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Connection and Camaraderie
Dear Reader,
It’s safe to say that many of us are struggling to wrap our heads around this new year. Somehow, we’re only a month into 2025, but it feels like 52 weeks’ worth of events have thundered past us. The ongoing grief and shock from each new headline are dizzying—not to mention our own lived experiences and those of friends, colleagues, family members, and neighbors.
Intolerance is rearing its ugly head again: freezing federal aid and grantmaking, upending the livelihood and roots of people who call America home, and threatening crucial diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility efforts. As we enter another year of uncertainty, a year in which nothing is guaranteed, I ask you: Who is in your corner? Where are you finding community? This answer, I believe, is the antidote each one of us needs to persevere. Especially when we’re tired of persevering.
At Minerva Strategies, I feel fortunate to work daily with colleagues who give one another grace, and clients who have only strengthened their resolve to show up for youth in foster care; spread messages of hope and solidarity; and provide emergency medical aid informed by climate crises.
In times of fear and tumult, I often return to a favorite quote of mine from Mary Oliver: “It is a serious thing / just to be alive / on this fresh morning / in the broken world.” Amidst breakdowns and decay, it is no small feat to be here. To show up in whatever form we can. To rely on those around us as they rely on us. To keep our missions at the forefront and hope alive despite all odds.
I wish you and yours connection and camaraderie this season—I know renewal is around the corner.
With cautious optimism,
Caroline Hall
Associate, Minerva Strategies
There’s Hope for Affordable Housing
Minerva President and Founding Partner Joy Portella reflects on the role philanthropy can play in affordable housing and shares what longtime client Evergreen Impact Housing Fund can teach us about innovative funding solutions. Read more.
Anti-Racism in Healthcare
Minerva client Seattle Children’s Hospital recently released its annual Health Equity and Anti-Racism (HEAR) report. HEAR is part of Children’s ongoing commitment to deliver equitable health outcomes for all. Read more.
AI for Nonprofits
In an ever-shifting digital landscape, it can be difficult to determine what use AI can provide to nonprofits. Minerva Vice President and Partner Sara Veltkamp sat down with Jamie Lonie, founder of Amplifi Digital, to discuss the ins and outs of harnessing the power of AI for nonprofits. Read more.
2025 Buzzwords
Just as AI is evolving, so is the language we’re using. In a recent NPR buzzword round-up, Minerva client ALIMA shared the term “climate displacement.” ALIMA has seen firsthand the compounding effects of climate change, conflict, and instability on health across sub-Saharan Africa. Learn more about the words setting the tone for the new year below. Read more.
