Member spotlight: Africa No Filter

We know that narratives matter. And the prevailing one of Africa is that it's a monolithic continent wracked by poverty, disease, conflict, poor leadership and corruption. Enough with the harmful stereotyping. Africa No Filter (ANF) is a donor collaborative that supports the development of nuanced and contemporary stories that shift stereotypical and harmful narratives within and about Africa. In this Q&A, we talked to ANF's executive director, Moky Makura — who was recently named one of Quartz Africa's top innovators — on how fellow funders can get it right when it comes to the multifaceted continent of 54 countries. Read More

Wichita Community Foundation, a member of MIF since July 2021, was funded in 1986 and partners with people, families, and organizations in Kansas to devote resources to causes that matter. The News and Information Fund at WCF invests in strengthening the local news ecosystem, leading to a more informed and engaged city. Last summer, WCF made its single largest grant—more than $1 million—to launch The Wichita Beacon, a nonprofit news organization dedicated to public service journalism. In this Q&A, Courtney Bengtson, WCF's Director of Strategic Initiatives talks about how media fits into the organization's overall goals and the importance of journalism for healthy communities. Read More

The NIHCM Foundation, a member of MIF since 2019, funds health care journalism that examines issues impacting the United States health care system and consumers, such as access to care, cost and quality, and equity. The impact of its investments can be seen in work such as "The Aftermath," a Vox series about the collateral health effects of Covid-19. A recent NIHCM-supported story in the series, "The Doctors Are Not All Right," confronted the devastating mental health toll that COVID-19 has taken on doctors around the country. This is the kind of high-quality journalism to which NIHCM is committed. That's why, for the second year, NIHCM is making $1 million available to support new awards in journalism and research. The deadline to apply is July 12. In this Q&A, Nancy Chockley, founding President and CEO of the National Institute for Health Care Management (NIHCM) Foundation, and Kathryn Santoro, Director of Programming, share details about NIHCM’s commitment to supporting high-quality health journalism. Read More

The Wyncote Foundation, based in Philadelphia, was founded in 2009 with funds from the Otto and Phoebe Haas Charitable Trusts, at the direction of John C. Haas. A place-based funder, Wyncote is a strong player in the field of media philanthropy and believes deeply in supporting local communities by lifting up the stories and voices of those who are not usually heard in mainstream media. (In 2019, Wyncote made about $5 million in grants under its Public Media & Journalism program area.) On Wyncote’s funding strategy, Vice Chair David Haas—a decades-long supporter of MIF and former MIF Board Chair—said the foundation “takes an ecosystem approach, combining a strong commitment to accountability journalism with support for a range of community information needs and resources, creative storytelling, and independent media.” The foundation also works to inform and inspire other place-based funders. Over the years, it has produced several reports profiling local foundations’ grantmaking strategies and support for a range of media projects. Wyncote recently released a new report, “Culture, Heritage, and Place: How Media Amplifies Community Narratives,” which focuses on the work of media organizations across the U.S. dedicated to local and… Read More

BWF believes that a diverse scientific workforce is essential to the process and advancement of research innovation, academic discovery, and public service. Has the racial violence we’ve seen in the past year changed your approach to addressing racism in science? Yes, it has, but not just racism in science. The current events have stressed the need for us to prioritize diversity, equity, and inclusion in all facets of our organization. For the first time in my tenure, and perhaps, ever, we issued a public statement after the death of George Floyd. It was something that shook us to our core and made us reevaluate our values in the organization. There’s so much to say on this that I’m not sure where to even begin other than we are at the beginning of a very long road. Read More

The Libra Foundation's Democracy Frontlines Fund is a national aligned giving strategy whose goal is to leverage millions of dollars to fund black-led organizers fighting for free and fair elections. Read More

Media Impact Funders: The John Templeton Foundation has provided support for radio shows and podcasts such as On Being, The Science of Happiness, and Everything Happens as a means to explore life’s biggest questions. What are some takeaways from that support? David Nassar: One takeaway is that there is a real thirst for conversations that are positive, forward-looking, and cut across boundaries of perspective and discipline. It’s remarkable how much interest you find when you talk about how new ideas and discoveries can help people live lives of greater prosperity and joy—whether those insights come from psychology, biology, philosophy, physics or theology. Read More