Philanthropy professionals in Pennsylvania understand how state policy affects the nonprofit sector, and many have a history of engaging and educating state policymakers. Even given private foundations’ constraints on lobbying, there are numerous opportunities for communication between philanthropy and the public sector that are permissible and can serve to build relationships and advance important issues.
A number of Pennsylvania funders work to ensure that both public and private dollars are used effectively to promote quality results, to the benefit of both taxpayers and communities. Funding organizations that work regularly in fields like public education, healthcare or workforce development often house deep knowledge, expertise and connections that can be useful to fellow funders whose work is place-based or occasionally touches upon these fields.
The Keystone Policy Series of conference calls/ webinars has been developed by Grantmakers of Western Pennsylvania (www.gwpa.org) and Philanthropy Network Greater Philadelphia (www.philanthropynetwork.org) to inform all Pennsylvania funders about how their colleagues are working on selected statewide policy issues. Funding organizations across the state will:
- Learn background information about a community issue from a statewide perspective
- Hear about work undertaken by Pennsylvania funding colleagues to address a policy challenge
- Learn about potential solutions in Pennsylvania and potential roles for philanthropy
- Build/ strengthen working relationships with other funders across the state
Join us for the fifth session:
Combating Pennsylvania’s Opioid Epidemic
April 27, 2017- 2:00-3:00 PM
The opioid epidemic affects Pennsylvanians from every walk of life. Rich, poor, black, white, young, or old – the opioid crisis is unprecedented in its reach and devastation. At least ten Pennsylvanians die every day from a drug overdose, with over 3,500 overdose deaths in Pennsylvania in 2015 alone.
In recent years, major U.S. policy efforts have been aimed at combating the epidemic of opioid addiction and overdose deaths. Join us for a discussion of federal, state and local policy initiatives and learn about opportunities for Pennsylvania funders to become involved.
Speakers:
Joni Schwager, Executive Director, Staunton Farm Foundation
Joe Pyle, President, Scattergood Foundation
Brendan Saloner, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Please click here to register (Note: You will need to create an account on GWP's website to register for this program).
If you have any questions or concerns about registration, please contact Kabria Rogers at kabria@philanthropynetwork.org.
