Nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of households of color in Chicago are "liquid asset poor" — meaning they lack enough savings to get by for three months in the event of a job loss or medical emergency — compared with 28 percent of white households, a report from the Corporation for Enterprise Development finds. Funded by JPMorgan Chase, the...

Thoughtful and committed grantmaking in support of peacebuilding in areas affected by conflict can help empower beleaguered communities, strengthen civil society initiatives, build partnerships and platforms for change, catalyze new insights and paradigms, and create spaces for reflection and peaceful exchange, a report from Philanthropy for...

Programs that help low-income parents engage their children in at-home learning opportunities during their preschool years can narrow educational achievement gaps in elementary school and beyond, an issue brief from Pennsylvania State University and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation argues. The brief, Parent Engagement Practices Improve Outcomes...

Grassroots campaigns to reform the juvenile justice system by shifting the emphasis from incarceration to more effective alternatives have not only improved the lives of children and families caught up in the system but has also saved taxpayers money without compromising public safety, a report from Youth First finds. Based on case studies of six...

The community foundation business model, which is often tied to the performance of local financial services firms, is facing disruption as the financial services industry undergoes changes with the rise of online and mobile aletrnatives, a report from the Council on Foundations finds. The report, Community Foundation Business Model Disruption in...

There is much at stake in the debate taking place over reauthorization of the Children's Health Insurance Program, repeal of the Affordable Care Act, and the future of Medicaid, an issue brief from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation finds. The brief, Key Issues in Children's Health Coverage (11 pages, PDF), argues that while the expansion of...

Approximately 127,000 students — one in eight — attending New York City public schools in 2014-15 had been homeless at some point during the previous five years, an analysis from the Institute for Children, Poverty & Homelessness finds. According to 2016 On the Map: Atlas of Student Homelessness in New York City, 82,463 New York City...

The overrepresentation of white Americans and the underrepresentation of minorities may have reached peak levels, a report from the Center for American Progress, the Brookings Institution, and the Bipartisan Policy Center finds. The report, States of Change: Demographic Change, Representation Gaps, and Challenges to Democracy, 1980-2060, argues...

While African immigrants make up a small share of the nation's immigrant population, their overall numbers are growing, an analysis from the Pew Research Center finds. Based on U.S. Census Bureau data, the brief, African Immigrant Population in U.S. Steadily Climbs, found that 2.1 million African immigrants lived in the United States in 2015,...

Local arts agencies are uniquely positioned to connect service members, veterans, and their families with opportunities for participation in the arts, which are proven to build resilience, enhance coping skills, increase self-esteem, and support well-being, a guide from Americans for the Arts argues. Arts Deployed: An Action Guide for Community...

The states of Washington, Utah, Minnesota, Connecticut, and Oregon are leading the way in building and using evidence to inform their policy and budget decisions, a report from the Pew-MacArthur Results First Initiative finds. The report, How States Engage in Evidence-Based Policymaking (50 pages, PDF), ranked states based on six actions...

While foundation funding in support of global human rights initiatives rose to $2.7 billion in 2014, from $2.3 billion in 2013, the share of funding for migrants and refuges remained flat, a report from Foundation Center and the International Human Rights Funders Group finds. According to the report, Advancing Human Rights: Update on Global...

The 2010 Affordable Care Act created a minimum level of protection for individuals and families purchasing health insurance on the individual market — protection that is now at stake, an issue brief from the Georgetown University Health Policy Institute's Center on Health Insurance Reforms finds. Funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation,...

Urban resilience planning for natural disasters must include efforts to protect and secure food systems for food-insecure populations, a report from the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City and the Rockefeller Foundation warns. Based on an analyses of food systems in Los Angeles; Madison, Wisconsin; New Orleans; New York City; and Portland,...