Homelessness is a growing concern despite many efforts by community housing organisations and funders including our Foundation. This is because it is an issue that requires more than one response to address it. 

Last week we hosted Dr Lucy Bernholz of Stanford University’s Digital Civil Society Lab to talk over what philanthropic foundations should be actively thinking about themselves and as funders of the not for profit sector within a digital world. My ‘to do’ list is quite long after this discussion!

Every year the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation holds a thought leadership event where we invite an expert speaker and a panel to talk over an issue that is a priority for us. We call this our Inspiring Philanthropy Oration.  We not only want to inspire people to get involved in long term philanthropy but also to do inspiring philanthropy. Philanthropic foundations with endowments sits in a unique position, able to take a long term view and, as well as addressing current social problems, look at how we prevent them in the future.