Tara Roth, Goldhirsh Foundation

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Twitter: @taranellroth 

Tara Roth is President of the Goldhirsh Foundation in Los Angeles.  Previously, Tara was the founding Chief Operating Officer of GOOD, an online magazine for global citizens.  Tara serves on the executive council of Innovate LA, on the board of Southern California Grantmakers, on the SoCal Regional Board of Opportunity Fund, an advisory board member of LA n Sync and 826LA, and is a Senior Fellow at USC's Brittingham Social Enterprise Lab.  

Tara discusses new models of philanthropy, and how she is using her expertise in marketing, social media, and social innovation to elevate the role of social organizations within the community.  In particular, the My LA2050 Grants Challenge is changing the nature of philanthropy in Los Angeles, and how traditional grants are awarded. The Grants Challenge encourages competition, as well as collaboration crowd-sourcing the knowledge of the community.  Last year, over 70,000 people participated in voting for their favorite organizations.  

 

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SHOW:

In this interview, we discuss:

  1. How the competition / grants challenge model is bringing the best out of organizations and stirring more interest in the general public. 
  2. The intersection of social enterprises and traditional nonprofit organizations, and what they can learn from one another. 
  3. How the start-up tech sector is influencing social good, and vice versa.  
  4. The changing nature of communities and the role of foundations in responding to those changes. 
  5. Looking for inspiration every day in the work that you do, and staying focused on being present and passionate.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY:

"By virtue of being a generalist and seeing how unusual bedfellows can partner together, that is the nexus of where true social change can take place. The goal is to find a higher level of collaboration and a better participatory process." 

LINKS AND RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THE SHOW:

  1. Goldhirsh Foundation, and the projects they are working on.  
  2. My LA2050 Grants Challenge for Los Angeles organizations
  3. #LA2050Collaborates  and the LA2050 White Paper with all of the findings to date.
  4. The website and writing of author David Whyte.

 

THANKS SO MUCH FOR LISTENING!

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