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Toward Power-Shifting Solidarity with Black-Led Change: The State of Philanthropic Investments & Transformative Invitations to Advance Racial Justice in Minnesota & Beyond

May 25, 2023

Leaders of the Black Collective Foundation MN, the state's first Black community foundation, are working to ensure that Black-led organizations and communities are adequately recognized and resourced. In the spring of 2022, the  Collective and the Center for Evaluation Innovation formed a partnership to consider how to build power-shifting solidarity with Black people and communities across Minnesota.Doing this required better understanding what foundation staff believe is possible, what will motivate courageous action, and how to support those who have made commitments to stay the course.This report, and the research that informs it, considers the question: What will it take for institutional philanthropy in MN and beyond to move at the speed of courage and invest wholly in Black lives?

2022 Minnesota Student Survey Findings and Trends

March 1, 2023

This report summarizes relevant findings from the 2022 Minnesota Student Survey for Minnesota, as well as trends from 2016-2022. Highlighted data include substance use, mental health, and related risk and protective factors.

The Art of Economic Justice: An Impact Report on Guaranteed Income Pilots for Artists and Creative Workers in Minnesota

February 9, 2023

In 2021, Springboard for the Arts launched one of the first Guaranteed Income pilots in the country focused on individual artists and creative workers.This innovative pilot and narrative change strategy was designed in partnership with the City of St. Paul's People's Prosperity Pilot guaranteed income program. The City of St. Paul is a leader in the national Mayors for Guaranteed Income network, which works to incorporate learning and research from local pilots into state and federal policy recommendations.Springboard undertook this work to demonstrate that artists should be recipients of economic system change and that they are powerful allies in movements for economic justice.The goals of Springboard's GI original pilot were:1) Provide 25 artists and creative workers located in the Frogtown and Rondo neighborhoods of St. Paul, MN with $500 monthly payments for 18 months.2) Support a cohort of artists to lead narrative change projects to build understanding about the need for economic justice in our community.3) Develop research and inform policy by specifically demonstrating the impact that guaranteed income has on artist communities and the ways in which artists can contribute their skills to movements around economic justice.

First Year Recap: PDG Indigenous Evaluation

February 1, 2023

The State of Minnesota was awarded a federal Preschool Development Grant Birth through 5 (PDG B-5) Renewal Grant in late 2019. The PDG B-5 aims to align and coordinate multiple systems for families with children, prenatally through age 5, including American Indian families. This report presents first-year results from the Indigenous evaluation of Minnesota's preschool development grant.

Clean Jobs Midwest 2022 Report

December 12, 2022

Clean Jobs Midwest is an annual report based on survey data on clean energy employment in 12 Midwestern states.These states include Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. The Midwest's clean energy industry employed 714,323 people in sectors including renewable energy generation, energy efficiency, advanced transportation, grid and storage, and clean fuels at the end of 2021. 

Preventing Firearm Suicide Among White Men Who Own Firearms in Greater Minnesota: Findings from Interviews with Firearm Owners and National Messaging Experts

December 1, 2022

Wilder Research conducted interviews with national messaging experts and white, male, firearm owners in greater Minnesota. Respondents were asked for their suggestions for trusted messengers who could share communications about firearm suicide prevention, suggestions for framing messaging and the types of content that should be shared, safe storage practices, and how they and other firearm owners would respond to a mental health crisis and the barriers that prevent people from intervening in a crisis.

Indigenous Evaluation 101 Guidebook

October 1, 2022

This Guide was developed by Bowman Performance Consulting and Wilder Research as part of our work with the Minnesota Department of Education to conduct an Indigenous Evaluation for Minnesota's Preschool Development Grant. It was developed to help the State of Minnesota, Indigenous organizations, and others to recognize the steps and considerations necessary to design and implement an evaluation that considers Indigenous ways of knowing. It contains concrete tips and tools, and includes links to other resources.

Addressing the root causes of gun violence with American Rescue Plan funds: Lessons from state and local governments

August 15, 2022

In June 2022, the most significant piece of gun violence prevention legislation in decades, the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, became law. Alongside several common-sense gun regulations, the law allocates $250 million for community-based violence prevention initiatives—a promising step toward promoting safety through non-carceral and community-centered approaches.This federal action is important, but it only scratches the surface of what can be done to keep communities safe from gun violence. From investing in youth employment programs to revitalizing vacant lots to improving the quality of neighborhood housing, a wealth of community-based safety interventions are proven to reduce violent crime—including gun violence—in the places most impacted by it, and tackle the conditions of inequality that allow violence to concentrate in the first place. But far too often, these community-based interventions are under-funded, particularly when compared to more punitive approaches.Luckily, another source of federal aid can fund community-based safety investments: the American Rescue Plan's (ARP) $350 billion in Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds. In addition to helping states and localities recover from the pandemic, the funds also provide local leaders with an unparalleled opportunity to address the public health crisis of gun violence.This research brief documents how state and local leaders are leveraging ARP funds to invest in non-carceral community-based safety initiatives; presents perspectives and case studies from leaders on-the-ground innovating on such strategies; and offers recommendations for how state and local leaders can maximize ARP funds to promote community safety prior to 2024 (when all funds must be obligated) and 2026 (when all funds must be spent). This is an unparalleled—and time-limited—window of opportunity, and states and localities should be thinking strategically right now about how to not only invest in proven strategies to reduce gun violence, but also promote life-affirming safety investments that support thriving communities.

Regional Trends in Tech as Art: Supporting Artists Who Use Technology as a Creative Medium

August 8, 2022

In June 2021, the National Endowment for the Arts published Tech as Art: Supporting Artists Who Use Digital Technology as a Creative Medium. This report is the culmination of a nearly two-year research study into artists whose practices are rooted in digital technologies. Launched in partnership with the Knight Foundation and Ford Foundation, with research conducted by 8 Bridges Workshop and Dot Connector Studio, the report explores the broad spectrum of tech-centered artistic practice, as well as the networks, career paths, and hubs of activity that support this work.Prior to the report publication, the Arts Endowment organized a series of seven virtual field meetings between June 15-24, 2021. These roundtable gatherings welcomed 116 artists, funders, administrators, academics, writers, educators, activists, and other field leaders, in addition to representatives from the Knight Foundation, Ford Foundation, and National Endowment for the Arts. Convenings focused on distinct geographic regions anchored by the cities of St. Paul, Minnesota; Detroit, Michigan; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; New York, New York; Miami, Florida; Santa Fe, New Mexico; and San Jose, California. Participants discussed challenges, existing assets, and practical steps for building the arts and technology field across the nation from the ground up. Through advancing regional conversations, the Arts Endowment sought to both strengthen regional arts and technology networks and develop an array of practical action steps for potential field supporters that complement Tech as Art findings and recommendations.

Changing the Playbook: Immigrants and the COVID-19 Response in Two U.S. Communities

July 27, 2022

U.S. cities and towns have responded to COVID-19 in ways that are as diverse as the communities they aim to support. This report looks at how two very different locations—Worthington, MN, and the greater Houston area—incorporated immigrants into their relief efforts, through partnerships, strategic outreach, targeted assistance, and more. The report also highlights useful lessons for responses to future emergencies.

Practical Guidance: What Nonprofits Need to Know About Lobbying in Minnesota

May 24, 2022

Bolder Advocacy's Practical Guidance – What Nonprofits Need to Know About Lobbying state law resource series is designed to help nonprofits determine if lobbying rules in their state might apply to their state or local work, and if they do, how best to navigate them!Each Guide Includes:Summary of lobbyist registration and reporting triggers in the stateKey critical takeaways for nonprofit organizationsFAQs – giving practical perspective on how to interact with the state rulesCase study for a hypothetical small student voting rights organizationList of helpful additional resourcesWho are these Guides For?Nonprofit Advocacy Organizations: Leaders and staff of nonprofit organizations that work on (or are thinking about working on) advocacy initiatives at the state or local levelLawyers: Lawyers and compliance professionals interested in working with nonprofit advocacy organizations doing state and local level workFunders: Funding organizations working to ensure strong organizational capacity and infrastructure for the groups they fund doing advocacy work at the state and local level

Seeing to Soar Regional Nonprofit Snapshot: Minneapolis-Saint Paul (Twin Cities)

April 26, 2022

This regional nonprofit snapshot is a follow-up analysis to Seeking to Soar, zooming in to better understand the AAPI nonprofit landscape in regions with AAPIP chapters, starting with Minneapolis-Saint Paul (Twin Cities).Key Findings:Although the Twin Cities has a robust philanthropic landscape (total grants nearing $1.3 billion), the slice designated to AAPI communities is miniscule, total just $5.3 million. This equates to just 42 cents going to AAPI communities per $100 awarded by institutional philanthropy.The majority of AAPI-specific organizations are small- to mid-sized. Nearly 90% are operating with less than five staff, and more than 80% are operating with budgets smaller than $500k.The funding landscape for AAPI-specific organizations is precarious. More than 75% of AAPI-designated funding comes from ten institutions. Investing long term and at higher levels is critical to building the capacity and sustainability of organizations that are foundational to AAPI communities.