Looking back over the past week, akoyaGO is grateful for more opportunities to build and strengthen relationships with community and private foundations. Exponent Philanthropy hosted its 2022 Annual Conference which gathered lean funders from across the country. Later in the week, the Kansas Association of Community Foundation (KACF) hosted its 2022 Annual National Conference for Growing Community Foundations. As a supporter and attendee of both events, akoyaGO found several opportunities to increase learnings and build relationships.
Exponent Philanthropy’s 2022 Annual Conference
“Nothing replaces human connection. The value of Exponent Philanthropy conference is sharing the collective work of small-staffed foundations. Meeting and interacting with peers, sharing wins and struggles. This conference is a great reminder on the power of one.”
Hosted in our hometown of Minneapolis, the Exponent Philanthropy conference was an influential time to collectively come together and share effective practices to enhance giving. Being included in these conversations provided irreplaceable insights on private foundations, emphasizing the strong impact these few to no staff organizations have within the philanthropic network. It was impressive to see such a strong constituency of vendor partners at the conference, each one desiring to create value and strengthen impact. By being together and building these connections, we continue to focus on listening and learning throughout this season of attending conferences and beyond.
Kansas Association of Community Foundation’s 2022 Annual Conference
“I appreciated the opportunity afforded to me last week to make new connections, and to learn about innovative programs that are making a positive impact in our communities at the Annual National Growing Community Foundations Conference in Wichita. Thank you akoyaGO for providing the philanthropic sector with intuitive tools that make our jobs more efficient and our impact more meaningful.“
Following Minneapolis, akoyaGO team members headed to Wichita to attend the KACF Annual National Conference for Growing Community Foundations. Mark Montoya, Chief Experience Officer, shared his sentiments on attending the conference and connecting with community foundations from across the country, stating how good it felt to be back in-person. Seeing so many philanthropic leaders actively engaged within sessions and learning from one another personified the conference’s theme, “Amplifying Impact”, which fits hand-in-hand with our own mission of supporting foundations. We were able to connect with many seasoned professionals, along with those new to the industry who had not yet been able to gather in-person. This mix provided a stimulating dynamic, allowing for both wise as well as fresh perspective. The best part: leadership, collaboration, and the maximization of community impact were present throughout the entire conference.
