The Johnson Center marks 10 years of its Trends report by reflecting on the themes that have shaped the social sector over the past ten years and naming both enduring shifts and new developments. The report discusses trust in nonprofits and philanthropy, the opportunities and threats of artificial intelligence, the crisis in news media, shrinking government funding, innovation and evolution of the social sector, employee well-being, the need for better data, and the evolving landscape of philanthropy.

This report examines Black-led nonprofits' experiences navigating race-related conversations with funders. The research uses a mixed-methods approach, analyzing survey responses from 1,113 nonprofits (including 246 Black-led nonprofits) in Fall 2024 and interviews with leaders of 24 Black-led nonprofits between November 2024 and January 2025. The report finds that Black-led nonprofits tend to be explicit about naming race in their external-facing messaging. They are also significantly more likely to receive advice not to mention race when describing their work and may face various forms of pressure from funders to modify their race-explicit language. Despite these pressures and amid an increasingly challenging philanthropic environment, most have maintained their race-explicit focus, though they employ different strategies to communicate their work.

This resource is the third in a series of Coming Together, Not Apart publications from the Council on Foundations, in collaboration with PACE and New Pluralists, that explores collaborations across lines of difference. This final report focuses on the leadership qualities required to advance this work, and examines how connecting and collaborating across differences doesn't necessarily mean achieving resolution or agreement; rather, it means finding understanding and the ability to hold differences without contributing to 'othering' or creating 'us versus them' dynamics that can contribute to toxic polarization and violence.

PRE's 2021 report Mismatched documented the gap between the rhetoric of 2020 and the insufficient resources that followed. Derailed draws on Candid's data for 2019-2023 to assess how institutional philanthropy has responded since. In the face of a shifting political and social landscape, the report finds that while overall giving grew 44 percent for this period, the share of grantmaking to communities of color receded from a previous high of 9.9 percent to 6.8 percent. Adjusted for inflation, support for communities of color fell 22.2 percent from 2021 to 2023. Funding for racial justice - defined as systemic change and power-building - never exceeded 1.4% of institutional giving.

The Sustainable Grantmaking Benchmark is intended to equip foundations to measure, strengthen, and share grantmaking practices that advance equity, transparency, and long-term impact. Participants can sign up to participate and have their practices reviewed against a framework to generate a score and insights. Participating foundations receive a confidential report with strengths, gaps, and practical recommendations. Funders are also encourage to share their findings and practices to better inform the field. An accompanying report shares findings from the initial cohort of benchmarking participants.

In 2015, The Bridgespan Group and the Pritzker Children's Initiative published a guide making the case for philanthropic investments to ensure that all children in the United States arrive at kindergarten fully ready to learn and thrive. A decade later, expanded private and public investment has driven progress, and further research has sharpened the case. This guide updates the earlier publication and identifies four critical areas for philanthropic investment by individual donors and foundations that build on the progress of the last decade and address key needs of children and families.

This report continues the annual review of DAF assets and growth previously published by the National Philanthropic Trust. The 2025 report shows that DAFs grew significantly in 2024, with the number of accounts reaching an all-time high of 3.56 million and assets increasing by 27.5 percent to more than $326 billion. Grantmaking from DAFs continued to rise, reaching $64.89 billion. The overall payout rate from DAFs remained fairly consistent with the prior year at 25.3 percent. The average account size increased 7.8 percent to $91,611.

This toolkit offers expert advice and learning resources to help communications professionals in the nonprofit sector navigate the rapidly changing landscape of artificial intelligence. The site includes sections exploring AI use cases, how the technology works, tips on selecting the right tools, and ways to stay informed on the implications of AI for strategic communications.

This document names and explores the challenges in implementing systems change and provides steps to navigate them. The guide draws on the authors' 14 years of experience implementing systems change programs in the Global South across affordable housing, early childhood education, and gender equity. Foundation leaders can use this guide to implement systems change in their work, finding entry points that align with their foundation's current capacity, constraints, and strategic objectives.

The 2025 Health of the U.S. Nonprofit Sector finds that nonprofits comprised approximately 5 percent of GDP. In 2024, the typical nonprofit received half of its funding from private sources (including individual donations, foundation grants, and corporate funds), 28 percent from government sources, 18 percent from earned revenue, and 4 percent from other sources. Data shows that in 2024, overall giving in dollars from individual donors increased by 3.5 percent relative to 2023, reversing the trend in the previous year. However, the number of donors and donor retention continued downward in line with the trend since 2021. The report also examines the state of the nonprofit workforce, trust in the nonprofit sector, and strategies for engagement in public policy and advocacy.