Boston-Area Coalition Creates Fund to Support Nonprofit Collaboration, Shared Ventures

The Nonprofit Finance Fund has announced that it will manage an innovative fund established by the Boston Foundation, Boston LISC, the Hyams Foundation, and the United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley to help Boston-area nonprofit organizations pursue promising collaborations.

The Catalyst Fund for Nonprofits will support a range of ventures, from the sharing of back-office functions, to joint purchasing agreements, to partnerships, joint ventures, and, where appropriate, full mergers. To date, the fund has raised more than $1.7 million from its funding partners and is looking for additional partners among local and national funders. Although the for-profit sector has a readily available and highly developed infrastructure to support collaborations, the nonprofit sector lacks an established system that enables organizations to avail themselves of the technical expertise that collaborations typically require.

By providing supportive access to this expertise, the Catalyst Fund hopes to build the capacity of nonprofits in the greater Boston region to respond to the challenges of the ongoing economic downturn and advance the efforts of the sector after the economy recovers.

“This has long been the missing piece in the nonprofit toolkit, despite the importance institutional collaboration in the nonprofit sector,” said Paul S. Grogan, president and CEO of the Boston Foundation. “This will have a significant impact on organizations here, and we expect it to serve as a model for similar funds elsewhere in the country.” “’Catalyst Fund’ Created to Support Collaboration, Shared Ventures Among Nonprofit Organizations.” Nonprofit Finance Fund Press Release 9/22/10.