“How can we stop the world from burning? For many years, I responded to that question as an environmental advocate,” said author Manisha Bapna for Orion

“In our fight against climate change, my colleagues and I employ hard-edged tools such as legislation, policy, and litigation—all informed by science and real-world impacts on people and nature. But as the Anthropocene accelerates and our time runs out to set the world on a more sustainable and equitable course, I have come to recognize that these tools alone cannot change the world fast enough to save it.”

“This new world we inhabit, the Anthropocene, is hard to fathom. The speed and scale of change are disorienting. The stakes are now too high to ignore. The future of humanity—and all life on Earth—is in our hands. We need to reset our relationship with nature—so that we appreciate it for its intrinsic value, as well as its connection to our health, economy, and communities.

In recent years, progressive organizations of all kinds have come closer together, realizing that the problems we work to solve intersect and compound. Collaboration increases our odds of success.

The same is true across disciplines: poets and scientists, essayists and environmental lawyers, storytellers and policy experts. Working together, we stand a better chance of steering away from catastrophe in the Anthropocene and toward the light.”

Read the full article here.

From Open Society Foundations: “This discussion about the restitution of Ngonnso to the Nso community, hosted by the Open Society Foundations Global Initiative for the Restitution of African Cultural Heritage and Open Society grantee SySy House of Fame, features African cultural heritage activist Sylvie Njobati and researcher María Leonor Pérez Ramírez discussing the power of civil society empowerment and the work which led to this historic event.”

Veronika Chatelain is a program officer of Expression for Global Programs at the Open Society Foundations, where she co-leads the Global Initiative for Restitution of African Cultural Heritage. Sylvie Njobati is a restitution activist and the founder of Sysy House of Fame, an arts and culture organization in Cameroon. María Leonor Pérez Ramírez is a research associate for the German Contact Point for Collections from Colonial Contexts.

Watch the full discussion here.

This week on the NEA Art Works podcast, they discuss, “investing in the creative economy from two perspectives.” The first, Laura Callanan, founding partner of Upstart Co-Lab, and then Sheoyki Jones, founding program manager of Creative Industries.

“In the podcast, Callanan explains what’s meant by the creative economy and impact investing, and how they contribute to a thriving culture and economy. She always shares what the United States might learn from the work done in this area by other countries.”

“Jones talks with me about the programs that Creative Industries began that support Atlanta’s creative workers. She discusses the importance of genuine outreach to creative workers and also shares some of the challenges and best practices in designing programs that invest in and support local creative communities.”

Listen to the full episode here.

“As the co-founder and co-CEO of Be Nimble Foundation, Kelli Jones saw the need for more philanthropic support for Black organizations long before the pandemic tightened budgets,” said author Jayden Kennett for the Indianapolis Recorder.”Coming out of the pandemic, she’s seen the money and resources that Black organizations had been begging for.”

“Jackie Bouvier Copeland launched Black Philanthropy Month in 2011 to celebrate Black giving and promote funding in equity. Celebrated every August worldwide, this year’s theme focuses on rebuilding communities and creating lasting funding and racial equity for Black communities.”

“Black people give the highest proportion of their income to philanthropy, according to the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, but receive as little as 2% of the funding — which was an inspiration to create Black Philanthropy Month, Copeland said.”

Read the full article here.