Ten foundations have committed to work together to help the city of Flint, Michigan recover from its water crisis. Participants are committing a total of nearly $125 million to the collaborative effort.
The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, FlintNOW Foundation, Ford Foundation, The Hagerman Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Ruth Mott Foundation, Skillman Foundation, and W.K. Kellogg Foundation are initial supporters.
The collaborative funding initiative will focus on six priorities: ensuring that all Flint residents have safe drinking water, meeting the health needs of families, supporting early education, building a more robust nonprofit sector, promoting community engagement, and revitalizing the local economy.
“We chose to support children’s education because of the long-term implications of lead poisoning—children will suffer for a generation,” said Vartan Gregorian, president of Carnegie Corporation, which is committing $1 million. “This is not a substitute for state and federal aid. Rather, it is incremental funding from foundations that are collaborating to help solve a problem, similar to the philanthropic response to Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans and the bankruptcy of Detroit, Michigan.
The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, which is based in Flint, is leading the initiative with a total commitment of up to $100 million over five years. Organizers say that additional partners are expected to announce their support soon.
Read the news release, and join the conversation online #Funds4Flint.
