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From Research to Practice

Over the past three decades, the field of women’s philanthropy has evolved and grown rapidly, as has the Women’s Philanthropy Institute (WPI). WPI traces its roots to 1991, when the National Network of Women as Philanthropists was established; it became the Women’s Philanthropy Institute in 1997 and joined Indiana University in 2004. WPI research has long demonstrated that gender matters in philanthropy. Understanding how gender shapes giving is important, and learning how to apply the research is the next step.

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Kathleen Loehr, an inaugural member of the WPI Council, recognized the potential of translating this research into practice.

Over more than three decades working in women’s philanthropy, Kathleen used her consulting practice to translate research into practical action, working with dozens of institutions and documenting what worked. In 2018, she published Gender Matters: A Guide to Growing Women’s Philanthropy. The book explains why gender matters in philanthropy and identifies practical adaptations individuals, teams, and organizations can make to increase philanthropic support from women.

Building on this foundation, Proven Practices was developed in 2022 to help more organizations put these lessons into practice. The resource codifies six key principles drawn from Kathleen’s work and WPI research, providing a roadmap for organizations seeking to strengthen engagement with women donors and make their fundraising practices more inclusive.

Following Kathleen’s retirement, Proven Practices became a resource of the Women’s Philanthropy Institute, ensuring that the framework and tools she developed could continue to be shared with the field. WPI is proud to carry this work forward while recognizing Kathleen’s substantial contribution to translating research on gender and giving into fundraising practice.

Kathleen also trained a cohort of practitioners to carry this work forward. The Association for the Advancement of Women’s Philanthropy (AAWP), formerly the Women’s Philanthropy Alliance, connects organizations with practitioners trained by Kathleen who can provide consulting and implementation support using these principles and practices.

Proven Practices is a resource of the Women’s Philanthropy Institute at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.

About

From Research to Practice

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