Decade: 1970s

Philanthropy helped carve out a public space for the expression of race, culture, and critical perspectives.

How a charismatic community activist from Watts challenged a foundation’s civil rights strategy through a jobs training program.

In 1968, the Ford Foundation began to make social investments using a new tool borrowed from the for-profit world, the Program-Related Investment.

Care for the dying, not care for a cure, was a new idea in the 1970s.

Environmental education was once an unusual idea. The Audubon Society changed that and became the household name it is today.

When a friendly interaction unexpectedly emerged between American and Chinese table tennis players, one nonprofit seized the opportunity to support broader cultural diplomacy.