With heavy hearts, we share the news that our beloved friend and former colleague, Bernadette Christiansen, has passed away. Bernadette was a long-serving vice president of operations at McKnight who retired in 2019 after receiving a diagnosis of advanced cancer. Bernadette, as a leader and friend, was incredibly generous, fair, trustworthy, and kind. She had …
The following article was originally published by Keecha Harris and Associates, Inc., on August 18, 2019. It is reprinted here with full permission. The Racial Equity Truth Tellers Series is a collection of stories, curated by Keecha Harris and Associates, Inc., centered on the racial equity journeys of InDEEP program participants and other influencers in philanthropy. Mark Muller, Mississippi River Program director for the …
Our communities have experienced transformative demographic change over the last few decades, and more arts funders and institutions are recognizing that the entire arts sector would benefit if arts funding better reflected that diversity. According to a recent study, just 2 percent of US cultural institutions receive almost 60 percent of all arts funding. In the …
The McKnight Foundation announces support of the McKnight Endowment Fund for Neuroscience with $38 million over 10 years. The McKnight Endowment Fund for Neuroscience (MEFN), now in its 46th year, has always sought to support basic research that will increase our knowledge of brain function. From its inception, the MEFN has aligned itself with the …
International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) is an international nonprofit organization that conducts agricultural research for development in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa with a wide array of partners throughout the world. Covering 6.5 million square kilometers of land in 55 countries, the semi-arid tropics have over 2 billion people, 644 million of …
Clean energy jobs growing fast We’ve long known that increasing energy efficiency and renewable energy sources leads to cleaner air and water, healthier kids, and a more stable climate. A new report shows that clean energy can also boost our region’s economy by creating new jobs and entirely new industries. In fact, clean energy is supporting …
Now communities are ready to rebuild, and there’s tentative optimism they could end up with something better than what was there before. The McKnight Foundation is part of a broad effort to seize this moment—ensuring that redevelopment advances racial economic justice, and ultimately puts building ownership in the hands of local nonprofit organizations, tenant cooperatives, and individual Black developers and other people of color.
Root Capital invests in the growth of agricultural enterprises so they can transform rural communities. These businesses purchase crops such as coffee, cocoa, or quinoa from smallholder farmers. With growth, they become engines of impact that can raise incomes, create jobs, empower women and young people, sustain peace and preserve vulnerable ecosystems. Root Capital supplies …
Within the United States, the Midwest is one of the largest emitters of carbon pollution. To reduce carbon pollution at scale at the speed necessary, we must act collectively. For that reason, the McKnight Foundation supports bold action on the climate crisis, recognizing that economy-wide decarbonization requires transforming our energy system. It also calls for …
Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) is a national organization with a community focus. LISC has offices in 30 urban areas nationwide, including the Twin Cities and Duluth, and is dedicated to helping residents transform distressed neighborhoods into healthy, sustainable communities of choice and opportunity. They achieve this aim by mobilizing corporate, government, and philanthropic sectors …