now in its second year, the Trust for Civic Life is bringing people together in underserved rural communities to tackle local issues that matter most to them. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) reports: tinyurl.com/ycxrcnww #CivicEngagement #Philanthropy #Democracy #RuralDevelopment

With a new tool, the Appalachia Funders Network wants to guide funders to where their dollars can make the most impact as the region strives to recover from Hurricane Helene and prepare for future climate disasters. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) reports: tinyurl.com/px4xz7jv

“If our democracy is to survive, the freedoms of speech and the press need a vigorous, determined defense." www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/free-sp...

Women make up the majority of members in 70% of all giving circles, which are steadily popular and more democratic ways of giving. With more than 4,000 giving circles in the U.S., here's some women’s giving circles to know. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) reports: tinyurl.com/4vm6p555

With a renewed contract and an injection of philanthropic dollars, Ready to Rise will continue its work to support youth in Los Angeles for another seven years. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) reports: tinyurl.com/mpsnxxfy #YouthJustice #JusticeReform #YouthDevelopment

Trump has taken aim at mail-in voting. With the midterm elections on the way, philanthropy’s role in supporting the right to vote has become all the more critical, and it’s not just “democracy funders” who need to step up. Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) reports: tinyurl.com/ummnm85j

“You can never have a real democracy with mail-in voting. We as a Republican Party are going to do everything possible that we get rid of mail-in ballots,” President Trump said. For philanthropic funders and the nonprofits they support, this is a moment of truth.

Warnock to RFK jr: "For the first time, we are seeing deaths of children from measles. We haven't seen that in two decades. We're seeing that under your watch. You are a hazard to the health of the American people."

BREAKING: A new experiment in Philly shows cash rental assistance slashed homelessness rates by 57–67%.

A group of philanthropic funders has come together to commit $36.5 million in emergency funding for at-risk public television and radio stations. The fund will focus on rural, Indigenous and other underserved communities that are most vulnerable to losing their stations due to federal cuts.

"Whether people see racial justice as a winning issue or not, it is something that they have to contend with." Originally launched as a five-year initiative following the murder of George Floyd, the Black Freedom Fund is now a independent, permanent institution working to advance racial justice.

President Trump says he wants to get rid of mail-in voting in resumption of criticism.

With the imminent closure of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, philanthropic support for public news will be all the more critical. Here’s who’s funding public news, including @pbsnews.org and @npr.org.

“Retrenchment or going back on those investments will take us back to the place that we recovered from… The job is not done. We’ve learned a lot about what can be helpful and effective in these spaces. We need to continue to double down."

Allan Ahlberg, a beloved author of best-selling children’s books, many of them illustrated by his wife, Janet Ahlberg, has died at 87.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which has distributed federal funds to both PBS and NPR for decades, announced Friday that it's shutting down. The news comes after President Donald Trump recently clawed back more than a billion dollars of funding for public broadcasting.

Although donations to local PBS stations have jumped in recent weeks, the surge isn’t enough to make up for the federal funding that has been lost. Already, stations are making cuts, with some even finding themselves at risk of closure.

Funders were hopeful about making progress on homelessness. Then the pandemic hit. How have approaches evolved? And how will the Trump administration impact the crisis? Martha Ramirez(@martharamirez.bsky.social) reports: tinyurl.com/2jdbf4ep #HomelessnessCrisis #HousingFirst #AffordableHousing

President Trump has issued an executive order that: 1) calls for the institutionalization of unhoused people with mental illnesses, 2) and end to Housing First policies, and 3) calls for cities and states to criminalize homelessness. www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/...

scoop: donations to NPR and PBS stations have exploded, with donors across the country giving in unprecedented numbers since Congress cut federal funding www.nytimes.com/2025/07/24/b...

Conventional wisdom would suggest homelessness would rise across the U.S. during the pandemic, but the data shows that levels remained relatively steady through 2022. It wasn't until after pandemic-era funding ran out and protection began to lapse that homelessness began to surge.

First reported by @missionlocal.org, Michael Mortiz's Crankstart Foundation has awarded $3.4 million to help the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office hire additional attorneys so it can better meet the increased need for immigration services.

While the right to peaceably assemble is enshrined in the First Amendment, in recent years, legislation has been introduced to curb the right to protest and broaden existing time, manner and place restrictions. These efforts are part of the ongoing attacks against American rights.

At the urging of President Trump, Congress is expected to vote this week on whether to cut $500 million per year for public radio and TV stations.

Wow — New Gallup poll: — Trump approval on immigration: 35-62 (!) — Record high approval of immigration (79-17 overall) — 78% of people support a pathway to citizenship (+8 from 2024); only 38% support mass deportation (-9 from 2024) — 30% want a decrease in immigration (-25 from 2024)

🥦🏛️ As food aid gets slashed, communities are taking matters into their own hands. A growing movement is reclaiming land, building food systems, and creating real alternatives to top-down charity. 📖 @martharamirez.bsky.social Reports: tinyurl.com/9tkvtpdx ‪@kresge.org‬ #Philanthropy #EFOD

“We understand that we need to feed people. We really need to be solving why people are hungry in the first place, and so we’re really wanting to solve for those issues ourselves," said Camryn Smith, co-founder and executive director of Communities in Partnership.

BREAKING: A federal judge says Donald Trump's crackdown on aslyum for those crossing the southern border exceeded his legal authority and must be halted. He grants sweeping class protection. ecf.dcd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show...

Backed by The California Endowment and others, Global Village: The Refugee & Immigrant Cultural Hub's planned campus will feature affordable housing units, a market to incubate small businesses, convening spaces for building community, and a nonprofit hub offering wraparound services.

Twitter is not real life

⚖️ As protests erupt and power consolidates, philanthropy is being tested. 🔹 Grassroots orgs face political targeting 🔹 Funders are stepping up and speaking out 📖 @martharamirez.bsky.social Reports tinyurl.com/y7x3dtfe @calwellness.bsky.social‬ ‪@calendow.bsky.social‬ ‪@chirla-org.bsky.social‬

Between the fear brought about by ICE raids, President Trump's decision to mobilize the military against protesters, and Sen. Padilla's detainment during a DHS press briefing, Los Angeles has become a microcosm of how authoritarianism is gaining traction in the U.S.

"We may get the misconception that we don’t have capacity, we don’t have assets, and it couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s really just fair access to resources that we lack, and that’s clearly what I think the data shows,” said Ryan Eller, executive director of the Appalachia Funders Network.