Type: Letters from the President

I look out my office window at a patch of green park, where a flag hangs mournfully at half-mast.  I think it’s for Thousand Oaks. Or Pittsburgh. Or maybe the one before that. How sad that we are becoming inured to massacres.

For a Foundation with as many interests as ours—science, early childhood education, human rights, climate and clean energy—there are few times when a single event reaches across to touch almost all of our issue areas. But in 2020, that rare moment will come in the form of the next U.S. Census.

There is something quite wondrous about cycles in nature. Nature’s patterns always instill me with hope and remind me of renewal and restoration. Each year at this time, as the year closes and a nation finds itself reflecting, I too try and take a moment to think about the past year before it resets. To …

When we describe the Foundation, we often use the phrase, “Unlocking knowledge, opportunity, and possibilities.” It reflects our fundamentally optimistic view of the world, and our belief in the potential for improvement in the human condition.

Dear Colleagues: As we begin the second quarter of the year, I wanted to thank you, our friends and partners, for your good work and to share with you some of the connections we see across your efforts and ours. In the past quarter, we awarded more than $12.8 million through 67 new grants. In …

Dear Colleagues: During this week of Thanksgiving, we wanted to send a special note of gratitude to you, our partners, and let you know how much respect we have for you and the work you do. The role of nonprofits is especially critical today. We are so grateful for your creativity, intelligence, and willingness to …

Working for a staffed family foundation, we often have the opportunity to feel pride in the living donors we represent. Last month, our founders Liz Simons and Mark Heising demonstrated their unwavering belief in the value of philanthropy by joining the Giving Pledge. As many of you know, the Giving Pledge invites the world’s wealthiest …

Dear Colleagues: From the ceiling in one corner of our office hangs a mobile. I often find visitors to the Foundation, even our staff, passing by and tilting their heads up to take it in. Its pieces remind us of the many partners that make up this Foundation’s work: blue squares, triangles, and letters for …