Community foundation
Community foundations (CFs) are instruments of civil society designed to pool donations into a coordinated investment and grant making facility dedicated primarily to the social improvement of a given place. Community foundations are a global phenomenon with 1700 existing around the world of which over 700 are in the United States.
Operation
Community foundations are independent registered philanthropic institutions serving geographically defined territory, typically a city or administrative area (county, region and the like). The six main characteristics of the CFs are:
Act as grant-making foundations – e.g. give grants to support development projects
Their mission broadly defined (e.g. to improve quality of life in a community)
Serve geographically defined communities – a city, state, region, district or province
Are supported by a broad range of private as well as public donors and seek philanthropic contributions primarily from inside the community
Are governed by multi-sectoral local boards reflecting the community