The Prenatal to Five Impact Collaborative is a peer group focused on learning together about the needs of pregnant women and families with children up to age 5 and how to best support them. This meeting will discuss advocacy and the roles philanthropy can play in systems change work. We’ll be hearing from Sara Watson who authored the Bainum Family Foundation Brief: “Creating Change Through Policy Advocacy”. We’ll also be hearing from Beth Morrow and Laura Weeldreyer about Maryland Family Network’s Early Childhood legislative priorities.

Join Maryland Philanthropy Network, the Abell Foundation, and the Middendorf Foundation for a joint program examining recent research on Baltimore City’s contracting, payment, and permitting processes and how delays in those processes negatively affect non-profits and the high-need communities they serve. At this briefing, you will hear from authors of the newly released Abell Report on the City’s contracting process and learn about the findings from a joint Middendorf/MPN study on the City’s permitting and grantmaking systems. The goals of the briefing are to share the scale and scope of the challenges, recommend changes, and discuss how funders can support the implementation of these changes in an effort to strengthen and support Baltimore’s non-profit sector.

Join Maryland Philanthropy Network and the Trust-Based Philanthropy Project as we explore questions about changes funders are making and how to leverage this moment to reexamine philanthropic practices. After presenting a general overview of the interrelated principles of trust-based philanthropy, we'll engage in a discussion about how trust-based practice benefits whole systems — enabling both funders and nonprofits to do our work with more ease, authenticity, and joy.