| Intent on leveraging the interest surrounding the 2008 election, FCCP and PACE plan to invite the philanthropic community to a “2008 Post Election Debrief: What Does it Mean for the Non-Partisan Civic Engagement Community?” Funders and invited experts will analyze the results of the November election and examine possible implications for the philanthropic community. It will be an interactive meeting for funders to hear from those who were both observers of and participants in the fall general election, and to begin a conversation about what the results mean for both the country and the civic engagement philanthropic community. | Washington, DC |
| FCCP Census and Redistricting National Convening
September 15th (tentative date) | Chicago, IL
| Chicago, IL |
| Join FCCP’s August First Monday Call to learn about and receive the latest updates from the California Votes Initiative (CVI), launched by the James Irvine Foundation in January 2006 with nine community-based organizations. Designed to discover best practices associated with increasing the voter turnout rate among low-income and ethnic communities, the evaluation results provide clear directives for those engaged in such targeted nonpartisan voter outreach. Speakers on this call will include Melissa R. Michelson, Associate Professor of Political Science, California State University, East Bay and Lisa Garcia Bedolla, Associate Professor of Social and Cultural Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. FCCP’s August First Monday Call was organized and will be moderated by Latonya Slack, Senior Program Officer, The James Irvine Foundation. To learn more about CVI, visit http://www.irvine.org/grants_program/cp/cvi.shtml.
| Conference Call |
| This briefing will provide an opportunity to hear the latest evidence of what works to engage voters amongst low income populations and communities of color. Through its groundbreaking research with the California Votes Initiative, the James Irvine Foundation has released a new report on the effectiveness of voter outreach. This program will introduce grantmakers to an organizational model that integrates voter engagement with ongoing civic engagement work so that each strategy builds on the effectiveness of the other and advances the overall mission and vision of the organization. Participants will have an opportunity to speak with representatives of advocacy groups at the forefront of this emerging work and learn about the challenges they confront, as well as new experiments in partnership and collaboration.
Program learning objectives:
• Increase awareness of the value of supporting local non-partisan voter engagement in 2008 and beyond;
• Increase awareness of the importance of voter engagement as an effective tool to communicate with decision-makers and opinion leaders to advance an organization's mission and vision;
• Provide funders with a framework to understand characteristics of a voter engagement program and encourage grantmaking that integrates with ongoing civic engagement work;
• Provide an update on Irvine's groundbreaking research to evaluate what works to motivate low income communities of color to participate in the electoral process; and
• Discuss challenges to fully integrating a voter program with an ongoing civic engagement program with organizing and advocacy components.
Presenters:
Melissa R. Michelson, Associate Professor of Political Science, California State University, East Bay will present the results of what works to mobilize voters of color to the polls based on research of the California Votes Initiative, funded by the James Irvine Foundation.
Laura Livoti, Senior Program Officer at the French American Charitable Trust (FACT) and Steering Committee member of the Funders Committee on Civic Participation will describe integrated voter engagement and the characteristics of organizations whose ongoing program and cyclical electoral work reinforce each other.
Vivian Chang, Executive Director, Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN). APEN is a membership based organization that works with constituents of Oakland's Chinese community and Richmond's Laotian community. The organization can address the challenges to integrating episodic voter engagement with year-round civic engagement endeavors.
Adam Gold from Just Cause Oakland and Nikki Bas from the East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy (EBASE) will contribute to the panel as partner representatives of Oakland Rising, a core team of six community-based organizations who have a long term shared vision for building progressive power in Oakland. Their work focuses on several major areas including permanent civic engagement, organizational alignment, and policy change. Just Cause Oakland's mission is to create a just and diverse city and region by organizing Oakland residents to advocate for housing and jobs as human rights, and to mobilize for policies that produce social and economic justice in low-income communities of color. EBASE advances economic and social justice by building power and raising standards for working families.
Latonya Slack, Senior Program Officer at the James Irvine Foundation, will moderate a panel discussion.
This briefing is co-sponsored by the Akonadi Foundation, The French American Charitable Trust (FACT), The James Irvine Foundation and the Funders’ Committee for Civic Participation.
Registration is open to both funders and non-funders. NOTE: Non-funders are invited to register, but NCG asks that those who attend to adhere strictly to our policy of non-solicitation.
| SF State Downtown Campus |
| Beldon Fund/ FCCP Co-sponsored Peer-to-Peer Meeting
June 25th – 27th | Washington, DC
| Washington, DC |
| While the national races in this election year have drawn most of the media attention, Oregon voters will be facing decisions about more than candidates come fall. So far, 38 ballot measures and 2 referendums have been approved to circulate for signatures. Among those likely to make it to the ballot, several could have serious implications for non-profits and their ability to serve the most vulnerable among us. This event is organized by The Oregon Social Justice Funders Network, and organizational sponsors include the Penney Family Fund, Social Justice Fund Northwest, MRG Foundation, Western States Center, Funders' Committee for Civic Participation and the NW Health Foundation | NW Health Foundation/Center for Philanthropy, Portland, OR |
| FCCP Sponsored Session at Grantmakers Concerned for Immigrants and Refugees’ National Convening, Promoting Immigrant Integration: Leadership in Challenging Times
June 17th – 20th | Chicago, IL
| Chicago, IL |
| With the recent Supreme Court decision upholding Indiana’s law requiring photo identification for all voters casting a ballot at the polls, a vigorous public debate is being waged on whether identification requirements are needed to protect the integrity of our elections or whether they disenfranchise or inconvenience parts of the electorate. A joint call sponsored by FCCP, Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrant and Refugee Rights, Grantmakers in Aging and others (TBD), will offer answers to some of the critical questions that are arising. What do we know about the impact of these ID requirements? What studies should foundations support to build the evidence base on their implementation and impact? What is the state of public opinion and the political landscape that sets the backdrop for the policy debates? Are ID laws picking up steam in legislatures? Are we moving from photo identification to even stricter proof of citizenship? Could modified identification requirements be combined with other policies to ultimately lead to measurable improvements in our election systems? Speakers on the call will include Michael Caudell-Feagan, Director of the Pew Charitable Trusts’ Make Voting Work initiative, Celinda Lake, President of Lake Research Partners and Mike Slater, Deputy Director of Project Vote. More information about the call, including a call-in number, will be emailed shortly. | Teleconference |
| The Funders' Committee for Civic Participation, The James Irvine Foundation, Liberty Hill Foundation and Southern California Grantmakers invite you to a briefing and discussion on nonpartisan voter engagement and grantmaking efforts in Southern California. The briefing will provide an opportunity for funders and community-based organizations to receive an update from the California Votes Initiative evaluation launched in 2006 with nine community-based organizations. For more info, visit http://www.socalgrantmakers.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Upcoming_Events&Template=/CM/HTMLDisplay.cfm&ContentID=4596 | Los Angeles, CA |
| A Special FCCP Phone Briefing co-sponsored by Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees (GCIR) and Grantmakers in Aging (GIA)
Monday, June 16th, 2:30-4pm EST/ 11:30-1pm PST
More information, including call-in number coming soon …
With the recent Supreme Court decision upholding Indiana’s law requiring photo identification for all voters casting a ballot at the polls, a vigorous public debate is being waged on whether identification requirements are needed to protect the integrity of our elections or whether they disenfranchise or inconvenience parts of the electorate.
A joint call sponsored by FCCP, GCIR and GIA will offer answers to some of the critical questions that are arising. What do we know about the impact of these ID requirements? What studies should foundations support to build the evidence base on their implementation and impact? What is the state of public opinion and the political landscape that sets the backdrop for the policy debates? Are ID laws picking up steam in legislatures? Are we moving from photo identification to even stricter proof of citizenship? Could modified identification requirements be combined with other policies to ultimately lead to measurable improvements in our election systems? Speakers will include Michael Caudell-Feagan, Director of the Pew Charitable Trusts’ Make Voting Work initiative, Celinda Lake, President of Lake Research Partners and Mike Slater, Deputy Director of Project Vote. | teleconference |
| This call was organized by Thomasina Williams, Program Officer, Governance and Civil Society Unit, Peace and Social Justice Program, The Ford Foundation.
| Teleconference |
| In 2004, Alan Gerber and Donald Green’s book, Get Out the Vote! How to Increase Voter Turnout , broke ground by introducing a new scientific approach to the challenge of voter mobilization and profoundly influenced how campaigns operate. In an expanded and updated second edition of Get Out the Vote!, data from more than one hundred new studies shed light on the cost-effectiveness and efficiency of various campaign tactics, including door-to-door canvassing, e-mail, direct mail, and telephone calls, as well as focus on the effectiveness of mass media campaigns and events such as candidate forums and Election Day festivals.
Join speaker Donald Green this Monday, May 12th, for FCCP’s May Monday Call, Bad, Better, and Best Ways to Mobilize Voters: Evidence about the State of the Art, for a timely discussion about new voter mobilization research and findings and the implications for grassroots organizing and get out the vote efforts.
Note: FCCP will record the presentation portion of the First Monday Call. An announcement will be made before recording begins, and then again when recording is stopped. The Q. and A. portion of this call will NOT be recorded.
To join the call, please contact Tasha Amezcua at (646) 823-2410 for call-in information. | teleconference |
| Join us for the following FCCP Sponsored Sessions!
The State of Change: Opportunities for Impact Below the Federal Radar
MONDAY, MAY 5TH, 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM
The Millennials and the Moment: Youth Engagement and Leadership Development
WEDNESDAY, MAY 7TH, 10:00AM – 11:30AM
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| With Asian Pacific Americans (APAs) now comprising 10% of the region's population – and growing rapidly – the potential political power of the APA community is enormous. Join your colleagues for what promises to be a lively discussion on how funders can support nonpartisan strategies that draw APAs to become more involved in the political process. | The Nathan Cummings Foundation, 475 Tenth Ave., 14th Floor, New York, NY 10018 |
| REGISTER TODAY! 2008 is shaping up to be a historic year for the field of civic participation. Join fellow funders, advocates and experts to strategize around remaining 501(c)3 election opportunities, explore groundbreaking state-level collaborations, share information on effective on-the-ground work and begin planning for 2009.
For more information, contact Mario Lugay at mlugay@funderscommittee.org | Washington, DC |
| Enforcing Section 7 of the National Voter Registration Act:
Working to Fulfill the Federal Promise of Increased Opportunities for Low-income Voter Registration
| |
| The Brookings Institution Press will host a discussion of voter mobilization based on the findings of the book Get Out the Vote: How to Increase Voter Turnout, Second edition. Since the publication of the first edition of this book, more than 100 new studies have been conducted in real electoral settings across the United States. Co-authors Donald P. Green and Alan S. Gerber will summarize the latest findings and explain how they affect organizing the grass roots and getting out the vote. | Falk Auditorium, The Brookings Institution, 1775 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, DC |
| Learn how funders can support nonpartisan, election-related activities in 2008, including:
-Funding collaboratives that foundations can use to support nonpartisan election-related activities
-Current nonprofit election-related strategies and activities in the field
-Grantmaking strategies currently being utilized by foundations supporting election-related work
-How election-related activity can strengthen longer-term issue work | 79 Fifth Ave., 4th floor, New York, NY 10003 |
| The Forgotten Constituency:How Voter Engagement Builds Power and Participation in People with Disabilities Communities
Join us for FCCP's March First Monday Call, Increasing Voter Turnout of People with Disabilities through Integrated Voter Engagement, on March 3rd and learn about the ways in which non-partisan state-wide disability vote coalitions have succeeded in significantly increasing voter turnout of people with disabilities, the largest identifiable bloc of non-voters. | |
| New demographic and geographic changes are shifting the fault lines of American politics. This conference of leading demographers, geographers, and analysts will examine seven of the most important of these changes. | Wohlstetter Conference Center, Twelfth Floor, AEI |
| Voter ID Requirements: The Case before the Supreme Court
Crawford v. Marion County Election Board - the most important voting case since Bush v. Gore.
Speakers: Wendy Weiser, Deputy Director, Democracy Program, Brennan Center for Justice, Naomi Karp, Senior Policy Advisor, AARP Public Policy Institute. Moderator, Rachel Leon, Senior Program Manager, JEHT Foundation. | Conference Call |
| Alliance for Justice Speaker Series/Luncheon
Learn how funders can support nonpartisan, election-related activities in 2008, including:
• Funding collaboratives that foundations can use to support nonpartisan election-related activities
• Current nonprofit election-related strategies and activities in the field
• Grantmaking strategies currently being utilized by foundations supporting election-related work
• How election-related activity can strengthen longer-term issue work
| Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation / 1400 16th Street, NW, Suite 360, Washington, DC |
| The 2008 Ballot Measure Landscape: Challenges and Opportunities
We will look at a range of ballot measures designed to increase civic participation and support environmental justice, social and economic equality, fair and accountable government, public education, and health care access.
Speakers will include Krisitina Wilfore, Executive Director, Ballot Initiative Strategy Center (BISC) and others TBA. This call will be moderated by Guillermo Quinteros, Program Officer, Solidago Foundation. | Conference Call |
| Hot Issues in 2008: Climate Change and the Iraq War
First in a series of briefings designed to bring funders up to date on the latest public opinion research on issues of concern to voters in 2008 and how nonpartisan civic engagement strategies are being developed and rolled out to maximize current opportunities to elevate these critical concerns in the public debate. Joining us will be Gene Karpinski, President of the League of Conservation Voters Education Fund, David Cortright, President of the Fourth Freedom Forum. Analyst Stan Greenberg of Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research will provide the context for a discussion of nonpartisan civic engagement and organizing strategies that are intended to keep these challenges front and center in the 2008 cycle. Moderating the call will be Harriet Barlow, Advisor, HKH Foundaiton. They will provide the context for a discussion of nonpartisan civic engagement and organizing strategies that are intended to keep these challenges front and center in the 2008 cycle. | Conference Call |
| Join FCCP members from across the country to strategize around the most pressing issues facing the field of civic participation for 2008 and beyond. Hear from practitioners and funders about the latest on-the-ground needs, efforts and opportunities in the areas of voter engagement, election administration, election protection and building state-based infrastructure to support civic participation strategies, including the release of FCCP’s Integrated Voter Engagement Case Studies. Take part in timely discussions on immigrant civic participation and the possible wedge issues of the 2008 presidential elections, evaluating short and long-term voter engagement work, and more. As the presidential elections fast approach, join with colleagues to learn about, develop and support short-term solutions and long-term strategies to strengthen the civic participation field.
Book your hotel rooms today to receive FCCP’s discounted rate! Reservations can be made at the Courtyard Marriott Convention Center, 900 F Street, NW Washington, DC 20004, by calling 1.800.321.2211 or 202.638.4600. Please mention Funders’ Committee in order to receive the discounted rate by Friday, October 26, 2007. Registration and Agenda: http://funderscommittee.org/2007annualmeeting/default.aspx
| Washington, DC / The Pew Charitable Trusts |
| How Voter Registration Drives Can Build Advocacy Organizations and Change the Shape of America’s Electorate.
Zach Polett, Executive Director of Project Vote; Page Gardner, President of Women’s Voices, Women Vote; Greg Moore, Chief Consultant to the NAACP Civic Engagement Department; Jorge Mursuli, Executive Director of PFAW Foundation’s Democracia USA. | Conference Call |
| Participate in an interactive and engaging phone briefing on how to successfully (and safely) fund election related work. Speakers from the Alliance for Justice will explain the federal tax rules regarding permissible election-related activities for private and public foundations. Specifically, we will discuss the types of activities in which all foundations may fund and engage, such as publishing voter guides, sponsoring candidate debates and forums, and conducting get-out-the-vote drives.... All participants will need access to a telephone and computer with internet connection.
To register for the call please email Jeff Prior at jeff@afj.org and specify that you are registering for the Oct. 15 webinar. You will be sent both the call-in number and information on how to access the webinar after your registration is received. The deadline for registration is Friday, October 12th. Space is limited so please register early. This briefing is co-sponsored by the Funders’ Committee for Civic Participation, the Neighborhood Funders’ Group, Peace and Security Funders, the Environmental Grantmakers Association, Grantmakers Concerned for Immigrants and Refugees, Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement, Funders’ Network on Population, Reproductive Health and Rights and the Health and Environment Funding Network. | Online |
| How are voter registration and engagement efforts using technology to drive change in the field? In this First Monday Call, we will profile new online tools aimed at making the process of registering to vote more convenient for voters. This call has been organized by FCCP member, Carolynn Race, Senior Associate, the Pew Charitable Trusts | Conference Call |
| Citizens: Redefining Government Transparency and Accountability in a Wired World
September 19, 2007 8:30 AM - 11:00 AM
A NYRAG Members Briefing sponsored by Carnegie Corporation of New York, Open Society Institute, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, and the Funders' Committee for Civic Participation.
Please visit http://www.nyrag.org/calendar_info2332/calendar_info_list.htm?day=19&month=9&year=2007 for program details and and to register
| NYRAG, 79 Fifth Avenue, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10003-3076 |
| Two days at Wingspread will provide an unparalleled opportunity for a group of 30 influential individual and foundation civic participation funders – national, regional and state-based – to convene to thoughtfully consider the results of Proteus Fund’s research about developments in the democracy field, to dialogue with practitioners and with colleagues who are pioneering more holistic grantmaking approaches, and to discuss emerging funding strategies for systems change among colleagues. Our goal is to collectively identify the most effective current approaches and funding strategies and the most promising experiments in the field and to secure commitments from the participating funders to examine their separate grantmaking streams and consider funding new approaches in the field that are working to better integrate a more holistic democracy agenda. | Wingspread Conference Center, Racine, Wisconsin |
| State Integration Pilot Project: An Experiment in Maximizing the Electoral Impact of Nonpartisan State-Based Organizations
The State Integration Pilot Project is an 18-month experiment to test how various nonpartisan state integration models can best shape the electoral battlefield prior to election cycles. The project was convened by the Center for Civic Policy, a people of color-led statewide network in New Mexico, and now includes three other groups: Center for Civic Participation/Michigan Voice, Colorado Progressive Coalition and the Oregon Bus Project. The groups involved are on the leading edge of state-wide nonpartisan voter and issue integration work and reflect diverse models with demonstrated track records of innovation and results.
| Conference Call |
| Topic TBA - Check back soon for details. | Conference Call |
| The July call will focus on the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation’s integrated voter engagement model for building capacity on the ground and building infrastructure for sustained civic engagement. Members look for an email with call details, including a description of the call topic and list of speakers, within the next week. | Conference Call |
| FCCP 2007 July Steering Committee Meeting | Conference Call |
| Please Join Civil Rights Leader Dolores Huerta Ian Inaba, Color of Change and Video the Vote John Bonifaz, Legal Director of Voter Action For a special election year briefing Tuesday, June 24th :: 11:30 AM-1:00 PM Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors 101 Second Street, 24th floor San Francisco VoterAction and Video the Vote will share what they have learned from the 2008 primary season and the status of the election systems, as well as what can be done to improve ballot access and accountability between now and November’s election. State-specific solutions to safeguard the upcoming November election will be presented. Please RSVP by June 17th, 2008 via Email ( rsvp@voteraction.org) or 206 723 1941 Lunch provided. Space is limited. Hosted by Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors & Tides Foundation | Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors |