Carmen Graciela Díaz's Blog

The Blanket Exercise, led by Native Americans in Philanthropy (NAP), is "a participatory simulation that teaches about Native people, the colonization of their land, and its consequences, and how oppression continues today," as Jen Bokoff, director of Stakeholder Engagement at Candid, reflected in an article published in Alliance Magazine, after participating in one session. The blankets, as she describes, represent Turtle Island (North America), while a time lapse of stolen land loops on screen.

Giving circles, as Ms. Magazine reported, are usually created by women and/or members of ethnic minority, LGBTQ or other marginalized groups—those who typically hold a lesser share of power and money in the U.S.—though many open their doors to anyone with common values. And, according to the magazine, women make up most of their members.

A pledge by Ethical Storytelling, a community of practitioners "engaging the messy yet beautiful conversation around storytelling in the social impact space," seeks to focus the lens on the “how,” not just the “what” of the stories we encounter in the work we do, writes Rachel Goble, co-curator of Ethical Storytelling, in a recent post published in the blog of the Center for Effective Philanthropy.

Family Pictures USA, a new show on PBS, that highlights local history and heritage, has relevance for philanthropy, as a piece at The Chronicle of Philanthropy points out. "At a time when foundations are being urged to listen more keenly to grantees and their ultimate beneficiaries, show host Thomas Allen Harris offers a master class in the gracious way that he listens intently and draws out the most profound expression of the stories behind family photo albums," details the piece.

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) announced recently that sixteen prominent humanities scholars and advocates have been confirmed to the National Council on the Humanities.

On July 1, the Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture, formerly the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, marked the official transition and launch of the new department.

In 2001, activist Sadie Roberts-Joseph founded the Baton Rouge African American Museum "after Baton Rouge refused to make black history a mandatory part of schools' curriculum," as CNN reported. Last month, Roberts-Joseph was killed, and in August, a month following her tragic murder, the museum has been vandalized, part of larger anti-justice movements in a polarized country.

This month, as the second anniversary of Hurricane Harvey approaches, the Houston arts community has united to create a website that hopes artists in the area will be better informed and prepared the next time a large hurricane arrives, Nonprofit Quarterly reported.

The Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA) recently announced "2020 Vision," a year of exhibitions and programs dedicated to female-identifying artists. The show also marks the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage, and according to the announcement, the initiative will encompass 13 solo exhibitions and seven thematic shows beginning in fall 2019, with additional presentations still being planned.

Last year, six of the Walter & Elise Haas Fund’s arts grantees merged or were acquired, as Frances Phillips, program director of the Arts & the Creative Work Fund at the Walter & Elise Haas Fund, writes in a blog post. Phillips interviewed staff and board members at each of these organizations to learn what shaped their decisions and to ask what advice they have to offer others.