The Center for Effective Philanthropy https://cep.org/ Tue, 13 May 2025 14:34:02 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.2 https://cep.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/cropped-cep-logo-square-32x32.jpg The Center for Effective Philanthropy https://cep.org/ 32 32 If You Know You Know: What If Philanthropy is Mistaking Wealth for Expertise? https://cep.org/blog/if-you-know-you-know-what-if-philanthropy-is-mistaking-wealth-for-expertise/ Tue, 13 May 2025 14:17:05 +0000 https://cep.org/?p=11121 Individualism. Competition. Risk aversion. Short-termism. Scarcity. Presumed expertise. Many of the norms by which philanthropy operates perpetuate the very narratives our sector seeks to change. In this series on the […]

The post If You Know You Know: What If Philanthropy is Mistaking Wealth for Expertise? appeared first on The Center for Effective Philanthropy.

]]> In Conversation: About Those 100-and-Some Days https://cep.org/blog/in-conversation-about-those-100-and-some-days/ Thu, 08 May 2025 14:11:33 +0000 https://cep.org/?p=11106 This is the first in a series of occasional chats among some of CEP’s staff we’ll be posting on the blog, in which they discuss the current context for philanthropy […]

The post In Conversation: About Those 100-and-Some Days appeared first on The Center for Effective Philanthropy.

]]> Leaning Into Abundance: What If Philanthropy’s Potential Wasn’t Limited by Manufactured Scarcity? https://cep.org/blog/leaning-into-abundance-what-if-philanthropys-potential-wasnt-limited-by-manufactured-scarcity/ Tue, 06 May 2025 14:03:42 +0000 https://cep.org/?p=11101 Individualism. Competition. Risk aversion. Short-termism. Scarcity. Presumed expertise. Many of the norms by which philanthropy operates perpetuate the very narratives our sector seeks to change. In this series on the […]

The post Leaning Into Abundance: What If Philanthropy’s Potential Wasn’t Limited by Manufactured Scarcity? appeared first on The Center for Effective Philanthropy.

]]> The Long Arc: Philanthropy’s Role in Nurturing Multiracial Democracy https://cep.org/blog/the-long-arc-philanthropys-role-in-nurturing-multiracial-democracy/ Thu, 01 May 2025 13:53:44 +0000 https://cep.org/?p=11093 In times of political turbulence, the impulse to focus solely on immediate challenges is understandable. Yet history reminds us that democracy has always been a long-term project — one that […]

The post The Long Arc: Philanthropy’s Role in Nurturing Multiracial Democracy appeared first on The Center for Effective Philanthropy.

]]> The AI Wave is Here – And Too Many Funders Are Standing on the Beach https://cep.org/blog/the-ai-wave-is-here-and-too-many-funders-are-standing-on-the-beach/ Tue, 29 Apr 2025 14:05:55 +0000 https://cep.org/?p=11064 An education nonprofit uses artificial intelligence (AI) to support k-12 students individually to become stronger writers. A metropolitan county deploys AI to forecast which individuals accessing services are at risk […]

The post The AI Wave is Here – And Too Many Funders Are Standing on the Beach appeared first on The Center for Effective Philanthropy.

]]> Trust, Transparency, and Resilience: How a Multiyear Grants Budget Benefits Grantees and Foundation Staff https://cep.org/blog/trust-transparency-and-resilience-how-a-multiyear-grants-budget-benefits-grantees-and-foundation-staff/ Thu, 24 Apr 2025 14:00:00 +0000 https://cep.org/?p=11062 Four years ago, the Sewall Foundation decided to tackle an incongruence in our practice of trust-based philanthropy: how to make multiyear grants within a structure of single-year grants budgets. The […]

The post Trust, Transparency, and Resilience: How a Multiyear Grants Budget Benefits Grantees and Foundation Staff appeared first on The Center for Effective Philanthropy.

]]> Spending Stories: What If We Moved from Perpetuity to Purpose? https://cep.org/blog/spending-stories-moving-from-perpetuity-to-purpose/ Tue, 22 Apr 2025 14:15:00 +0000 https://cep.org/?p=11050 Individualism. Competition. Risk aversion. Short-termism. Scarcity. Presumed expertise. Many of the norms by which philanthropy operates perpetuate the very narratives our sector seeks to change. In this series on the CEP […]

The post Spending Stories: What If We Moved from Perpetuity to Purpose? appeared first on The Center for Effective Philanthropy.

]]> Positioning and Repositioning: What if What We Inherited Doesn’t Have to Be the Legacy We Leave? https://cep.org/blog/positioning-and-repositioning-what-if-what-we-inherited-doesnt-have-to-be-the-legacy-we-leave/ Thu, 17 Apr 2025 14:24:52 +0000 https://cep.org/?p=11042 Individualism. Competition. Risk aversion. Short-termism. Scarcity. Presumed expertise. Many of the norms by which philanthropy operates perpetuate the very narratives our sector seeks to change. In this series on the CEP […]

The post Positioning and Repositioning: What if What We Inherited Doesn’t Have to Be the Legacy We Leave? appeared first on The Center for Effective Philanthropy.

]]> How Can You Know If You Don’t Ask? Nonprofits Report Primary Concerns in Recent CEP Surveys https://cep.org/blog/how-can-you-know-if-you-dont-ask-nonprofits-report-primary-concerns-in-recent-cep-surveys/ Tue, 15 Apr 2025 14:08:15 +0000 https://cep.org/?p=11028 In uncertain times, strong relationships matter more than ever. We’d argue that it’s nearly impossible to build genuinely strong relationships with grantees if you’re not asking them about their challenges […]

The post How Can You Know If You Don’t Ask? Nonprofits Report Primary Concerns in Recent CEP Surveys appeared first on The Center for Effective Philanthropy.

]]> A Path to Repair: What if Philanthropy Wasn’t About Giving Away Money, but Returning It? https://cep.org/blog/a-path-to-repair-what-if-philanthropy-wasnt-about-giving-away-money-but-returning-it/ Thu, 10 Apr 2025 14:15:32 +0000 https://cep.org/?p=11021 Individualism. Competition. Risk aversion. Short-termism. Scarcity. Presumed expertise. Many of the norms by which philanthropy operates perpetuate the very narratives our sector seeks to change. In this series on the CEP […]

The post A Path to Repair: What if Philanthropy Wasn’t About Giving Away Money, but Returning It? appeared first on The Center for Effective Philanthropy.

]]>