The Twenty-First Century Foundation. "Giving for Black Community Change."

We are very pleased to be writing to you from our new office and meeting space at 112th Street. It’s a great improvement over our very small offices on 125th Street, and yet our headquarters is still in Harlem, conveniently located near public transportation, allowing us to continue to serve a national network of leaders, grantees, donors, and allies.

The Foundation’s work continues to grow in breadth and depth. This year we have commissioned research in Los Angeles, a snapshot of decade-long demographic shifts and their impact on Black community nonprofits. The report, to be released this summer, tracks key social indicators for Blacks in southern California and assesses philanthropic need. We expect the research to be helpful to the Foundation in its donor development work there — answering Black philanthropy — for what opportunity, for what purpose, and toward what end? The report’s observations and recommendations are designed also to contribute to constructive dialog with mainstream philanthropy around Black Los Angeles’ community needs.

Partnerships are an essential component of the Foundation’s approach to supporting Black community change. In the first part of 2007, we have expanded several key partnerships while attracting new partners as well. We are proud to continue partnerships with Susan Taylor and ESSENCE Cares, a national movement to encourage mentoring for vulnerable youth, and with Gulf South Allied Funders, a group composed of donors from three networks (Resource Generation, Women Donors’ Network, and Threshold Foundation) that are in year two of a three- year commitment to support community voices in equitable rebuilding of the Gulf.

We are pleased to be a partner to the iCARE Foundation (www.teamicare.org), founded by Kashif, a six-time GRAMMY®-nominated producer, songwriter, artist, and author. Kashif has undertaken an effort to help change the perceptions of what foster care is and can be by writing and directing three TV spots highlighting positive outcomes for youth in foster care that can be viewed at the iCare website. 21CF serves as the iCare Foundation’s fiscal sponsor and supports Kashif and his team’s effort to promote public support and awareness for the 513,000 young people in the foster care system, 59% of whom are children of color.

Finally, as we approach the second anniversary of Hurricanes Rita and Katrina, it is clear that the long-term effects of these interrelated tragedies have meant continued displacement and upheaval for Gulf residents. Unprecedented levels of cooperation have been stirred up among many people outside the region to transform this national disgrace. There are many ways to mark this important moment in time, and we choose to focus on progressive action. We are planning Gulf Coast Briefings in New York on September 12th and in San Francisco on September 19th, as well as a 21CF Donor Education Trip to the Gulf Coast September 26–28, 2007. These gatherings offer current and prospective donors to 21CF’s Hurricane Katrina Recovery Fund the chance to see and hear what is happening as the people we support continue rebuilding their lives. Toward that end, don’t forget to read about all of the great things being accomplished by our grantees On the Ground and the power of giving at The Corner. Enjoy the rest of the summer — we’ll be back in touch at the end of September.