Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors

Office of American Possibilities

Founded in 2023, Frontline Justice established by the Office of American Possibilities, is a broad-based coalition uniting to increase substantive access to civil justice recourses. The effort aims to be both a force multiplier for a growing ecosystem of new civil legal approaches addressing the justice crisis in the US and a catalyst for advocacy and democratic empowerment. With this award, Frontline Justice intends to both surface and launch a national “civic moonshot” in the domain of civil justice. Funds support research activities, field- and capacity-building, as well as strategy development to bring the initiative to life and seed a sustaining movement for this work.

Fund for Shared Insight

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (RPA), founded in 2001 and based in New York, NY, is a nonprofit organization that helps donors create thoughtful, effective philanthropy throughout the world. RPA is the fiscal sponsor of the Fund for Shared Insight (FSI), a donor collaborative working to improve the practice of philanthropy by developing and promoting better communication between foundations, nonprofits, and the organizations and individuals that nonprofits and foundations seek to help. This grant provides flexible support to FSI for its core activities.

Trust for Civic Infrastructure

In alignment with More Perfect, a multi-pronged democracy strengthening effort, the Trust for Civic Infrastructure (TFCI), started in 2022, is a funding initiative spearheaded by Rockefeller Brother’s Fund (RBF) and fiscally sponsored by Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, meant to forge a transformed sense of common purpose and community to help meet the challenges the nation faces. TFCI seeks to elevate and support civic organizations that are connecting Americans, both in-person and digitally, and to local community assets, in ways that can help to revitalize our nation’s democracy. This grant enables TCFI to support capacity needs and establish the demonstration phase of the initiative. The intended outcomes are to develop a mechanism that surfaces and sustains democratic civic infrastructure innovation and leadership, especially in small towns and rural communities, across the country.

The Equation Campaign

This award renews flexible project support to the Equation Campaign, which is a fiscally sponsored project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors. The Equation Campaign is a ten-year funding initiative to bring about a safe and just future by enhancing the power of movements to keep oil and gas in the ground. In pursuit of this goal, Equation Campaign has established the Frontline Environmental Justice Fund to make grants to frontline communities, ensuring they are getting the resources that they need to carry out effective campaigns. Grantmaking is guided by a strategy that prioritizes shifting financial power away from the oil and gas industry, elevating frontline stories, providing legal support and defense, and lifting individual campaigns toward building a larger movement. In the coming two years Equation Campaign will continue implementing the Frontline Environmental Justice Fund’s strategy, and anticipates additional focus on key pipeline fights, including additional targeted legal support for local organizations and activists.

Dignity.us

Founded in 2022, Dignity.us established by the Office of American Possibilities Fund, is a citizens’ initiative to address the crisis of hate-fueled, identity-based violence in America, led by a bipartisan collaborative of former Domestic Policy Council chairs from the Obama, Bush, and Trump Administrations. With this award, Dignity.us intends to both surface and launch a national “civic moonshot” in the domain of identity-based violence. Funds support activities securing the resources, partnerships, and a core founding team of leaders to bring the initiative to life as a discrete new project, entity, nonprofit, or institution in 2023.

Climate Nexus

Climate Nexus, a project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, helps local, national, and international media recognize climate science and its implications on public health, national security, and the economy, among other key issues. This is accomplished by building a broad network of influential, persuasive messengers, and creating a clear, compelling narrative about climate change and ways to address its impacts. Climate Nexus seeks to bring the latest science findings explicitly into the media and political worlds in an informative way to promote a wide range of climate solutions. This award provides flexible operating support to Climate Nexus.

The Equation Campaign

This award provides flexible support to the Equation Campaign, which is a fiscally sponsored project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors. The Equation Campaign is a new ten-year funding initiative to bring about a safe and just future by enhancing the power of movements to keep oil and gas in the ground. In pursuit of this goal, Equation Campaign has established the Frontline Environmental Justice Fund to make grants to frontline communities, ensuring they are getting the resources that they need to carry out effective campaigns. Grantmaking is guided by a strategy that prioritizes shifting financial power away from the oil and gas industry, elevating frontline stories, providing legal support and defense, and lifting individual campaigns toward building a larger movement.

Just Transition Fund

The Just Transition Fund (the Fund) is a philanthropic initiative housed at the Rockefeller Philanthropic Advisors that is designed to support communities across the United States as their local economies diversify away from being primarily dependent on coal and its related industries. The Fund supports the creation of alternative economic and workforce development plans that rely significantly on community engagement by resourcing local organizations with grants and technical assistance. Grants provide affected communities with resources to explore and invest in activities and projects that help make regional economies less dependent on extractive industries, prioritize human capital formation, and promote local enterprises. Flexible support helps ensure the Fund continues serving communities in Appalachia, the Midwest, and the West where coal industry-related facilities, such as mines and power plants, are discontinuing operations.

Fund for Shared Insight

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (RPA) is a nonprofit organization that helps donors create thoughtful, effective philanthropy throughout the world. RPA is the fiscal sponsor of the Fund for Shared Insight (FSI), a donor collaborative working to improve the practice of philanthropy by developing and promoting better communication between foundations, nonprofits, and the organizations and individuals that nonprofits and foundations seek to help. Launched in 2014 as a collaboration among six funders, FSI emerged from a belief that foundations will be more effective and make a bigger difference in the world if they are more open – sharing what they learn and listening to what others want to share with them, particularly feedback from beneficiaries and constituents. This grant provides flexible support to FSI for its core activities.

Climate Leadership Initiative

Incubated at ClimateWorks Foundation but an independent entity since 2020, the Climate Leadership Initiative (formerly the Campaign for Climate Leadership) is a collaboration among foundations to significantly increase philanthropic support for climate solutions. This award provides general operating support to the Climate Leadership Initiative, through Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors as fiscal sponsor, and is focused on helping a new and growing set of philanthropists “go big” on solving the climate crisis.

International Fund for Public Interest Media

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (RPA) is a nonprofit consulting firm providing advice and implementation support to donors worldwide. It serves as the fiscal sponsor for the International Fund for Public Interest Media (IFPIM). The IFPIM is a pooled fund with the goal of making $1 billion available to public interest news media organizations located in low-income areas of countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. This award supports the establishment of a Secretariat to guide the further development of the fund, including hiring a Founding Executive Director. The outcome of these activities is a more robust source of funds for public interest media in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors is a nonprofit organization providing advisory, management and implementation services for families, foundations and other philanthropic initiatives; incubating innovative and early-stage nonprofits and donor collaboratives; and, sharing insights and producing publications on philanthropic approaches, strategies and practices. The organization is currently working on an Impact Investing Monograph which builds on two past publications. The monograph is an implementation guide to provide mission-driven asset owners and other impact investors with the tools to develop and execute a tailored impact investing strategy. This version also introduces an online, interactive, video-based version, the development of which Foundation funds are supporting. Developed in partnership with original co-author Steve Godeke and with support from a 14-member expert advisory board comprising asset owners and advisors, the project aims to encourage action from diverse impact investors, help influencers engage new investors, and provide a basis for future education, training, and action. Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors will measure progress towards these goals using proxy indicators such as site traffic, user interviews, testimonials, and use for education and training.

Fund for Shared Insight

The Fund for Shared Insight (FSI) is a donor collaborative housed at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors working to improve the practice of philanthropy by developing and promoting better communication between foundations, nonprofits, and the organizations and individuals that nonprofits and foundations seek to help. Launched formally in 2014 as a collaboration among six funders, FSI emerged from a belief that foundations will be more effective and make a bigger difference in the world if they are more open – if they share what they learn and are open to listening to what others want to share with them, particularly feedback from beneficiaries and constituents. This led to the Listen4Good initiative, which is both a program and toolkit designed to help nonprofits build sustainable, high-quality, client-focused feedback loops in order for nonprofits to gain new insights, make changes to programs and operations, and foster cultures of responsiveness and attentiveness to client needs. This award supports the various activities of FSI and also enables MacArthur to nominate two grantee organizations (past or present) to participate in the Listen4Good program.

Climate Nexus

Climate Nexus, a project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, helps local, national, and international media recognize climate science and its implications on public health, national security, and the economy, among other key issues. This is accomplished by building a broad network of influential, persuasive messengers, and creating a clear, compelling narrative about climate change and ways to address its impacts. Climate Nexus seeks to bring the latest science findings explicitly into the media and political worlds in an informative, nonpartisan way to promote a wide range of climate solutions, including renewable energy, pricing carbon, and environmental protections. The award supports the general operations of Climate Nexus.

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (RPA) is a nonprofit organization that currently advises on and manages more than $200 million in annual giving by individuals, families, corporations, and major foundations. Founded in 2002, RPA has grown into one of the world's largest philanthropic service organizations and serves as a fiscal sponsor for more than 40 projects, providing governance, management and operational infrastructure to support their charitable purposes.

This project will examine and contrast how established foundations, emerging foundations, and new donors plan and execute their work, build and staff their leadership teams, and collaborate with each other. RPA will convene discussions with foundation executives drawn from the organizations funding this project, and publish key findings on its web site, as well as via leading publications in the sector.

Fund for Shared Insight

The Fund for Shared Insight ("the Fund") is a donor collaborative housed at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors working to improve the practice of philanthropy by developing and promoting better communications between foundations, non-profits, and the organizations and individuals that non-profits and foundations seek to help. Launched formally in July, 2014, as a collaboration among six funders, the Fund emerged from a belief that foundations will be more effective and make a bigger difference in the world if they are more open – if they share what they learn and are open to what others want to share with them, particularly feedback from beneficiaries and constituents.  Since its launch the Fund has since grown considerably, adding five major funders, and establishing itself as a well-respected project that is visible to the community of funders that support philanthropic infrastructure. 

Upstart Co-Lab

Upstart Co-Lab, a fiscally sponsored project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, is conducting a study assessing demand for investment capital to support practicing artists, arts organizations and social enterprises focused on art, culture, design, entertainment, media and innovation. Upstart Co-Lab is a newly-created collaboration connecting artists, impact investors and others to create opportunities for practicing artists and social enterprises focused on the arts and related fields. The study will inform the rollout of a new vehicle for investing in the arts and related fields: the Note for Creative Places & Businesses Investment (the “Note”), which will be issued by Calvert Foundation.  Grant funds will cover professional fees, travel costs and other expenses.

Climate Nexus

Climate Nexus, a sponsored project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, helps local, national, and international media recognize climate science and clean energy’s role in addressing climate change. This is accomplished by building a broad network of influential, persuasive messengers, and creating a clear, compelling narrative about climate change and ways to address its impacts. Climate Nexus' mission is to bring the latest science findings explicitly into the media and political worlds in an informative, nonpartisan way to buttress the discussions around climate and energy. This grant will help ensure that Climate Nexus has the range of communications capabilities necessary to inform, in a timely and effective manner, policymakers, the media and the general public about climate change.

Fund for Shared Insight (Shared Insight) is a collaborative effort among funders that pools financial and other resources to make grants to improve philanthropy, specifically with respect to evaluation, learning, and openness. Launched formally in July, 2014, the Fund for Shared Insight emerged from a belief that foundations will be more effective and a bigger difference in the world if they are more open – if they share what they learn and are open to what others want to share with them, particularly feedback from beneficiaries. This award will support the Fund’s management, convenings, publications, evaluations, and other activities; it is one of a new series of awards intended to strengthen the practice of evaluation in philanthropy.

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors is the fiscal sponsor for the U.S. National Advisory Board to the global Social Impact Investing Task Force, whose mission is to identify and promote policies regarding impact investing that enable it to contribute more fully to economic growth and large-scale solutions to pressing social issues, including poverty, climate change, and education; and to inform the Task Force’s findings and recommendations. Combined with funding from other major foundations, this grant supports all core U.S. National Advisory Board activities, including public education about policy improvements that could galvanize and expand impact investing in the United States.

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors is a nonprofit organization that manages more than $280 million in annual giving. This grant will support the National Purpose Initiative, a multi-year effort to help revitalize American democracy by creating a sense of shared purpose and collective responsibility in the U.S. It will combine public consultation conducted in person and online with a parallel but integrated effort by issue experts, policy analysts, scholars, and thought leaders to develop new approaches to issues such as economic inequality, political polarization, education, energy, and government debt.

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors is a nonprofit organization that manages more than $280 million in annual giving. This grant will support an inquiry into foundation management practices, and develop conceptual theories that can guide donors and foundation leaders in making management decisions.

This grant provides three years of general operating support to the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN), a worldwide network of foundations and financial institutions launched in 2009 to support the growth and success of impact investing. Through peer-to-peer learning, research, public education and the management of a global online directory of impact investing funds and vehicles, GIIN seeks to enhance the ability of impact investors to address major social and environmental development challenges. The grant will be used to help expand all of GIIN’s programs, with a special focus on improving the organization’s communications and technology platforms.