We can’t wait to see everyone in San Diego at #TFN2022, March 14-16!
TFN believes that collaboration and connections are where real change takes root.
That’s why we’ve built a learning agenda for #TFN2022 that includes opportunities to socialize, strategize and share with peers and partners in the philanthropic sector.
From a pre-conference convening focused on climate impacts and disaster response to our post-conference briefing on ensuring racial equity in infrastructure spending, we hope our attendees will identify ways to align strategies and catalyze action around critical issues.
Our San Diego conference is also a chance to network and socialize — in person! — for the first time in two years.
Read on to learn more about our Sunday Night at the Movies, Peer-to-Peer Sharing, evening receptions and two theme dinners focused on democracy and inclusive economies. (And our California funders have even more chances to connect at a dinner organized by TFN’s Smart Growth California and a gathering to launch the San Diego Funders’ Collaborative.)
(Be sure to take a look at our TFN2022 Conference Agenda to see what else we’ll be learning in San Diego!)
Although we are excited to gather in person, we remain committed to the wellbeing of our attendees, vendors and TFN team. As we make every effort to keep you safe, please take a look at our updated Health & Safety section to learn more about our policies on coronavirus vaccines, testing and mask requirements during our time together in San Diego.
To help facilitate appropriate social distancing, we are asking attendees to indicate their interest in conference events using the TFN2022 conference app. Please note that space is limited for some dinners and other events.
Social Events at #TFN2022
Welcome Reception: Meet Pat Smith, TFN President & CEO
Sunday, March 13 | 5:00 PM PT
Join TFN’s President and CEO Pat Smith for light refreshments and a chance to connect and network with other attendees of TFN2022.
Sunday Night at the Movies | CITY RISING: Youth & Democracy
Sunday, March 13 | 6:30 PM PT
We’re continuing a popular TFN Annual Conference tradition for TFN2022! Join us March 13 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. for Sunday Night at the Movies, which will feature movie-friendly snacks and a timely, thought-provoking film followed by a Q&A.
This year’s film is CITY RISING: Youth & Democracy, a one-hour documentary that follows the stories of youth leaders, allies and organizations as they challenge institutional and systemic issues through civic engagement.
The film dives into the role and work of youth organizations in California, demonstrating how young people are organizing their communities to participate in public policy and make lasting change in pursuit of a more just and equitable future for themselves and the world they live in. More engaged, better trained, better allied, and on the shoulders of a rich legacy, young people are fostering hope for a better future for themselves and the nation.
The effects of these movements are far-reaching, and their voices will ultimately impact the social health of communities across the country and beyond.
About the series: City Rising is a documentary series that examines social justice issues affecting California communities, illuminating the journey of California’s neighborhoods advocating for policy change to improve upward mobility for their communities. CITY RISING is produced and presented by KCET, one of Southern California’s two flagship PBS stations, with support from The California Endowment.
When Waters Rise: Pre-Conference Breakfast
Monday March 14 | 9:00 AM PT
The Greater New Orleans Foundation launched the When Waters Rise Initiative in June 2018 by bringing together community foundations and place-based funders to discuss foundations’ roles and responsibilities in contributing to equitable disaster recovery, rebuilding and long-term resilience in coastal communities and geographies most vulnerable to sea level rise and major storms. The informal network of more than 80 funders and partners continued to convene to discuss challenges, share best practices and codify lessons learned well into the pandemic.
Participants have expressed interest in exploring formalizing a network that supports ongoing peer learning and collaboration in disaster response. The Greater New Orleans Foundation, with support from the Ford Foundation, will assess the feasibility of a formal disaster philanthropy and response network by getting a better understanding of the landscape and value-add that a network like this could have for its members.
This is the second TFN Annual Conference to hold space for a When Waters Rise gathering: The Greater New Orleans Foundation hosted a When Waters Rise event at our 2019 Anniversary Conference in Miami, a coastal city facing the threats of sea-level rise and other climate impacts.
We’re thrilled to give our TFN2022 attendees the opportunity to attend this pre-conference breakfast convening to continue the conversation on the West Coast in San Diego.
Peer-to-Peer Sharing
Monday March 14 | 10:15 AM PT
*Concurrent Sessions”
Elly Brown, Co-Executive Director, San Diego Food Systems Alliance
Join us for a food-focused conversation focus on San Diego County Food Vision 2030, which aims to guide collective action toward a healthy, sustainable and just food system over the next decade. We’ll learn about Food Vision 2030, launched by the San Diego Food System Alliance in 2021 following a two-year planning process that engaged more than 250 cross-sector organizations and nearly 3,000 people — primarily low-income residents, food producers, workers, business owners and tribal communities.
Pamela Gray Payton, VP Community Impact, Chief Impact and Partnerships Officer at the San Diego Foundation
Join us for a conversation with Pamela Gray Payton, VP Community Impact, Chief Impact and Partnerships Officer at the San Diego Foundation (TSDF), to learn more about TSDF’s strategic priorities to advance racial and social justice initiatives. In 2020, with seed funding from TSDF, SDG&E, Wells Fargo Bank, and Cox Communications, as well as guidance from a community-led advisory committee, the Black Community Investment Fund (BCIF) was launched to increase racial equity and generational wealth for Black San Diegans. Gray Payton will highlight the Black Homebuyer Program which is helping to narrow the gap of racial wealth in San Diego by providing wealth-building opportunities through Black homeownership.
Theme Dinner: Making Our Democracy Work for All
Monday, March 14 | 7:00 PM PT
The Partnership for Southern Equity and The Funders Network invite you to a special dinner conversation about ways funders and community partners are joining forces to make our democracy work for all. The dinner program will highlight several exciting initiatives to grow the infrastructure and nurture people-powered leadership for community and social change, including efforts to develop youth as civic leaders. Please join us for good food, drinks and company.
Theme Dinner: Inclusive Economies
Monday, March 14 | 7:00 PM PT
Please join colleagues at the Irvine Foundation and TFN for a dinner and discussion of ways that funders are supporting Inclusive Economies strategies. The dinner program will feature program staff at the Irvine Foundation sharing how their focus on inclusive economic planning and priority communities is providing opportunities for BIPOC and low-wage earning communities to thrive through access to good quality jobs. We’ll invite dinner colleagues to share their work to advance inclusive prosperity and we’ll reserve lots of time for conversation and getting to know one another.
Smart Growth California Funder Dinner
Monday, March 14 | 7:00 PM PT
Come learn more about and connect with funders active in Smart Growth California’s statewide steering committee, San Joaquin Valley Funders’ Collaborative, Los Angeles Funders’ Collaborative and San Diego Funders’ Collaborative. After two years of meeting virtually, we’re ready and excited to meet in person and do what we do best, learning together, building relationships, aligning our work and pursuing opportunities for collaboration. The dinner is open to Smart Growth California workgroup members, our larger statewide funder network and national funders who are funding in California.
Tuesday Night Reception
Tuesday, March 15 | 5:30 PM PT
Come grab a drink and meet up with colleagues after our Mobile Workshops!
San Diego Funders’ Collaborative Dinner
Tuesday, March 15 | 7:00 PM PT
The San Diego Foundation, International Community Foundation, The California Endowment, Catalyst of San Diego and Imperial Counties and Smart Growth California (an initiative of TFN) invite you to attend a dinner to informally launch the San Diego Funders’ Collaborative, a space that facilitates learning, relationship building, alignment and collaboration across a broad set of issues related to cultivating healthy, equitable and sustainable communities. If you are a funder that is based in and/or funds in the San Diego Region (or are considering funding in the region), and you’re interested in joining this emerging funder collaborative table, then we invite you to join us in person for some good food, drinks and conversation.
Post-Conference Events
Communities First: Ensuring Racial Equity in Infrastructure Spending
Wednesday, March 16 | 12:30 PM PT
As the nation prepares for the largest federal spending on infrastructure and economic development in generations, now is the time for philanthropy, community, and the public sector to come together to ensure that funds flow equitably, smoothly, and directly into BIPOC communities.
It is no secret that previous federal infrastructure and economic development dollars were weaponized against communities of color, from redlining to “urban renewal” to highway construction to the race-based inequities of the GI Bill and Social Security.
If we are organized, strategic, and unapologetic about the past, present, and future, we will make sure that public money is never again used to hurt communities of color and is from here onwards used to repair harm and to build generational wealth for BIPOC communities.
Communities First, in partnership with TFN, Environmental Grantmakers Association, and Neighborhood Funders Group, invites you to attend a critically urgent funder and federal partnership briefing:
This two-hour session will feature:
- Philanthropic leaders with experience in racial equity funding;
- Public sector employees committed to racial equity and applying equity to infrastructure investments; and
- Movement leaders with big and bold ideas on how reparative and healing infrastructure dollars can truly be.
Join this conversation and join us in putting communities first — now and always.
(Please note: We are offering a virtual option for this funder & federal partnership meeting for those unable to join us in San Diego.)