Donor Education + Events

Our programs and events keep you in touch with community issues and your own approach to philanthropy.

Our donors are always invited to Boston Foundation programs that are open to the public. Chief among these is Understanding Boston, a series of forums, educational events and research presentations that provide information and insight into issues affecting Greater Boston, its neighborhoods and the region. See recent Understanding Reports and forum videos below.

Donor-Only Events

The Boston Foundation hosts events for donors that engage them in programmatic topics (an evening at Commonwealth Shakespeare, for example, or a screening of a film about a prison transition program) and that introduce them to thought leaders in philanthropy: Donors were invited to a “Jeffersonian Dinner” with Dr. Atul Gawande, and to a concert and conversation with Peter Buffett at the Isabel Stewart Gardner Museum. We offer a series of philanthropic workshops each year to help donors and their friends learn more about the mechanics of estate and charitable gift planning from experts in the field. Past programs have included: 

  • Responding to Financial Markets: Life Income and Related Plans
  • Charitable Planning with Real Estate Interests
  • Estate and Gift Planning Basics
  • Charitable Contributions of IRA and Qualified Retirement Plan Assets
  • Planning for the Future of Your Donor Advised Fund 

Report

Leveraging Catalytic Capital for Small Building Decarbonization in Boston

Produced in partnership between the Boston Foundation, Firefly Energy Consulting, and the Building Electrification Institute, this report explores how philanthropy can provide “catalytic capital,” using impact investments and other vehicles to supplement local, state, and federal funding to reduce carbon emissions in low- and moderate-income areas.

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Report

Family Wealth in Massachusetts

A new report takes a first-of-its-kind look at family wealth across demographic groups in Massachusetts, highlighting the broad disaparities between and among groups in the state.

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Report

This report from the Boston Private Industry Council and the Boston Foundation explores the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the following years on college enrollment, persistance and completion for graduates of the Boston Public Schools. While results are improving from pandemic lows, the report highlights the challenges of regaining momentum, especially for the groups of students facing the hardest paths to a postsecondary education.

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Video

The Asian Community Fund 2026 Gala

More than 700 people were on hand to enjoy a remarkable night of inspiration, AAPI-themed entertainment, food and fellowship at the Westin Copley Plaza for the third Asian Community Fund Gala.

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