As TBF’s President and CEO has said and written before, “this is not a time to rest. It is a time to be restless—and relentless—in the pursuit of what is right and just.”
Below, please find a list of our Meeting the Moment initiatives – both those we’ve completed, and those in process. We will continue regularly to update you about the progress of our initiatives even as we develop new ones.
This fall, much of our efforts have been focused on the Meeting the Moment: Sustaining Families initiative, with a targeted focus on meeting the needs of the already-strained regional food system at a time when SNAP and other programs are coming under attack.
But our efforts began much earlier. The timeline includes several convenings– large and small– as well as:
Prominent among these many efforts will be launch of our digital TBF Navigating the Moment Resource Center to support non-profits and others in their strategic work.
The grant round builds upon our continuing work to provide stability to food systems across Massachusetts, and raises the commitment this cycle to $1.9 million.
Rising food insecurity and cuts to federal food programs have prompted a new multi-part commitment, beginning with $1 million grant to Greater Boston Food Bank.
As federal changes threaten the most vulnerable across our region, TBF President and CEO Lee Pelton reflects on moral courage and leadership as TBF plans to lead a coordinated philanthropic response to mobilize resources and galvanize collective action.
Originally intended to distribute $2 million, the special round was expanded with support from TBF’s donors. The new grants are part of TBF's overall strategy to “Meet the Moment” at this critical time.
Changes in SNAP eligibility for legal immigrants and more stringent work requirements for parents and those over 55 could have greatest impact on the region's Gateway Cities.
The scope and impacts of the Trump administration’s housing agenda are still unfolding. This Boston Indicators brief provides an overview of federal reforms, adopted or proposed, that may impact housing access and affordability in Greater Boston.
What's at stake for our region if international students are turned away—or turned off? Boston Indicators dug into the numbers to understand who our international students are, where they come from, and how much they contribute to colleges and universities in MA and the broader economy.
This research brief by Boston Indicators explores the alarming increase in politicization of federal data and the lack of transparency on the alterations to thousands of datasets and public web pages, including critical information from the Census Bureau, CDC, and EPA.
The report, entitled Fading Beauty: How the One Big Beautiful Bill Could Widen Wealth Inequality, produced through the Racial Wealth Equity Resource Center with generous support from the Barr Foundation, "examines how OBBB’s changes to the tax code, Medicaid, SNAP, and student aid could erode families’ ability to save, invest, and build long-term stability. These provisions risk deepening not only income inequality today but also racial and generational wealth divides for years to come."
TBF, the Cambridge Community Foundation and New Sector Alliance opened applications for a new cohort of the Leadership Longevity Fellows program, a nine-month program offering a blend of in-person and virtual retreats, coaching sessions, peer learning circles, and a culminating fellowship project and public convening, to ensure that food system leaders have the tools, strategies, and networks of support to collaborate, adapt and lead through a time of immense change and increased demand for services.
In a follow-up to Boston Indicators' report on the impact of SNAP cuts, Boston Indicators Senior Research Analyst Peter Ciurczak and Victoria Negus, senior economic justic advocate at the Mass. Law Reform Institute, wrote an op-ed highlighting the need for the state to invest in the Dept. of Transitional Assistance to make it easier for residents to keep their benefits in the face of federal roadblocks designed to interfere with distribution. TBF President and CEO Lee Pelton's op ed shared by the CommonWealth Beacon reminds us that data not only informs policy but can transform lives, highlighting examples over the past decades where TBF research informed actions by Boston leadership that positioned Boston as a national leader in many areas.
As part of our ongoing commitment to support local organizations and communities threatened by federal cuts to critical programs, TBF announced a second round of Meeting the Moment: Sustaining Families grants. The grants, totaling $900,000, are being awarded to nine organizations that advocate for, supply, distribute, and deliver vital food supplies across Eastern Massachusetts. The new round of grants was seeded with $500,000 from the Boston Foundation’s Fund for Boston’s Future, which donors quickly supplemented as part of the Foundation’s long-term commitment to meeting basic needs. The Foundation announced its first grant, a $1 million commitment to the Greater Boston Food Bank, in August as part of a design to support both the hub and spokes of the region’s complex food system.
The initiative, Meeting the Moment: Sustaining Families is a long-term project to use the Foundation’s grantmaking, donor partnerships, research, convening, and advocacy power to distribute critical funding that responds to current need, identifies paths to protect critical systems and institutions, and collaboratively reimagines what a more resilient, robust safety net might look like. With an initial $1.5M investment, we’re partnering with key organizations like The Greater Boston Food Bank to address urgent needs and support long-term solutions.
As federal changes threaten the most vulnerable across our region, TBF President and CEO Lee Pelton reflects on moral courage and leadership as TBF plans to lead a coordinated philanthropic response to mobilize resources and galvanize collective action, shared in his op ed for the BBJ.
For Nonprofit Quarterly, Senior Program Officer Support for the Social Safety Net at TBF Candace Burton reflects on her work leading the Safety Net Grants program at TBF and the lessons we've learned about trust-based grantmaking, streamlining systems, and centering equity as we meet this moment.
This Boston Indicators brief provides an overview of federal reforms, adopted or proposed, that may impact housing access and affordability in Greater Boston.
Lawyers for Civil Rights is hosting a TBF funded three-hour legal clinic/ virtual meeting between their attorneys and non-profit leaders to discuss their compliance and rights under the federal administration.
Monthly, one-hour zoom convenings for staff to come together with Lee Pelton to reflect on the impact of current events on our work with the community as well as on our internal equity and inclusion work. Listening, learning, sharing, being in community with colleagues, reinforcing TBF’s commitments.
On May 5, a record turnout for a Boston Foundation forum—nearly 1,200 registrants—gathered in person and online to discuss the findings from a recent survey of Massachusetts nonprofit leaders on a high-profile topic – the anticipated impacts of the shifting federal landscape.
Convening for arts and culture sector partners and non-profits to mobilize action around key policies and legislation that impacts the future of artists and creatives.
Convening of Shifting Power and Advancing Justice Collective to discuss shared learnings for navigating the administration.
Gathering of donors and key Safety Net Grantees to discuss how we might together meet the political and social moment before us.
Offering an opportunity for Boston grantmakers to learn how they can better support nonprofits in this critical moment, TBF hosted at our office an interactive workshop on advancing responsive grantmaking and strengthening nonprofit capacity. Candace Burton, Senior Program Officer, Support for the Social Safety Net, at TBF joined the panel to share how TBF is responding to urgent needs with the special round of Safety Net Grants.
This Boston Indicators brief dug into the numbers to understand who our international students are, where they come from, and how much they contribute to colleges and universities in MA and the broader economy.
Launch of a new resource on tbf.org with information on meeting the moment for Nonprofits, which will be updated and refreshed to respond to changing events.
Blog Post in Commonwealth Beacon authored by TBF staff member Carlos Muñoz Cadilla, Senior Associate, Nonprofit Sector Infrastructure.
Gathering grantees to strengthen collective impact, support each other and navigate the challenges posed by the current government administration.
Asian Community Fund Convening with Former Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su, nationally recognized workers’ rights and civil rights expert who served in President Biden’s cabinet as the Acting Secretary of Labor, to discuss seismic shifts in international trade policy and workers’ rights and how to advocate for AAPI and immigrant communities across the region.
500 applications requesting $25M (four times the number of applicants than usual).
TBF staff followed this message with personal outreach to donors and via our Donor Insider Newsletter which helped generate $396,000 in additional support.
TBF Nonprofit Infrastructure Team partnered with Massachusetts Nonprofit Network and Mass. Inc Polling to survey Nonprofit leaders to capture perceptions of the new administration’s impact on their organizations and vulnerable communities, with more than 500 responses received. Results from the survey were shared at a convening on May 5.
