Takeaways from Taproot Foundation’s 2024 U.S. Pro Bono Summit
Taproot celebrated its annual U.S. Pro Bono Summit in New York City earlier in May, generously hosted by venue sponsor PwC at their Midtown Manhattan location. The Summit was a dynamic cross-sector gathering of practitioners from across corporate, philanthropic, and nonprofit sectors, all working to amplify and support social change through skilled volunteerism. The first fully in-person Pro Bono Summit since...
Read MoreWhat is Skills-Based Volunteering?
When you think of volunteering, images of cleaning up your local park or working in a food pantry may come to mind. While hands-on volunteering is critical to fulfilling many nonprofits’ missions, other forms of support can help organizations as well. Most nonprofits don’t have access to the resources, funding, or qualified talent to function effectively. A donation of professional...
Read MoreInnovations in Grantee Support: Venture Philanthropy and Skills-Based Volunteering
Family foundations play a key role in funding nonprofits at work in our communities, and more and more foundations are providing general operations funding and resources that build capacity—support that dramatically affects the longevity and effectiveness of any given program. The ‘why’ is clear: if a funder wants to offer the most-needed and least-supplied form of support, they will focus...
Read MoreGetting Your Foundation’s Board on Board with Pro Bono: Tips from Tarah Evans of the Franklin and Catherine Johnson Foundation
General operations funding and capacity-building resources from family foundations make a big difference for their grantees. Nonprofits that receive them have a much better chance of thriving, growing, and increasing their impact. Funders like the Franklin and Catherine Johnson Foundation have found that integrating pro bono into their grantee offerings to subsidize capacity building has been incredibly rewarding for all...
Read MorePro Bono + Pro Mujer = Deeper Social Impact
On September 17, Pro Mujer participated in a Pro Bono Challenge hosted by MasterCard Worldwide and organized by Taproot Foundation. When we first were invited, we were intrigued by the concept. For us, the real issue is how do you make pro bono work? How do you get valuable technical expertise through employee engagement that will have impact on an...
Read MoreArmin’s pro bono adventures reloaded week 3
By Armin Pialek, Taproot and BMW Foundation Project Manager San Francisco, more than any other city in the world, stands for technology and innovation - both of which can deeply leverage impact for nonprofits. This week I want to draw attention to a very powerful collaboration between the Taproot Foundation and LinkedIn. As the largest network of professionals in the...
Read MoreThe Taproot Foundation and the Foundation Center Announce New Strategic Partnership
New York, NY, July 25, 2013. Taproot Foundation and the Foundation Center announced today the launch of a new partnership that seeks to expand knowledge-sharing resources and support for the nonprofit sector. Strengthening the nonprofit sector through partnership Both organizations already offer trailblazing tools and services for nonprofits seeking access to pro bono resources (Taproot) and knowledge about financial grants...
Read MorePro Bono + Grant-Making = Philanthropy 2.0?
By Alexandra McArthur, Associate Consultant, Advisory Services, Taproot Foundation The anticipation was mounting as American Express President, Ed Gilligan took the stage. The American Express employees in attendance held their breath and then cheers erupted as he announced the 10 teams whose strategy recommendations had been selected for funding from American Express. Contrary to what you might expect, American Express...
Read MoreA Skills-Based Revolutionary: Taproot’s Aaron Hurst
Below is an excerpt from an interview with Aaron Hurst by Ryan Scott, CEO of Causecast and Forbes contributor. A taproot is the core root of a plant that gathers nutrients from lateral roots and delivers them to the plant so it can flourish. Which makes it the perfect name for an organization that sees itself as a taproot for...
Read MoreSix Common Pro Bono Models
When we think about pro bono services, we typically picture teams of business professionals doing projects for a nonprofit -- building a new Web site, helping to create a strategic plan for an organization, and so on. In reality, there's an incredibly diverse array of models through which nonprofits can receive pro bono resources. Here are the six most common...
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