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Citibank has announced a second round of investments through the Citi Impact Fund in Black-, women-, and veteran-led companies working to address pressing social problems.
Launched in 2020, the $200 million fund makes equity investments in "double bottom line" companies working to create impact in one of five areas: workforce development, financial capability, physical and social infrastructure, sustainability, and access to capital and economic opportunity.
"The Citi Impact Fund is broadening access to capital for founders like me," said MedHaul founder and CEO Erica Plybeah. "MedHaul is the first company receiving earlier-stage seed investment from the fund, and we're extremely excited to partner with Citi as we scale our company to support more people in need of quality, dependable medical transportation."
Looking to help drive economic opportunity and upward mobility, Bank of America announced Tuesday that it will be making more than $4.2 million in grants to 75 New Jersey nonprofits.
The grants, announced during “Giving Tuesday,” will be used by groups that focus on basic needs, affordable housing, workforce development and small business and economic revitalization, Bank of America New Jersey President Alberto Garofalo said.
“As part of our commitment to sustainable growth, helping local organizations address immediate short- and long-term needs has been key on our path of economic recovery,” he said. “By supporting New Jersey’s incredible network of nonprofits, Bank of America is providing philanthropic capital to help advance economic and social progress, establishing pathways to success and stability for our community.”
Please join us to share our work, brainstorm solutions, and discuss areas of common interest. Up to four funders can present a five-minute grant problem or opportunity to be workshopped. Bring your summary slide and get advice or feedback from your peers. Everyone will get a chance to share, opine, advise, and connect. Enrollment is limited to facilitate dialogue.
To reserve one of the four mini-workshop spots, please email Chanika Svetvilas by June 18.
Cost: Free for CNJG Members; $50 for Non Member Grantmakers
This program is only open to Education Funders.
In our most recent funding rounds, the Dodge Foundation made more than $5.4 million in grants to nonprofit organizations supporting the arts, education, environment, informed communities, sector capacity building, and new Imagine a New Way and Momentum Fund grantees.
In our Imagine a New Way and Momentum Fund grantmaking, we have been investing in and taking guidance from networks, movements, organizations, and leaders who are closest to the harms of injustice; who have been historically excluded from investment and opportunity; and who are working to address the root cause and repair of structural racism and inequity in their work.
These grantee partners lead organizations and initiatives that strategically build power; dismantle systems of injustice; and strengthen economic resilience through narrative change, movement building and organizing, policy advocacy, and sector capacity building.
The Newark Funders Affinity Group is convening an emergency meeting to discuss the impact that the Trump administration will have on the local New Jersey community, especially with its new migration immigration policy.
At this meeting you will have the opportunity to hear from local leaders of community-based organizations that are beginning to plan for the fallout from these new federal policies. They will share what they anticipate will happen, what is needed to best prepare, and how philanthropy can help.
This event is being held at the Victoria Foundation but attendance can also be via Zoom. Instructions are provided in the e-mail confirmation on how to obtain the Zoom meeting instructions.
Cost: Free for CNJG Members; $50 for Non Member Grantmakers
The Bridging The Gap: Blacks in Philanthropy conference, is organized by the Smith Family Foundation.
Their mission for this conference is to promote philanthropy and drive social change in the community, and this event is a vital step toward achieving that goal. The conference is expected to draw over 300 attendees, including philanthropy professionals, non-profit executives, community leaders, and interested individuals. The agenda features keynote speeches, panel discussions, workshops on racial equity, diversity, and inclusion in philanthropy, and strategies for advancing social justice. This conference is a unique opportunity to engage in collaborative discussions, gain valuable insights, and build meaningful connections with like-minded individuals who share a passion for creating positive change. Together, we will explore innovative strategies, best practices, and impactful initiatives that empower and uplift black lives.
Cost: $100
Open to all Grantmakers
Mayor Steven M. Fulop, the Office of Cultural Affairs, and the Jersey City Arts and Culture Trust Fund Committee are proud to announce the recipients of the fourth round of Arts and Culture Trust Fund grants, awarding over $1 million to 112 artists, organizations, and arts education initiatives across Jersey City. By helping Jersey City artists and cultural organizations continue to thrive, these critical investments fulfill the Fulop Administration’s initial goals when the state’s first Arts and Culture Trust Fund was launched in 2020.
“This round of grant funding not only marks our largest to date, but it also builds on our promise to prioritize equity, opportunity, and cultural vitality citywide,” said Mayor Fulop. “In just 5 years, we’ve awarded nearly 400 grants worth over $4 million to support Jersey City artists and arts organizations.”
Several Atlantic City-based nonprofits received funding to further their missions this week.
The Atlantic City Community Fund in partnership with the Community Foundation of South Jersey awarded grants 37 organizations during a reception at Cardinal Restaurant in Atlantic City.
The annual celebration brought together local changemakers, fund partners and community leaders to recognize the impactful work being done across the city. Grantees had the opportunity to connect, share their missions and engage with the fund's board and supporters.
“The Atlantic City Community Fund is dedicated to empowering local organizations that are on the frontlines of positive change,” board President Benjamin Zeltner said. “This year’s group of grantees reflects the heart, resilience, and innovation of Atlantic City.”
Rising Tide Capital (RTC), a prominent New Jersey-based entrepreneurship training organization, has received a transformative three-year, $1.5 million grant from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation to catalyze the nonprofit’s programmatic expansion in Trenton and throughout New Jersey. This award, approved by the Foundation’s Board of Trustees, will provide $500,000 annually to advance RTC’s impactful entrepreneurship education and workforce development initiatives catering to historically marginalized communities.
The Dodge Foundation’s strategic investment will bolster entrepreneurship education centered on high-opportunity licensed, credentialed, and certified career pathways. It will also provide comprehensive one-on-one technical assistance, resilience coaching, and tailored business support to entrepreneurs. Furthermore, the grant will fund strategic innovation projects that integrate RTC’s established programs with statewide partners, thereby significantly expanding the reach and accessibility of services to underserved communities throughout New Jersey.
It was absolutely wonderful being together in person with so many members and nonprofit partners at the CNJG 2023 Conference for the Social Sector on May 23. I’m proud that our conferences elevate important issues for the field, this year focusing on Doing Good Better - a joint initiative between CNJG and the New Jersey Center for Nonprofits. And it was our highest attended conference ever!
The day opened with an insightful panel of foundation leaders who have joined the movement and are taking their organizations on the Doing Good Better journey by implementing trust-based philanthropy and participatory grantmaking in their organization’s DNA. Thank you Tanuja Dehne, President and CEO, Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Craig Drinkard, Executive Officer, Victoria Foundation, Jeremy Grunin, President and CEO, Grunin Foundation, and Samantha Plotino, Executive Director, The Provident Bank Foundation, for sharing your wisdom and showing us what’s possible.
Keynote speaker Shaady Salehi, Executive Director of the Trust-Based Philanthropy Project, was masterful at both introducing trust-based philanthropy to audience members new to these concepts, while also deepening and expanding our understanding of trust-based philanthropy for those of us already familiar with the ideas. As part of her presentation, she also trusted us with 2 compelling stories of power sharing from her personal experience. It was a powerful moment.
Each of the morning and afternoon sessions offered practical steps to address a specific area or challenge within the Doing Good Better tent. We’re grateful to all our conference speakers. It was a dream link-up of talent and expertise.
Following Shaady’s presentation, we posed 4 questions for discussion. And because these questions are so important to help inform our ongoing Doing Good Better work, I’m posing them again to you:
- What are some practice changes your organization can make to embody trust-based philanthropy and/or the broader ideals under the Doing Better Good tent?
- What are funders doing to lean into a trust-based approach that centers relationship-building, mutual learning, and transparency? What more could be done?
- Have you implemented any of the principles of trust-based philanthropy or Doing Good Better ideals, and what has been your organization’s experience?
- What are some of the ways that racial equity, and intersectional equity issues, can be addressed using the ideas under the Doing Good Better tent and/or trust-based philanthropy practices?
Your ideas and responses will help us in our Doing Good Better work – I hope you’ll share them with me.
Finally, thank you to our sponsors for supporting this event: PSEG, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Sixers Youth Foundation, Citi, Grunin Foundation, Panasonic Foundation, Valley National Bank, PKF O’Connor Davies, TriNet, LISC – Greater Newark, and The Palace at Somerset Park. We’re grateful for your support.
Doing Good Better invites philanthropy and nonprofits to rethink traditional philanthropy, and advance equity in the nonprofit sector, in philanthropy, and in New Jersey. CNJG’s new strategic plan specifically embraces shared power and leadership, equity as an organizing principle, trust-based philanthropy, participatory grantmaking, elevating partnerships, and cross-sector relationships grounded in inclusion. These ideas make up the Doing Good Better tent, and I’m proud we could share them at our 2023 Conference.
In partnership,
Theresa Jacks, President and CEO
Council of New Jersey Grantmakers