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In predominantly renter-based markets across the Northeast, housing-related financial strain remains a significant barrier to household stability and long-term economic security. Yet innovative models are emerging that seek to flip that script, creating pathways for renters to build assets, reduce risk, and participate more fully in local prosperity.

Building on the momentum from AFN’s September 2024 webinar exploring regional strategies to increase affordability, reduce evictions, and deliver financial return or dividends to renters, this session will take a deeper dive into renter wealth-building models in action.

Join AFN, partners in New Jersey, and collaborators from national nonprofits and financial institutions as we explore promising approaches that leverage public-private tools, housing finance innovation, and credit-building strategies tied to rent payment. We’ll examine how these approaches can expand renter access to economic opportunity and help funders consider how to adapt similar efforts in urban centers across the region.

Speakers:
Rachel Levy-Culler, Housing Innovations Senior Specialist, Credit Builders Alliance (CBA)
Marcus Randolph, President & CEO, Invest Newark
Khaatim Sherrer El, Executive Director, Clinton Hill Community Action
Marco Villegas, Program Officer, JPMorgan Chase

 Who Should Attend:
Philanthropic leaders, community investors, housing advocates, and public-private partners working to advance financial security and equity for renters. This webinar is open to all and will focus on the New Jersey and Northeast AFN regions.

Captioning will be provided. If you have any other accessibility requests or questions, please email Paula Dworek. Requests for reasonable accommodations must be received by May 5, 2025, to ensure our ability to meet your request.

Philanthropy can be defined in many ways. The word comes from the Greek, meaning "love for humanity." Modern definitions include the concept of voluntary giving by an individual or group to promote the common good and improve the quality of life.

Here in the United States, the term "philanthropy" is also used to describe the granting of money to nonprofit organizations by foundations and corporations. This type of giving is often called organized philanthropy or grantmaking.

This popular, fast-paced video offers a realistic — and often humorous — glimpse of how the public views philanthropy, using a series of "people in the street" interviews shot in the Twin Cities plus interviews with local donors. Discover the true, and often not so true, meaning of philanthropy.

Co-produced by the Minnesota Council on Foundations, The Minneapolis Foundation and the Minnesota Community Foundation and The Saint Paul Foundation.

The COVID-19 public health and economic crisis has changed our world as we know it. As employers moved to remote work, schools shifted to distance learning, and businesses closed completely, it became clear that the impact on residents, nonprofits, and businesses was far greater than anyone could have ever imagined.

In response to the growing and evolving needs of our region, the Greater Washington Community Foundation established the COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund to raise and rapidly deploy funding to local nonprofits providing food, shelter, educational supports, and other critical services.

From the beginning our goal was clear: to address the immediate needs and reach adversely affected communities, particularly low-income households and communities of color. We know all too well that in a crisis like this, these marginalized communities are hit the hardest, and often take the longest to recover.

In times of crises, The Community Foundation is our region’s philanthropic first responder, bringing together individuals and families, philanthropic peers, corporate partners, and local government advisors to address community issues. Building on our rich history of emergency response work, we grounded our COVID-19 response efforts in a similar coordinated approach.

This report chronicles the steps taken, under immense pressure, to develop a coordinated emergency response effort to support a broad range of needs across the region. Once again this effort has demonstrated that working in partnership and close collaboration with our philanthropic peers and local government advisors is an effective way to manage a response to both urgent and longer-term needs.

Foundations and nonprofits create more resilient and impactful change when their strategies are shaped by the communities most harmed by inequities. The COVID-19 pandemic taught us invaluable lessons about the importance of community listening and nimble response. In the face of the social sector's recent turmoil, re-applying and building upon those lessons is more urgent than ever.

This virtual session, presented by Maryland Philanthropy Network prese with Listen4Good, will explore how to carry forward best practices from the pandemic to meet today’s challenges. We’ll share strategies–including timely use cases–for responding to shifting community needs. Fellow funders and Listen4Good, a subject matter expert, will share about their successes, challenges, and best practices for centering community voice in grantmaking.

Learning Objectives:
Promising practices and framework for practicing equity-centered listening on a personal and organizational basis.
Resources that can support funders to center community in their work and integrate  community needs effectively into grantmaking efforts.
Real-life examples and use cases that connect lessons from COVID-era responses to current grantmaking challenges.

Presenters:
Anne Allen, Program Officer, The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation
Christine Marcos, Senior Program Officer, Moses Taylor Foundation
Valerie Threlfall, Executive Director, Listen4Good

This workshop will empower attendees to bring local stakeholders together to center community perspectives. Join us to reimagine how we can collectively uplift community voices for greater impact!

This program is for members of Maryland Philanthropy Network, the Council of New Jersey Grantmakers, New York Funders Alliance, Florida Philanthropic Network, Philanthropy Network of Greater Philadelphia, and the North Carolina Network of Grantmakers.

About Listen4Good: Listen4Good helps nonprofits gather and analyze feedback from their community. Listen4Good also supports funders to convene participating nonprofit leaders and use community trends data to inform grantmaking. Since 2016, Listen4Good has supported 1200 organizations through their coaching and resources.

Developed in partnership with United Philanthropy Forum and Northern California Grantmakers, this guide shares seven practices and 12 tools for Philanthropy-Serving Organizations who seek effective ways to mobilize resources to sustain their organization’s work. The guide features perspectives from dozens of leaders of national and regional PSOs and examples from our work with these organizations. Much of the content is based on conversations and strategy work with PSO leaders, staff and board members.