Six-year-old Yahaira’s favorite part of school was looking at picture books. But as her vision became worse, she couldn’t enjoy […more…]

Elizabeth* received the heartbreaking call that no grandmother is prepared for: her daughter, Maria, was neglecting her six young children […more…]

Growing up in San Francisco’s Bayview-Hunters Point, a diverse yet historically under-resourced community, Zaria Clemmons knew from a young age […more…]

Youth Leadership Institute (YLI) is redefining leadership for the youth of 21st century America. Faced with deepening inequities in their […more…]

“It’s not the thoughts or the prayers.It’s the actionsIt’s how we stared down the barrel. Stared untilthe barrel lowered until […more…]

International poaching and smuggling crimes may seem distant to people who live in California, but the consequences of these illegal […more…]

We love our animals. As pets, our cats, dogs, birds, rodents, and lizards are our most loyal companions and best friends. We love them so much, we don’t always recognize what, aside from their love, they’re giving us in return. A pet in your household is correlated with several health benefits: lowered blood pressure, reduced levels of anxiety and depression, improved cognitive function for older people, improved social skills for children. The mere responsibility of taking care of a dog means more outdoor activity for the owner, and therefore, more opportunities for socialization, as well as lowered cholesterol and triglyceride [...more...]

Artists, storytellers, teachers, and community leaders have long understood the power of art and story to transform individual lives, as well as society at large. From ancient times, and in cultures around the world, music, poetry, and dance were prescribed as medicine, and were viewed as fundamental to the healthy working of body, mind, and community. A proud Creativity Explored artist sharing their talent with the world. For the last few generations in the United States, perhaps going back to the Russian launch of the Sputnik Rocket in 1957, public support of art and culture has faltered, replaced by an [...more...]

Within the Bay Area, running parallel to the city’s sprawling landscape of ecological, cultural, and racial diversity, are increasing disparities in wealth, which starkly color the city’s social fabric. Regionally, levels of child poverty across the Bay Area are around 20 percent, while households containing Black and Latino children are twice as likely than other racial groups to live in poverty.  Most known for her photograph Migrant Woman, a snapshot of the economic hardships experienced by both mother and her children during the Great Depression in California, much of Dorothea Lange’s other work from this period features images from the [...more...]

Homelessness is an endemic issue across America, but especially in California where the state’s eight largest cities are each settings for some of the country’s largest unhoused populations. Among the root causes for this expansive crisis is a shortage of affordable housing – a financial squeeze forcing many residents onto the streets where they face harsh conditions, suffering both physical and mental hardship. Where local governments fail to implement meaningful legislation to ameliorate the homelessness issue, there are several nonprofit groups working tirelessly to prevent more people on the brink from living on the streets. Legal Assistance to the Elderly [...more...]

For some, the concept of sustainability, defined by the U.N. in 1987 as, “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs,” has been muddied as a mere environmentalist buzzword, which is a shame because it’s a noble and necessary pursuit. In the book Collapse, written by UCLA professor of geography Jared Diamond, the author tells in deep anthropological detail about the fall of several civilizations throughout world history. While reading, it could strike the reader how frequently societies thrived or languished based on the simple administrational choices they made regarding [...more...]

Dan’l Lewin, the current President and Chief Executive Officer of the Computer History Museum, is a veteran of the technology industry with a career spanning back to 1977. His professional journey – from Apple to Microsoft – has been marked by a commitment to explore the intersection of technology and civic issues. After college, Lewin considered becoming a lawyer to satisfy his interest in doing good for society but ultimately determined that the only career that would quench his curiosity, energy, and enthusiasm would be in the emerging and innovative technology industry. Lewin believed his ambition to enhance the human [...more...]

Sara Lomelin is a true believer that anyone and everyone can be a philanthropist. In a rousing TED Talk, she invited 1.4 million rapt digital viewers to join her in creating a more democratic, inclusive future of philanthropy through the power of collective giving. Her efforts are gaining traction with new collective giving groups launching regularly and increased visibility for this giving model across various channels. She recently was awarded a coveted spot on the Forbes 50 Over 50: Impact List, for her leadership in the movement to diversify and democratize philanthropy. Lomelin is founding CEO of Philanthropy Together, a [...more...]

It’s a cold, unfortunate fact that while growing into adulthood, a teenager’s success can be highly dependent on their financial situation. In 2022, as pandemic-related safety net measures came to a close, California saw its child poverty rate for children under 18 years old jump from 7.5% to nearly 17%, the state’s largest increase in 50 years. As these anti-poverty policies recede, teenagers and young adults across the state are caught in limbo during a pivotal moment in their lives.  While the grip of childhood poverty can sometimes be too strong to escape, the key to loosening that grip is [...more...]

Queen Adu-Poku, CEO of Royal Emotional Care. At the start of the 2023 school year, San Francisco public schools received $1.28 billion to spend on 48,000 students – that’s nearly $27,000 per child. But in the coming years, that number is expected to decline dramatically.  The city gives out funds based on school attendance, and numbers are expected to go down. That’s due to a number of factors, including people deciding to pull their kids from public schools and moving out of the Bay Area entirely. With the needs of students having only increased in the wake of the pandemic, [...more...]

Arlene Stanich-Prince, Executive Director of Ohlhoff Recovery Programs. Ohlhoff Recovery Programs Executive Director Arlene Stanich-Prince has witnessed the barriers her clients face in accessing treatment in the Bay Area again and again.But she also knows this from personal experience. Her husband, insured by a prominent managed care organization, had to wait four months to see a mental health professional several years ago, and then was allowed to see that person only five times. If he wanted to continue his sessions, he’d have to see another therapist and start the process all over again – so he decided to go outside [...more...]

Jamie Allison, an experienced leader in philanthropy, is on a mission to catalyze meaningful change in the eclectic San Francisco Bay Area.  Originally from Tennessee, Allison has cultivated deep roots in San Francisco for more than 20 years. Her daily enthusiasm for the city’s beauty and potential is palpable. Recently, while driving on Market Street with her godsons, Asher and Kyle, the view of downtown appeared before them. Allison bounced in her seat, grateful for and astonished by its splendor. “This is home for me. I 100% absolutely love San Francisco. I love waking up here every day and I [...more...]

Pedro Arista, senior director at San Francisco’s Hirsch Philanthropy Partners, has a saying: “Collaboration moves at the speed of trust.” Pedro Arista, Senior Director at Hirsch Philanthropy Partners. Arista, a philanthropic advisor at Hirsch, is a strong advocate for community-centered approaches to philanthropy that are influenced by Trust-Based Philanthropy and Participatory Grantmaking. In these frameworks, funders look to communities for insights, solutions, and decision-making power, treating them as trusted partners working together to achieve greater racial equity and systems change. Since 2017, in partnership with the Hellman Foundation team, Arista has led the Hellman Foundation’s Collaborative Change Initiative, which has [...more...]

Julie López played soccer for as long as she can remember. Growing up in a family of seven in Sylmar […more…]

At Aurora Theatre Company’s Alafi Auditorium, no audience member is more than 15 feet away from the stage. They all […more…]

By the end of high school, Isaiah C. had already mapped out his future political career path. First, he’d get […more…]