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Community Investing Achiever in the Social Investment Forum 1% For Community campaign since 2002. Calvert Foundation Advisor of the Year in 2004. Learn more!

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Socially responsible philanthropy portfolio management

Donor advised funds

A donor advised fund is similar to having your own foundation but is much simpler to maintain because the administrative requirements and overhead is spread among many donor advisers. You name your account however you want and have advisory privileges for how your account's money is granted out. With the two DAFs listed below, the account is socially responsibly invested, which is not the case with nearly all other DAFs out there.

Calvert Foundation and Impact Assets Giving Funds let you multiply your social and green mission by investing charitable assets in a community and sustainable investing platform until you make grant recommendations from your donor advised account. Ask us for a personal introduction to this service and read the information kit and prospectus for more information including fees and expenses.

Family and private foundations

We can help you, your lawyer, and your tax adviser coordinate a number of things including the prudent investment of the foundation assets. Specifically, we can manage your foundation assets so they are sustainably and responsibly invested and aligned with your foundation's mission. Please contact us or review the material on our foundations page.

Note: If you are thinking about establishing a family foundation with less than $1,000,000, we recommend you consider a donor advised fund (see above and consult with your attorney) instead. This is because of the time and money overhead required to manage a foundation. For example, it will need incorporation, legal and accounting advice, ongoing record keeping, money management, IRS filings, annual formal meetings of officers, and other general administration. Most of those tasks are already included with donor advised funds and the overhead is shared among many accounts.

• This practical, easy-to-read guide starts out by explaining how most charitable giving only temporarily addresses problems by feeding the hungry, housing the homeless, etc. Yes, people and the environment have immediate needs, however, Collins explains, such giving does not work on changing the underlying systems and social structures that allowed such transgressions to occur in the first place. 
• By reading through this guide, you will learn how some people are giving strategically—giving to change the things that are wrong in society. Robin Hood is filled with stories, sidebars, and quotes from all kinds of actual folks who are successfully giving in strategic, innovative ways.
• Author, Chuck Collins, is now heading up an organization called Responsible Wealth that helps wealthy people work on tax fairness and corporate responsibility campaigns.

Additional resources

Responsible Wealth consists of leaders in business, community, government, philanthropy, academia and finance. Members are among the wealthiest 5% of Americans, the primary beneficiaries of the robust growth of the American economy. They are united by their common concern that despite a booming economy, many are not sharing in the prosperity. Founded in 1997, Responsible Wealth is affiliated with United for a Fair Economy (UFE), a national non-profit devoted to putting a spotlight on the dangers of excessive inequality of income and wealth in the United States. Responsible Wealth's work is focused on four areas: Fair taxes, a living wage for all, greater corporate accountability, and broadened asset ownership for all Americans.