Eye on FDO

Funding for Arts Month

October is Funding for Arts Month at the Foundation Center!

As always during our special focus months, there's plenty happening that's sure to be of interest to FDO subscribers, including special events and free training for artists and arts organizations. Be sure to check the events schedule for the location nearest you at our Focus on Funding for the Arts page. Then, explore some of the other arts-related goodies we're making available, including interactive maps and charts, news, RFPs, foundation-sponsored publications, and commentary.

We're also conducting a free online webinar on funding trends in arts and culture on October 30. A panel of experts in the field will present the latest data on both foundation and public support and explore the arts and culture funding outlook. For more information, or to register, please visit our web site.

Fund Raising Day in New York

If you'll be attending Fund Raising Day in New York this Friday, be sure to stop by our exhibit booth, #309. We'll be available all day to answer any questions you have about Foundation Directory Online and to demonstrate FDO's unparalleled Professional features. Plus, if you're not yet a Professional subscriber, ask us for a free gift card providing trial access to our top-tier service.

Fundraising Day in New York is held each year by the Greater New York Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP). According to AFP, the event is "America's largest one-day conference on philanthropy."

If you'll be attending Fund Raising Day in New York this Friday, be sure to stop by our exhibit booth, #309. We'll be available all day to answer any questions you have about Foundation Directory Online and to demonstrate FDO's unparalleled Professional features. Plus, if you're not yet a Professional subscriber, ask us for a free gift card providing trial access to our top-tier service.

Fundraising Day in New York is held each year by the Greater New York Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP). According to AFP, the event is "America's largest one-day conference on philanthropy."

Funding for Education Month

June is Funding for Education Month at the Foundation Center!

As I search FDO Professional today for grantmakers with a known giving interest in education [Search Grantmakers Screen: Fields of Interest = Education], I find 46,161 funders. A search for grants awarded in support of education [Search Grants Screen: Subjects = Education] retrieves 430,615 individual awards. Of course, you can easily narrow these searches down to target particular areas of education-related funding; just select a more specific search term from the applicable FDO index.

Interested in learning more about using FDO to find funding for education-related programs? We're offering a special Researching Education Funders with Foundation Directory Online webinar on June 12. Please visit the Webinars section of our web site for full details and registration information.

MicroEdge Solutions Conference

Today, I'm blogging from the MicroEdge Solutions Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada. This annual, three-day event is attended by foundation staff, technology experts, industry consultants, and other philanthropic leaders. MicroEdge is the Foundation Center's first eGrant Reporting Partner and one of the reasons I'm here is to convey to grantmakers the great benefits of our eGrant Reporting Program.

Through the Foundation Center's eGrant Reporting Program, grantmakers submit electronic grants lists to us on a regular basis, expediting the inclusion of their grants data in FDO's Search Grants database. When grantmakers report their grants electronically, it's a win-win situation for everyone: grantseekers gain access to more current, accurate, and detailed grants data and grantmakers gain greater control over the taxonomy terms assigned to a grant. Plus, all eReporters are entitled to a complimentary link, upon request, to interactive FDO Professional maps and charts reflecting their grants. These maps and charts can be used by staff, included in presentations to the grantmaker's board or other groups, or posted online for the general public. You'll know a grantmaker is an eGrant Reporter by the icon located at the top of their FDO profile.

If you're a grantmaker, it's easy to become an eGrant Reporter. All it takes is an electronic file, such as an Excel file, that follows certain guidelines and includes certain information. Additionally, several grants management software providers, including MicroEdge, already include an option in their products to facilitate the submission of electronic grants lists to us. For more information, visit the Grantmakers section of our web site.

Funding for Arts Month

October is Funding for Arts Month at the Foundation Center!

As I search FDO Professional today for grantmakers with a known giving interest in arts [Search Grantmakers Screen: Fields of Interest = Arts], I find 15,665 funders. A search for grants awarded in support of arts [Search Grants Screen: Subjects = Arts] retrieves 131,474 individual awards. Obviously, you'd want to narrow these extremely broad searches down by adding additional criteria to find support that meets your particular needs.

Interested in learning more about using FDO to find funding for arts-related programs? We're offering a special arts-focused Introduction to Finding Funders webinar on October 21. Please visit the Webinars section of our web site for full details and registration information.

Fund Raising Day in New York

This Friday is Fund Raising Day in New York, held each year by the Greater New York Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP). According to AFP, the event is "America's largest one-day conference on philanthropy."

If you'll be attending Fund Raising Day in New York this year, be sure to stop by the Foundation Center's exhibit booth, #309, to preview a new and exciting FDO enhancement. Plus, mention this blog for a free gift card providing access for one week to top-tier FDO Professional for yourself or a friend. I hope to see you there!

Funding for the Environment Month

June is Funding for the Environment Month at the Foundation Center!

As I search FDO Professional today for grantmakers with a known giving interest in the environment [Search Grantmakers Screen: Fields of Interest = Environment], I find 4,807 funders. A search for grants awarded in support of the environment [Search Grants Screen: Subjects = Environment] retrieves 63,487 individual awards. Of course, you can easily narrow these searches down to target particular areas of environment-related funding; just select a more specific search term from the applicable FDO index.

Interested in learning more about using FDO to find funding for environment-related programs? We're offering a special environment-focused Introduction to Foundation Directory Online course this month at our New York and San Francisco library/learning centers.