SBF addresses the region’s most pressing challenges so that, together, we chart a direction and mobilize people like you to support the dynamic initiatives that make this a better place, now and for generations to come.
Our goal is to harness the intellectual and philanthropic resources available and invest in solutions to the problems that challenge our community.
We convene. The Santa Barbara Foundation leads the effort to bring people and resources together to work for large scale, sustainable improvements in the community. We do that by facilitating dialogue among stakeholders – business leaders, government representatives, leaders of nonprofit organizations, residents and funders who want to create positive change. We look for the chance to form strategic partnerships to leverage our collective strengths and maximize the power of our donor’ss’ dollars. Because we do extensive research into the greatest needs of the community and the people who deliver services, we are positioned to champion specific causes and organizations. We then advocate for the funding to transform innovative ideas into reality.
We fund. Santa Barbara County has approximately 2000 nonprofits. Even the most diligent donor would find it daunting to try to learn about all of them and vet their work. In partnering with the Santa Barbara Foundation, donors can be assured that we award our grants through a rigorous process of research, planning, due diligence and evaluation. We work to identify and prioritize critical needs for strategic grantmaking requiring special focus and additional organizational resources. We are committed to working with providers to maximize their effectiveness.
We advise. Our team of philanthropic advisors help donors navigate the logistics of giving, and work with them to create a customized plan that aligns with their goals. As a community foundation, we have a responsibility to expand financial capital by reaching out to individuals and institutions to raise funds. We are committed to pooling our collective resources with those of forward-thinking funders to build scalable solutions. The Santa Barbara Foundation invites and encourages all donors, contributing all size donations, to join us.
We strengthen. The Santa Barbara Foundation believes a healthy, high-achieving, creative nonprofits enable our county to fulfill its potential. To help make our nonprofits stronger and more resilient, we share knowledge through a series of capacity building workshops, leadership development, and technical assistance programs. We engage with practitioners to develop successful approaches for improved outcomes in the community. Our Small Capacity Building Grant Program aims to strengthen the organizational capacity and programmatic effectiveness of nonprofit organizations. Since this can be a demanding line of work, we offer this support to make their efforts more powerful.
We believe that when we work together, we can build a thriving community for all.
To learn more about the Santa Barbara Foundation click here.