All posts by christengraham

christengraham

About christengraham

President of Giving Strong, Inc. Christen advises businesses, foundations and families for how to make a greater social impact.

Conservation for Economy & Environment: Downeast Community Effort at a Grand Scale

With summer upon us, many of us are thinking about vacation destinations, but not as much as what’s happening behind the scenes to make these destinations so appealing. I recently had a peek into a beautiful place in Maine that I’ve yet to visit – Grand Lake Stream. The natural beauty and serenity of Grand […]

LiveStrong Foundation President Doug Ulman on Authenticity

LiveStrong Foundation President Doug Ulman was brave enough to keep his appointment to address the Cause Marketing Forum just one day after the news broke that Nike would pull its corporate sponsorship. Doug is a three time cancer survivor himself, so he’s faced tougher news. And he told the crowd of 500 professionals working in […]

“Please don’t let this happen to us!” Charity Fatigue and the Cost of Not Having a Giving Strategy

The Boston Globe is reporting that myriad charities are falling short of fundraising goals as financial support for Marathon bombing victims is re-directed to the newly established The One Fund.   Competition among non profits for cash donations has already been intense in this recovering economy – fewer dollars available from and greater competition for […]

Energy STARS – Saving money and the planet

The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Energy Star National Building Competition attracted 3,000 participants from across the country encouraging public and private enterprises to improve their energy efficiency.  From a nursing home in Skowhegan, Maine to an office park in La Jolla, California, the program was a success and created a model for other businesses to […]

Girl power: assuring girls that bears and sharks won’t attack

Did you hear that drinking pineapple juice can help prevent pregnancy? Or that sharks and bears can tell when a girl is menstruating and will emerge from the depths and attack? Ridiculous you say? The sort of thing perpetuated in backward cultures overseas? Sadly these false rumors and urban legends are popular among our boys […]

From campus protests to your retirement fund, how divesting from fossil fuels and investing in ESGs work

Student activism on college campuses has spurred broad, popular discussion of serious issues for decades. When I was in college, the student activist movement across the country was to band our efforts together to pressure an end to apartheid, the South African government-sanctioned racism and legal segregation.  Nelson Mandela and Stephen Biko were our heroes […]

A peek into next generation philanthropy – It’s not just which problems they plan to tackle but how

A just released survey of the next generation philanthropist (Generations  X, Y and millennials) indicates a shift in how they are giving. It’s a bit of a throwback to the style of Rockefeller and Carnegie – rather than be satisfied with “checkbook charity,” they are increasingly more engaged and focused on what measurable impact they’ll […]

Cause Marketing 101 (or how to avoid an Attorney General investigation)

Congratulations! Your company is going to support a cause that’s important to your stakeholders by earmarking a portion of product sales to a charity. But be cautious- new legal guidelines are in place to protect customers, charities, and your company. Based on the popularity of the Pink Ribbon campaigns that raise funds for breast cancer […]

And the winner is … How stars are using their celebrity to make social change

This awards season it’s great to acknowledge the ways celebrities are giving back. Many are reaching beyond classic “checkbook charity” to be advocates for causes in which they believe. Did you know that Amy Poehler runs a web channel to build girls’ esteem? The motto for Smart Girls at the Party is “change the world […]