Giving by Women’s Funds Has Soared. And They’re Getting More Savvy and Strategic

A new study by the Women’s Philanthropy Institute, “Women’s Foundations and Funds: A Landscape Study,” reveals the grantmaking practices and range of giving philosophies and principles among 209 American women’s foundations and funds that focus on giving to nonprofits that benefit women and girls.  It is the first study of its kind since 2009, when the Women’s Funding Network and Foundation Center issued the report “Accelerating Change for Women: The Role of Women’s Funds,” which studied 145 women’s funds in the Women’s Funding Network. 

Read more in Inside Philanthropy.

Women in Philanthropy

This article, with insights from the Women's Philanthropy Institute, is of particular interest to me, given my work with Progressive Women Silicon Valley, a political giving circle.

A key takeaway: "Pockets of very powerful women at the community and grassroots level are forming their own giving circles, their own collective giving models, their own modes of engaging in philanthropy, to make powerful changes in their own communities and across the globe," said Mesch.