Carmen Graciela Díaz's Blog

This May, after five years, the art space 356 Mission in East Los Angeles will be closing its doors. But, as Nonprofit Quarterly wrote citing Hyperallergic, there were mixed reactions to the news. From artists, there was a sadness as they acknowledged the work the space has done for the arts and for its neighbors. And, with a very different reaction from community activists who “applauded the announcement as a victory against developers and the artists and galleries they see as their enablers and collaborators.”

The Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund (LMTIF) pledged $10 million in support of organizations using the arts to address health issues affecting New Yorkers, The New York Times reported.

In times when it is crucial that more Latinx individuals have a say in institutions that ultimately impact their community, Hispanics in Philanthropy (HIP)’s Next Generation (NGen) Líderes Program is looking for 25 leaders "who want to contribute to the development of equitable philanthropy across the Americas."

The "impact era" has more philanthropists framing their investments in decisions focused on having deeper social impact. According to a new piece in Forbes, this shift can be understood in relation to other impact-focused enterprises, and nonprofits are learning to refocus their strategies to maximize that impact.

Drue Heinz, a cultural philanthropist and publisher of The Paris Review, died on March 30 of this year, and reflecting on her life evokes a career in favor of culture and the arts.

In moments when respect for cultural diversity feels even more urgent, a national grantmaking program called Building Bridges, by the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art (DDFIA), works to foster understanding and engagement between Muslim and non-Muslim communities.

Issues black and brown communities faced in Austin through the 70s and early 80s, and parallels to current social issues, are the subject of the exhibit "Juntos/Together: Black and Brown Activism in Austin, Texas From 1970-83," on display through May 19 at the George Washington Carver Museum, Cultural and Genealogy Center.

The U.S. spends more than $80 billion each year on prison systems and incarceration, according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). By the close of 2010, America had more than 2.2 million people behind bars in state, local, and federal prisons, reports ACLU.

Through the Art for Justice Fund, an initiative that aims to reform the criminal justice system, the Ford Foundation and Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors launched a writing fellowship - supporting PEN America - to address issues of mass incarceration.

New Orleans will be the meeting point for dozens of funders at the EDGE Funders Alliance Conference, which will take place from April 17 - 20 to discuss ideas around their commitment to global social change philanthropy.

"What does culture have to do with sustainability?" A report by Helicon Collaborative, commissioned by ArtPlace, begins with this question to make the case for how place-based arts and cultural interventions, or “creative placemaking,” advance sustainability outcomes in the context of community development.