Welcome to the Philanthropy Southeast Resource Hub – a searchable database of resources related to best practices in grantmaking, foundation management, nonprofit governance, and equitable practices in philanthropy. Here you'll find articles, research reports, white papers, program recordings, recommended websites, and sample documents to help you in your work.
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You can submit items for the Resource Hub here. All submissions are reviewed by Philanthropy Southeast staff before they are posted.
If you have a question about the Resource Hub, please contact Stephen Sherman at stephen@philanthropysoutheast.org.
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2024 Resource Tracking Report: LGBTQ Grantmaking by U.S. Foundations
Author: Alyssa Lawther, Sammy Luffy
Year Authored: 2026
Publisher: Funders for LGBTQ Issues
This report offers an overview of foundation funding in support of LGTBQ communities and issues for calendar year 2024. The report documents 5,043 grants awarded by 445 funders for a total of $178.2 million in 2024, which represented a decline of 15 percent in terms of grant dollars. When adjusted for inflation, funding fell by 17 percent from 2023 to 2024. This means that for every $100 awarded by U.S. foundations in 2024, only 16 cents specifically supported LGBTQ communities, which was a decrease from 20 cents per $100 awarded in 2023.
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Report
2026 Kids COUNT Data Book: State Trends in Child Well-Being
Author: undefined
Year Authored: 2026
Publisher: The Annie E. Casey Foundation
The 2026 Kids COUNT Data Book tracks child well-being across the U.S., showing a mixed and uneven picture of child well-being across the country. Since 2019, seven of the 16 key indicators have improved, seven have worsened and two remain unchanged. It highlights persistent disparities and calls for continued investment and data-driven policies to ensure all children can thrive. The report ultimately emphasizes the need to prioritize children's needs and build a stronger future for all by addressing critical issues like economic well-being, education, health, and family and community support.
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Hurricane Helene Disaster Response Playbook
Author: undefined
Year Authored: 2026
Publisher: Dogwood Health Trust
Dogwood Health Trust offers this disaster response playbook to capture lessons learned from their experiences responding to Hurricane Helene in 2024. The playbook and downloadable readiness and response checklist offer practical guidance for how philanthropy and other organizations can help stabilize communities in the immediate aftermath of a disaster and lay the groundwork for long-term recovery. The online resource also includes a timeline of Dogwood's response to Hurricane Helene and a list of grants awarded for response and recovery.
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Website
Organization-Wide Learning in Philanthropy: A Practical Guide for Foundations
Author: Jared Raynor, Charles Gasper
Year Authored: 2026
Publisher: TCC Group
Drawing on extensive organizational learning research, this report features eight case studies from foundations that have implemented various forms of organization-wide learning agendas. These case studies are not intended to showcase "best practices", but to illustrate a range of possibilities and provide practical examples that others can draw from.
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Guide
Advancing Black Workers in the South: An HBCU Research Initiative
Author: Algernon Austin, Kate Bronfenbrenner
Year Authored: 2026
Publisher: Center for Economic and Policy Research
This report from the Advancing Black Workers in the South study, an initiative of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and a Minority-Serving Institution (MSI), focuses on the challenges Black workers in the South face at work and Black workers' experiences with and attitudes toward unions. Variable work hours, work load, and workplace safety were among the top concerns for Black workers interviewed as part of the study. The majority of the respondents report positive attitudes toward unions. The authors conclude with policy recommendations to address workplace concerns and promote employee organizing.
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Report
Investing for Impact: A Decision-Making Tool
Author: undefined
Year Authored: 2026
Publisher: The Annie E. Casey Foundation
This decision-making tool uses practices that the Annie E. Casey Foundation has honed over its years of impact investing to ensure each investment decision incorporates factors important to the Foundation in a systematic way. The tool scores opportunities across 10 criteria, and this approach allows funders to systematically compare investments and prioritize options with the greatest potential for both financial and social returns. While Casey uses this tool to further its mission of advancing well-being for children, youth and families, other investors with different social missions also may find it useful to apply the process. Throughout this tool, short case studies illustrate how these factors led to successful Foundation impact investments.
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Guide
State of Nonprofits 2026: What Funders Need to Know
Author: Seara Grundhoefer, Elisha Smith Arrillaga, Ellie Buteau
Year Authored: 2026
Publisher: Center for Effective Philanthropy
The Center for Effective Philanthropy's (CEP) annual State of Nonprofits report aims to elevate the perspectives of nonprofit leaders and provide a clearer understanding of the pressures they are facing. This fourth edition of the report finds that burnout has increased dramatically among nonprofit CEOs, who say the current context has contributed to lower staff morale and heightened levels of stress and fear. Nonprofit CEOs also report more difficulty obtaining foundation funding than in previous years. Despite ongoing financial challenges, many nonprofits are making strategic adaptations to their work in order to survive.
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Report
Collaboratives as a Philanthropic Asset Class
Author: Neha Dalal, Kimberly Dasher Tripp, Alison Powell
Year Authored: 2026
Publisher: Jasper Ridge Partners, Strategy for Scale, Bridgespan Group
This article examines the evolution of philanthropic collaboratives and offers recommendations for increasing their use by donors. While collaborative funds are not new, their recent growth is notable. Of the more than 500 philanthropc collaboratives that the Bridgespan Group has identified, most were launched in the last 10 years. Still, collaborative funds remain an underutilized philanthropic "asset class" in most donors' portfolios. Only 16 percent of the funds in the database rely primarily on individual donors. Most are still largely supported by select large institutionalized foundations.
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Article
Financial Planning in the Age of Donor Advised Funds
Author: Dan Heist, Benjamin Cummings, Erinn Andrews, Russell James, Jon Bergdoll
Year Authored: 2026
Publisher: Donor Advised Fund Research Collaborative
This report draws on six focus groups and a national survey of 669 financial advisors across the country to examine how, when, and why financial advisors incorporate DAFs into charitable planning. The study found that DAFs are the second most commonly recommended giving approach after direct giving, with 21 percent of financial advisors recommending them about half of the time, and another 35 percent recommending them frequently. Tax benefits are the dominant motivation for recommending DAFs, with 83 percent of advisors rating them as very or extremely important. Flexible timing of giving and client convenience follow closely, along with charitable estate planning objectives, as primary reasons for recommending DAFs.
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Report
Nonprofit Leaders Reported Growing Uncertainty from 2024 to Early 2025: Findings from the Nonprofit Trends and Impacts Study
Author: Hannah Martin, Grace Koch, Katie Fallon, Laura Tomasko, Mirae Kim, Lewis Faulk, Elizabeth T. Boris
Year Authored: 2026
Publisher: Urban Institute
This report examines changes in nonprofit leaders' outlooks for their organizations' ability to successfully pursue their missions from 2024 to spring 2025. Forty-eight percent of nonprofit leaders reported worsened outlooks from 2024 to spring 2025, while only 19 percent reported improved outlooks. Leaders of larger organizations and arts, culture, and humanities organizations; education organizations; and public, societal benefit organizations were more likely to report worsened outlooks. Lastly, leaders whose organizations experienced government funding disruptions or reported financial challenges were more likely to report worsened outlooks.
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