It’s been a month since the 2024 Grantmakers In Health (GIH) Annual Conference on Health Philanthropy, Bold Results Through Courageous Action, and we are excited to report that several attendees have written about their learnings from Portland:
  • Lutheran Services in America published a write-up about Susan Newton’s fruitful experience at the 2024 GIH Annual Conference. Newton, Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives, had the opportunity to strengthen relationships with other GIH partners and learn about successful initiatives in areas such as whole-person care, community engagement, and housing solutions. In a session on rural health, Newton presented on the Rural Aging Action Network and the foundation’s work utilizing social determinants of health assessments.
  • Joy Turner, Head of Member Engagement at Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement, wrote a conference recap and stated that the GIH annual conference was “an eye-opener” and that “the connection between promoting health as a vehicle for social cohesion was powerfully shown.” Turner also discusses the important connection between health and democracy and the conference’s focus on equity and inclusion.
  • Expanding the Bench’s Co-Directors Elizabeth Waetzig and Angel Villalobos attended the GIH annual conference to connect with philanthropic funders and raise awareness of culturally responsive and equitable evaluation as part of investment strategies. They highlighted the site visit on Treating Addiction and Healing Native Youth in America with the Native American Rehabilitation Association on their holistic approach to behavioral health services.
  • Vision Maker Media wrote an article about the post-conference session supported by The Kresge Foundation, Health Equity and Climate Resilience: Advancing Community Driven Innovation. They shared their work on educating Native youth in Indigenous knowledge and climate resiliency.
  • TCC Group’s Marysol Fernández Harvey and Emily Klukas shared their reflections from the GIH annual conference and their session titled “Show Me the Money: Bold Approaches to Shifting Power to the Grass Roots.” The panelists presented three trust-based philanthropy models, leading to a discussion with participants on centering relationship and reframing accountability when partnering with movement leaders in health equity.

GIH meetings and events give important insights into grantmaking and how investments can lead to more equitable health outcomes. We thank attendees who shared their experiences and look forward to seeing everyone at next year’s conference!

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