Representative Philanthropy & Collaboration Grants

Grants Overview

• Connecting Business and Social Entrepreneurs Worldwide
       Recognizing that social entrepreneurs often lack the business acumen of their for-profit business peers and that successful business professionals are often frustrated with traditional philanthropic options, Ashoka, the largest association of social entrepreneurs in the world, created the Ashoka Support Network (ASN). ASN matches Ashoka Fellows in one-to-one partnerships with successful small and medium-sized business entrepreneurs to engage a new generation of businesspeople in philanthropy, to leverage resources from the business community for social entrepreneurship, and to support the Fellows in a sustainable, mutually beneficial and systematic manner. ASN members commit to a three-year engagement, which includes a financial contribution (to Ashoka) and a donation of time to Ashoka Fellows, according to their interests and availability (ranging from problem-solving sessions to intensive mentoring). Lodestar funds will support fine-tuning the ASN model, testing it in Europe and then scaling the initiative globally.

• Lodestar Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Innovation
       Arizona State University (ASU) is America’s second largest university in terms of student enrollment. Its Center for Nonprofit Leadership and Management is already functioning well as a local and national nonprofit resource, with over 1,000 students enrolled in its programs and hundreds of nonprofits taking advantage of its offerings. The center—part of an alliance between ASU, Indiana University, and Grand Valley State University in Michigan—has received support from numerous local and national business and nonprofit partners, including the Kellogg Foundation, which has made a significant investment in the growth of the Center. Research, education, nonprofit assistance and community programs, all managed through the center, bolster the nonprofit sector and allow for assessment and knowledge sharing in the community.
       Scattered resources in Arizona deal with various aspects of philanthropy, but currently there is no central location for philanthropy scholarship and education. Lodestar saw an opportunity to invest in the Center and transform it into the true community, local, and national resource that the sector demands. Newly named The Lodestar Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Innovation, the Center will have the means and vision to become the premier resource for community and sector collaboration with grantmakers and the public. Because of the Center’s already preeminent position in the industry, it has the tools to grow into a hub for research, scholarship and promotion of philanthropy nationwide, while catapulting Arizona into a leading role in the growth of philanthropy.
       Over the course of five years, the Center will use the grant to add four new faculty positions, as well as implement programs closely tied to Lodestar’s mission of promoting philanthropy and encouraging collaboration among nonprofits. ($5,000,000)
  http://www.asu.edu/copp/nonprofit/

• Joint Planning Grant to Expand Philanthropy in Former Soviet Union
       The Synergos Institute, with its expertise in expanding philanthropy around the world, wanted to create a culture of philanthropy in the former Soviet Union; the Eurasia Foundation has done extensive civic and economic development community work in the region. Pursuant to an invitation from Lodestar, Synergos and the Eurasia Foundation secured a planning grant that enabled both organizations to jointly assess the readiness of this region for philanthropic development. The grant led to a work plan, which can serve as the basis for an initial pilot project in the selected countries. ($13,614)

• Establishment of Philanthropy-Building Organization in Phoenix
       The recent increase in wealth of young professionals and baby boomers has not been accompanied by a corresponding increase in philanthropy. Social Venture Partners (“SVP”), a philanthropic giving circle with the dual mission of encouraging and teaching strategic philanthropy and supporting emerging non-profits, was initiated in Seattle in 1997. Lodestar founded the second SVP group, Social Venture Partners Arizona (“SVPAZ”) in 1999. SVPAZ partners pool their money to invest in innovative nonprofits and then actively nurture their investments by providing hands-on technical assistance, business expertise and strategic guidance. Since inception, SVPAZ has (1) invested more than $2.5 million in community nonprofits serving children and education, (2) contributed thousands of hours of professional services to its investees, (3) initiated a venture philanthropy program for teenagers, and (4) recruited and trained more than 300 financially successful individuals (SVPAZ partners) to become strategic philanthropists. Today there are over twenty SVP affiliates. ($420,000)
  http://www.svpaz.org

• Capacity-Building of International Philanthropy-Building Network
       Although like-minded nonprofits may recognize the value of creating an umbrella organization to help sustain and support their common activities, they often don’t have the resources to enable the entity to be effective. Social Venture Partners International was formed to brand, support, expand and enhance the work of the individual Social Venture Partner (“SVP”) groups around the world. Lodestar funds have supported annual SVP conferences and an evaluation of the effectiveness of the SVP model, the results of which are being used by the SVP network members to increase effectiveness and demonstrate the impact of the model on their respective communities. ($60,000)
  http://www.svpinternational.org

• Support of Conference Convening International Foundation Professionals
       Foundation professionals have relatively few opportunities to discuss with each other their accumulated experience and expertise. The Senior Fellows program of The Synergos Institute identifies talented foundation leaders from vanguard philanthropic institutions worldwide and links them to a global learning and service network, with the goal of strengthening foundations in the developing world. Fellows serve as peer consultants to other foundations around the world; their work produces knowledge on trends and innovative models, which Synergos distributes to a wide audience. A Lodestar grant, which helped underwrite an annual meeting of the Senior Fellows, also supported the development of a marketing plan to promote the Senior Fellows program to the foundation community. ($75,000)
  http://www.synergos.org/programs/fellows.htm

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