Foundations
Here's a look at documents from U.S. foundations
Featured Stories
Southern Indiana Funders Announce Nonprofit Scenario Planning Workshop Series
NEW ALBANY, Indiana, Jan. 15 -- The Community Foundation of Southern Indiana issued the following news release on Jan. 13, 2026:
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Southern Indiana Funders Announce Nonprofit Scenario Planning Workshop Series
A coalition of Southern Indiana funders - including the Community Foundation of Southern Indiana, the Bales Foundation, the Duke Energy Foundation, and Metro United Way - announced a Nonprofit Scenario Planning Workshop Series designed to help nonprofit organizations strengthen sustainability and plan effectively amid ongoing uncertainty.
The free, three-part workshop series will be
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NEW ALBANY, Indiana, Jan. 15 -- The Community Foundation of Southern Indiana issued the following news release on Jan. 13, 2026:
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Southern Indiana Funders Announce Nonprofit Scenario Planning Workshop Series
A coalition of Southern Indiana funders - including the Community Foundation of Southern Indiana, the Bales Foundation, the Duke Energy Foundation, and Metro United Way - announced a Nonprofit Scenario Planning Workshop Series designed to help nonprofit organizations strengthen sustainability and plan effectively amid ongoing uncertainty.
The free, three-part workshop series will befacilitated by Ed Cortas, Principal and Founder of Emergent Endeavors, and will take place on Feb. 11, 18, and 25 from 9:00-11:30 a.m. at Prosser Career Education Center in New Albany.
Designed for nonprofit CEOs and board members, the workshop will guide participants through a structured scenario planning process that results in a 12-month, operationally focused plan. Participants will explore best-case, worst-case, and likely scenarios while developing strategies that support organizational viability, financial sustainability, and clear communication with key stakeholders.
"Nonprofit leaders are being asked to make critical decisions in an environment of constant change," said Linda Speed, President and CEO of the Community Foundation of Southern Indiana. "This workshop provides a rare opportunity to slow down, think strategically, and leave with practical tools that help organizations adapt and move forward with confidence."
Organizations serving Clark and/or Floyd County residents are encouraged to participate. Each organization may register up to two participants, ideally the chief executive and a board member. Space is limited and reservations will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. Participants must commit to attending all three sessions, as each session builds on the previous one.
In addition to guided learning, participants will have opportunities to connect with peer organizations and engage with the workshop's funding partners throughout the series.
For more information or to register, visit www.CFSouthernIndiana.com/2026-nonprofit-scenario-planning-workshop/.
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About CFSI
The Community Foundation of Southern Indiana was founded in 1991 as the region's partner, resource, and steward in philanthropy. The Foundation manages $159 million in charitable assets and nearly 300 individual funds - each of which supports the unique charitable intent of the donor who established the fund. Annually, the Foundation awards millions in grants and scholarships and is a National Standards certified community foundation. For more information about the Community Foundation, contact 812-948-4662 or visit www.cfsouthernindiana.com.
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Original text here: https://www.cfsouthernindiana.com/2026/01/13/southern-indiana-funders-announce-nonprofit-scenario-planning-workshop-2026/
Gates Foundation Commits to Historic $9 Billion Annual Payout, Strengthens Stewardship to Maximize Mission Impact Through Closure in 2045
SEATTLE, Washington, Jan. 15 -- The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation issued the following news release on Jan. 14, 2026:
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Gates Foundation Commits to Historic $9 Billion Annual Payout, Strengthens Stewardship to Maximize Mission Impact Through Closure in 2045
Foundation is planning operating expenditures at approximately 14% annually to ensure more funds are directed to the programs and people we serve
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The Gates Foundation today announced that its governing board endorsed a historic $9 billion annual payout, marking a culmination of a four-year plan to reach a steady-state budget at
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SEATTLE, Washington, Jan. 15 -- The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation issued the following news release on Jan. 14, 2026:
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Gates Foundation Commits to Historic $9 Billion Annual Payout, Strengthens Stewardship to Maximize Mission Impact Through Closure in 2045
Foundation is planning operating expenditures at approximately 14% annually to ensure more funds are directed to the programs and people we serve
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The Gates Foundation today announced that its governing board endorsed a historic $9 billion annual payout, marking a culmination of a four-year plan to reach a steady-state budget atthis level. The increase in spending is part of the foundation's commitment to accelerate its mission ahead of its planned closure in 2045.
Last May, foundation Chair Bill Gates announced the foundation will invest an additional $200 billion, double what it spent during its first 25 years, before closing at the end of 2045. The acceleration of funding and timeline will help the foundation focus on three primary goals: 1) No mother, child, or baby dies of a preventable cause; 2) the next generation grows up in a world free of deadly infectious diseases; and 3) hundreds of millions of people break free from poverty, putting more countries on the path to prosperity.
Approximately 70% of the budget is currently allocated to advancing the first two goals that encompass the foundation's global health work. The remainder of the budget largely focuses on two powerful drivers of economic opportunity: education in the U.S and agriculture in low- and middle-income countries.
"The foundation's 2045 closure deadline gives us a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make transformative progress, but doing so requires us to focus relentlessly on the people we serve and the outcomes we want to deliver," said Mark Suzman, CEO of the Gates Foundation. "Ensuring as much of every dollar as possible flows toward impact is critical to achieving our ambitious goals to save and improve millions more lives over the next 20 years."
To sustain the record-high payout during this period of unprecedented investment, the board approved the foundation's recommendation to increase the budgets of several programs, ranging from women's health to AI in U.S. education. They also approved a decision to cap annual operating expenditures (OpEx). The cap limits OpEx, which are the costs of running the organization, to no more than $1.25 billion (approximately 14% of the foundation's total budget) based on current projections. By controlling operating costs, the foundation will be able to direct the greatest possible share of its resources to its mission-driven work--supporting partners and programs worldwide--particularly in a challenging global development funding environment.
"While progress is possible, it remains fragile, and delivering on our mandate requires a commitment to move forward with transparency for our employees and partners and disciplined stewardship of the foundation's finite resources," said Suzman.
Maximizing resources through strengthened stewardship
The board-approved recommendations from the foundation will increase programmatic spending this year in priority areas, including maternal health, polio eradication, U.S. education, and vaccine development, and will put new measures in place to manage operating costs.
The board also approved a cap on the foundation's operating expenditures, which consist of the people, systems, and infrastructure required to run the organization, including travel expenses, facilities, and salaries. This cap will reduce the foundation's current headcount target of 2,375 positions by up to 500 positions by 2030, with targets and timelines to be calibrated on an annual basis. Even as overall headcount declines, the foundation will continue to hire selectively for critical skills and capabilities needed to advance its mission.
Without the OpEx cap, rising operating costs would increasingly divert resources needed to deliver on the foundation's mission. In 2024, for example, operating expenditures reached approximately 13% of total spending and were projected to approach 18% by the end of the decade if no action were taken.
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About the Gates Foundation
Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, we work with partners to create impactful solutions so that people can take charge of their futures and achieve their full potential. In the United States, we aim to ensure that everyone--especially those with the fewest resources--has access to the opportunities needed to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, Washington, the foundation is led by CEO Mark Suzman, under the direction of Bill Gates and our governing board.
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Original text here: https://www.gatesfoundation.org/ideas/media-center/press-releases/2026/01/historic-annual-budget-to-accelerate-mission
Conservation Law Foundation: Court Urged to Uphold Ship Strike Protections for North Atlantic Right Whales
BOSTON, Massachusetts, Jan. 15 -- The Conservation Law Foundation issued the following news release on Jan. 14, 2026:
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Court Urged to Uphold Ship Strike Protections for North Atlantic Right Whales
Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) and other groups have filed a friend of the court brief expressing support for a federal vessel speed limit rule to protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whales and other whale species from being struck and killed by vessels.
The rule is being challenged in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida by a Florida boat captain and
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BOSTON, Massachusetts, Jan. 15 -- The Conservation Law Foundation issued the following news release on Jan. 14, 2026:
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Court Urged to Uphold Ship Strike Protections for North Atlantic Right Whales
Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) and other groups have filed a friend of the court brief expressing support for a federal vessel speed limit rule to protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whales and other whale species from being struck and killed by vessels.
The rule is being challenged in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida by a Florida boat captain andthe corporation that owns the 110-foot superyacht that violated the rule in 2022. The plaintiffs, represented by the Pacific Legal Foundation, argue that NOAA Fisheries lacked the authority to issue the speed rule under the Endangered Species Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act and that the rule runs afoul of constitutional doctrines.
"Intentionally speeding in areas identified as particularly risky for migrating right whales, especially vulnerable moms and newborn calves, is inexcusable," said Erica Fuller, senior counsel at CLF. "This rule was implemented under the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act - two statutes signed into law by President Nixon that have stood the test of time because they are wildly popular with the public and they work. Traveling at speeds that could kill an endangered whale cannot be the cost of doing business when transporting your yacht to Miami."
Since 2017, vessel strikes have killed or injured at least 27 critically endangered North Atlantic right whales. Only about 70 reproductively active females remain. Research has shown that a vessel traveling at 10 knots or less is much less likely to harm a whale in a collision.
"There's no question that the federal government has the legal authority to protect North Atlantic right whales by issuing this speed limit rule," said Kristen Monsell, oceans legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity. "The speed limit rule has been in place for almost two decades and has no doubt saved the lives of critically endangered right whales. Each individual matters for the recovery of this species, and federal officials have a legal obligation to make sure protections are enforced."
The North Atlantic right whale population began a sharp decline around 2010 as whales shifted habitats in a rapidly changing climate, bringing them into areas where protections from vessel strikes and accidental fishing gear entanglements were not in place. Assisted by new measures in the U.S. and Canada to reduce accidental entanglements and vessel strikes, the population has slowly begun to increase over the past four years, demonstrating that the species is viable if adequately protected. Still, only around 380 whales survive today, a 20% population decline over the past 25 years.
"We have speed limits near schools, crosswalks on busy roads, and traffic lights to make driving safer and tickets are issued when drivers speed, ignore pedestrians, or blow through red lights because those behaviors increase the risk of someone getting hurt," said Regina Asmutis-Silvia, executive director of Whale and Dolphin Conservation, North America. "Just like laws on the road, this vessel speed rule was based on factual data and research found it to be effective, protecting both boaters and whales."
Implemented in 2008, the speed limit rule establishes a seasonal 10-knot limit for most vessels 65 feet (the size of a school bus) and longer in "seasonal management areas" along the East Coast where the right whale's migratory pattern overlaps with heavy vessel traffic. "Dynamic management areas" are potential collision hotspots where NOAA Fisheries requests that vessels voluntarily slow to 10 knots, but many vessels do not comply, especially in the species' only known calving ground in the Southeast.
Conservation groups have been vocal that existing measures do not adequately protect right whales and have pushed for strengthening the speed limit rule by expanding seasonal management areas, applying speed limits to smaller vessels, and making compliance mandatory in dynamic management areas. In January 2025, NOAA Fisheries announced that it was withdrawing a proposed rule that would have implemented these protections, after stalling on the proposal since 2022.
"The right whale needs more, not fewer, protections from deadly vessel strikes," said Jane Davenport, senior attorney at Defenders of Wildlife. "The speed limit rule is the only proven effective measure to reduce vessel strike deaths and injuries. Without it, the species' extinction is all but guaranteed."
The amicus brief can be read here (https://www.clf.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/58_Conservation-Groups-amicus-brief-filed.pdf).
Experts are available for further comment.
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Original text here: https://www.clf.org/newsroom/court-urged-to-uphold-ship-strike-protections-for-north-atlantic-right-whales/
VICTORY: Catholic University of America reverses Reddit ban on campus Wi-Fi
PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania, Jan. 14 -- The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression posted the following news release:
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VICTORY: Catholic University of America reverses Reddit ban on campus Wi-Fi
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Less than 24 hours after a student senate resolution asking the university to unban Reddit on campus Wi-Fi, the Catholic University of America has reversed course, restoring access to the forum-based website for all students and faculty on campus.
The university's IT department blocked the website, citing "certain content" and "phishing and malicious links" on the site's forums.
University
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PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania, Jan. 14 -- The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression posted the following news release:
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VICTORY: Catholic University of America reverses Reddit ban on campus Wi-Fi
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Less than 24 hours after a student senate resolution asking the university to unban Reddit on campus Wi-Fi, the Catholic University of America has reversed course, restoring access to the forum-based website for all students and faculty on campus.
The university's IT department blocked the website, citing "certain content" and "phishing and malicious links" on the site's forums.
Universityattempts to restrict access to websites are nothing new. CUA banned 200 pornographic websites in 2019 at the behest of its student government -a ban FIRE opposes because it undercuts CUA's stated commitments to free expression and academic freedom. (Bans on pornographic speech nearly always sweep into their ambit not just "hardcore pornography" but huge amounts of clearly protected expression.) It's hardly just porn: campus messaging apps have been a frequent target of university administrators, from Yik Yak in 2017, to Fizz and Sidechat in recent months. But at public universities -and at private universities like CUA that choose to promise their students and faculty members expressive freedom -these bans are unacceptable incursions into free speech and academic freedom.
Furthermore, such online platform bans are increasingly futile: they generally don't keep students from accessing information the university doesn't want them to see. It's far too easy to turn off Wi-Fi or to fire up a VPN that allows students to bypass college-made content controls. Imposing a ban nonetheless sends a signal: some content is too dangerous for you to see, and we're going to decide for you what that content might be. That message is antithetical to a university where students are supposed to learn how to work with others, find resources, and access information.
CUA says it is in the business of encouraging its students to engage with those on campus and across the world. But once you start down the road of banning websites based on their content, you face the same slippery slope to censorship as always. If CUA must ban porn sites because of their content, well, Reddit has objectionable content too. Doesn't it need to be banned? What about X? Facebook? There is no natural limit to this principle, only the preferences of those in power at the time.
The university's restrictions have a more pernicious effect on academic freedom, too. Online social media like Reddit have provided the basis for myriad forms of faculty research. Academics have studied how Reddit's user-driven content-moderation influences political discourse and used its subreddits as a natural experiment on online social development. In other words, put hundreds of millions of people in one place, and researchers will want to study it.
Banning it from the campus network would demand they get awfully creative in order to do so. Though students can easily evade the ban by switching off Wi-Fi on their phones, faculty members may have a harder time using their personal hotspots to download petabytes of Reddit data to research. The result: academic research involving Reddit is chilled.
And a Reddit ban cannot be plausibly based on security concerns. Though CUA vaguely referenced "phishing" content on Reddit, such content is present on any site where users interact with others, and students and faculty can still access X, Instagram, and myriad other social media sites where they are subject to such content. Not to mention email, which is by far the riskiest platform for phishing.
CUA's policy was both underinclusive in not targeting other, equally risky social media websites and overinclusive in targeting everything on Reddit, not only content threatening university network security. Such a double-bind is something we often see at FIRE. It almost always means policymakers aren't thinking through the ripple effects of their rules.
A culture of free expression demands more from university rulemakers than vague explanations and underexamined repercussions.
Students at CUA expect more, too. They spoke up, calling on the university's IT department to investigate its content controls to ensure a ban like this does not happen again. Hopefully, this abortive effort serves as a lesson to CUA administrators: the best way to avoid backlash for censorship is to never open the door to it in the first place.
FIRE defends the rights of students and faculty members - no matter their views -at public and private universities and colleges in the United States. If you are a student or a faculty member facing investigation or punishment for your speech, submit your case to FIRE today. If you're faculty member at a public college or university, call the Faculty Legal Defense Fund 24-hour hotline at 254-500-FLDF (3533).
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Original text here: https://www.thefire.org/news/victory-catholic-university-america-reverses-reddit-ban-campus-wi-fi
TPPF Launches Coalition to Ban Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying, Unlock Property Tax Relief and Dismantle the Education Cartel
AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 14 -- The Texas Public Policy Foundation issued the following news release:
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TPPF Launches Coalition to Ban Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying, Unlock Property Tax Relief and Dismantle the Education Cartel
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AUSTIN -Today, the Texas Public Policy Foundation's Government Reform and Oversight Coalition (GROC) officially launched with a clear mission: to combat the forces that are driving runaway local spending, undermining property tax relief, and protecting an unaccountable education cartel that profits at taxpayers' expense.
GROC will highlight a sophisticated system, built
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AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 14 -- The Texas Public Policy Foundation issued the following news release:
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TPPF Launches Coalition to Ban Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying, Unlock Property Tax Relief and Dismantle the Education Cartel
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AUSTIN -Today, the Texas Public Policy Foundation's Government Reform and Oversight Coalition (GROC) officially launched with a clear mission: to combat the forces that are driving runaway local spending, undermining property tax relief, and protecting an unaccountable education cartel that profits at taxpayers' expense.
GROC will highlight a sophisticated system, builtover decades by insiders, that diverts billions of tax dollars intended for classrooms into a network of taxpayer-funded lobbyists, vendors, consultants, associations, and political advocacy groups. The system relies on a combination of apathy, waste, and grift inside government, which is then exploited by unethical entities outside of government.
"Cities, counties, school districts, and taxpayer-funded associations across Texas spend millions of public dollars hiring lobbyists and political operatives to influence the Texas Legislature," said Mandy Drogin, GROC Senior Fellow. "The result is self-interested government entities preserving their own power, blocking spending discipline, shielding waste, and protecting education profiteers."
"If the education cartel network keeps getting its way, students will continue to be short-changed and state-provided tax relief will never reach taxpayers' bills," said Jose Melendez, GROC Campaign Director. "GROC is here to help Texas cut waste, cap spending, reform our broken systems, and roll back tax hikes."
GROC will build momentum ahead of the 2027 Texas Legislative Session by educating taxpayers, engaging lawmakers, and advancing policy solutions that restore accountability, transparency, and fiscal discipline.
Visit TXGROC.org for more resources and to sign up for updates.
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Original text here: https://www.texaspolicy.com/press/tppf-launches-coalition-to-ban-taxpayer-funded-lobbying-unlock-property-tax-relief-and-dismantle-the-education-cartel
More Than $5.5 Million in Scholarships Now Available to San Diego County Students
SAN DIEGO, California, Jan. 14 -- The San Diego Foundation posted the following news release:
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More Than $5.5 Million in Scholarships Now Available to San Diego County Students
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At a time when inflation and rising everyday costs -including the cost of higher education -are placing increased financial pressure on students and families across the region, San Diego Foundation (SDF) has opened its annual Common Scholarship Application. The program offers more than $5.5 million in donor-funded scholarships to support San Diego County students as they pursue college and long-term career goals.
The
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SAN DIEGO, California, Jan. 14 -- The San Diego Foundation posted the following news release:
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More Than $5.5 Million in Scholarships Now Available to San Diego County Students
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At a time when inflation and rising everyday costs -including the cost of higher education -are placing increased financial pressure on students and families across the region, San Diego Foundation (SDF) has opened its annual Common Scholarship Application. The program offers more than $5.5 million in donor-funded scholarships to support San Diego County students as they pursue college and long-term career goals.
TheSDF Community Scholarship Program offers more than 150 scholarships to local students attending four-year universities, two-year colleges, or graduate or vocational schools. Scholarships are available for graduating high school students; undergraduates; those attending graduate, medical or professional school; and adult re-entry students.
"I never thought I'd be able to gain this opportunity," said Toa, a 2025 scholarship recipient in his first year at University of California, San Diego. "Not only do I have enough funds to support myself throughout my college journey, but I'm also being recognized as a person - the first in my family to ever attend a four-year institution."
How to Apply
* Deadline: March 4, 2026 by 2pm PST
* Application: SDFoundation.org/CSA
* One application connects students to more than 150 donor-funded scholarships
* Eligibility: San Diego students pursuing undergraduate, graduate, or career training programs
"Students are making important decisions about their futures at a time when financial pressures are affecting nearly every part of daily life," said Danielle Valenciano, Director of the SDF Community Scholarship Program. "Through the generosity of community donors, we can support students across San Diego County as they pursue college, advance their goals and help shape our region's future."
Last year, San Diego Foundation announced a record $5.5 million in college scholarships to nearly 1,400 recipients for the 2024-2025 academic year. Among the scholarship recipients, 74% are first-generation college students, or the first in their immediate families to pursue higher education, and 92% of students are considered low-middle income, according to their Earned Family Contribution data.
The Community Scholarship Program is made possible through the generosity of 150 charitable funds established by local donors, making San Diego Foundation the largest provider of privately funded, non-university scholarships in the region region outside of the university system Since 1997, SDF has granted a cumulative $59.5M to more than 14,000 San Diego County students to help them reach their education and career goals.
Students with questions about the Common Scholarship Application, please reach out to Scholarships@SDFoundation.org.
about establishing a scholarship fund and investing in San Diego's next generation of talent, please contact Danielle Valenciano, Director of the SDF Community Scholarship Program, at DanielleV@SDFoundation.org.
About San Diego Foundation
San Diego Foundation believes in just, equitable and resilient communities where every San Diegan can prosper, thrive and feel like they belong. We partner with donors, nonprofits and regional leaders to co-create solutions that respond to community needs and strengthen San Diego. Since our founding in 1975, our community foundation has granted $1.8 billion to nonprofits to improve quality of life in San Diego County and beyond.
Contact
Nancy Ives Schroeder | 619-540-3751 | nancy@intesacom.com
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Original text here: https://www.sdfoundation.org/news-events/sdf-news/more-than-5-5-million-in-scholarships-now-available-to-san-diego-county-students/
Conservation Law Foundation: Offshore Wind, Again, Prevails Against Trump Administration
BOSTON, Massachusetts, Jan. 14 -- The Conservation Law Foundation issued the following news release:
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Offshore Wind, Again, Prevails Against Trump Administration
A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has rejected a stop work order issued by the Trump administration that sought to halt a nearly complete offshore wind development off the coast of Rhode Island. Orsted, the developer of Revolution Wind, sued the Trump administration after the Department of the Interior announced it was pausing leases for offshore wind projects along the East Coast citing national security concerns. Conservation
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BOSTON, Massachusetts, Jan. 14 -- The Conservation Law Foundation issued the following news release:
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Offshore Wind, Again, Prevails Against Trump Administration
A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has rejected a stop work order issued by the Trump administration that sought to halt a nearly complete offshore wind development off the coast of Rhode Island. Orsted, the developer of Revolution Wind, sued the Trump administration after the Department of the Interior announced it was pausing leases for offshore wind projects along the East Coast citing national security concerns. ConservationLaw Foundation (CLF) issued the following statement in response.
"How many times does this administration have to lose in court before it stops trying to block affordable clean energy," said Kate Sinding Daly, senior vice president for law and policy CLF. "Our courts have already made clear that permits grounded in law cannot be undone on political whims. Rigorously reviewed clean energy projects should be allowed to move forward, deliver people affordable power, and battle one of the greatest threats to national security - climate change."
Judge Royce Lamberth issued the injunction and concluded that Orsted would suffer irreparable harm if the stop work order was allowed to continue. Revolution Wind will provide power for up to 350,000 homes in Connecticut and Rhode Island using affordable clean energy.
Developers of other offshore wind projects included in the stop work order have separately sued the administration.
In December, a federal judge in Boston rejected the implementation of the Trump administration's government-wide ban on new wind energy projects. CLF and other environmental groups filed a legal brief in State of New York v. Trump in support of state and industry efforts to overturn the moratorium.
CLF experts are available for further comment.
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Original text here: https://www.clf.org/newsroom/offshore-wind-again-prevails-against-trump-administration/
