The Power of Appalachian Art With Willa Johnson and Sarita Gupta In today’s #OnWhatMatters conversation, Willa Johnson, director of the film department at Appalshop, Inc—a media center in Kentucky that is home to the largest collection of Appalachian art in the world—and Sarita Gupta, vice president of U.S. programs at the Ford Foundation explore the rich history and exciting future for artists in Appalachia. Willa and Sarita discuss the power of rural storytelling to inspire social change and promote conservation efforts, and Willa shares her personal journey from documenting local history as a young participant in Appalshop’s programs to becoming a mentor to the next generation of filmmakers. Learn more about Appalshop at: https://appalshop.org/ We want this video to be accessible to the widest possible audience. For a fully accessible version with a transcript, please visit: https://lnkd.in/dEFmSeG4
Ford Foundation
Philanthropic Fundraising Services
New York, New York 217,660 followers
Around the world, we make grants that support the visionary people and organizations who work to challenge inequality.
About us
The Ford Foundation is a global, grant-making philanthropy that works to disrupt inequality in all its forms. We believe in the inherent dignity of all people. But around the world, too many people are excluded from the political, economic, and social institutions that shape their lives. In addressing this reality, we are guided by a vision of social justice—a world in which all individuals, communities, and peoples work toward the protection and full expression of their human rights; are active participants in the decisions that affect them; share equitably in the knowledge, wealth, and resources of society; and are free to achieve their full potential. Across eight decades, our mission has been to reduce poverty and injustice, strengthen democratic values, promote international cooperation, and advance human achievement. We work in 11 regional offices around the world and support programs in more than 50 countries.
- Website
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http://www.fordfoundation.org
External link for Ford Foundation
- Industry
- Philanthropic Fundraising Services
- Company size
- 201-500 employees
- Headquarters
- New York, New York
- Type
- Nonprofit
- Founded
- 1936
- Specialties
- Civic Engagement and Government, Creativity and Free Expression, Future of Work, Advancing human achievement, Gender, Racial, and Ethnic Justice, Internet Freedom, Just Cities and Regions, Natural Resources and Climate Change, and Mission Investments
Locations
Employees at Ford Foundation
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Heather Mason
Founder & CEO, Caspian Agency I Founder, The Impact Lounge I Creative Consultant I Moderator I Speaker
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Sue Keever Watts
Owner of The Keever Group
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Laurence Martinaud
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Jennifer Ponce de León
Author of Another Aesthetics is Possible: Arts of Rebellion in the Fourth World War (Duke U. Press, 2021), Associate Professor, University of…
Updates
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Ford Foundation reposted this
Appalachia is home to some of the most resilient communities and critical economies in our nation. Even so, the region is chronically underserved when it comes to access to capital. In a capitalist system, if you don’t have access to capital you have a problem. That’s why the Mission Investments team Ford Foundation has made investments and grants in Appalachia to finance small business growth, spur quality job creation, and expand economic opportunity across the region. Recently in 2022, we invested $10 million in Appalachian Community Capital and Ford Foundation has made more than $14M in grants through its Heartland Fund. But wait… there’s more: Today, I’m excited to announce that Ford Foundation Mission Investments is embarking upon a new investment initiative in partnership with REDF. The new initiative is designed to advance the investment priorities of the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC). New capital will be available to support local businesses, preserving and creating jobs and greater financial stability for workers and their families. Unlike other financing initiatives, this one will provide custom tailored solutions to fit the needs of the business, rather than off-the-shelf loan products. My hope is that this initiative will serve as a model of what’s possible when public, private, and philanthropic sectors collaborate. This financially sophisticated initiative has been years in the making, and I’m grateful for everyone who had a hand in making it possible so that together we can build a stronger, more prosperous, and more hopeful future for all. Read more about the investment here: https://bit.ly/3ASII35 #inclusivecapitalism #Appalachia #economicdevelopment #qualityjobs #jobcreation
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Imagine what’s possible when we put aside “us” versus “them” thinking and embrace our common humanity. In the latest #IdeasAtFord episode, actor, musician, and founder of SixDegrees.Org, Kevin Bacon, and agricultural pioneer Gabe Brown, join Charles M. Blow on stage at the Ford Foundation to discuss the heartland, and how to elevate the voices of local communities. fordf.org/HeartlandVoices
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This #laborday, learn how we're supporting innovations in care advocacy, like the National Domestic Workers Alliance and the International Domestic Workers Federation, and the role philanthropy must play to invest in these efforts.
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In Alliance magazine, Sarita Gupta, Ford's vice president of U.S. Programs and Lourdes Rivera, president of Pregnancy Justice make the case for why philanthropies committed to defending democracy must embrace long-term funding to ensure every person has the bodily autonomy essential to an equitable society. Read more:
Funding reproductive justice for the long fight after Dobbs - Alliance magazine
https://www.alliancemagazine.org
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This Month in Ford History: August In August 2020, Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents, by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Isabel Wilkerson, was published by Random House. The nonfiction book examined the legacies of caste systems in the United States, India, and Nazi Germany and discussed how America can move beyond its destructive, often unconscious divisions to embrace our shared humanity. As Wilkerson said in an interview with Ford Foundation president Darren Walker, “It takes all of us in our individual ways to be able to come together, to recognize our role in history and our role in helping to dismantle hierarchy—or to enforce the hierarchy.” That same year, director Ava DuVernay began adapting Caste into a narrative film. Despite her pathbreaking success in Hollywood—including an Oscar nomination for Best Picture for her 2014 film Selma and her status as the first Black woman to direct a $100 million-grossing film—she had difficulty financing the picture through the studio system. So she took the unprecedented step of obtaining funding from social justice philanthropies, including Ford under its Mission Investments program. The foundation had been a longtime supporter, having funded her arts and social impact collective ARRAY Alliance, established in 2011. #OriginMovie was released in January 2024 to wide acclaim, including three awards from the African American Film Critics Association. DuVernay told Forbes that she hopes to see this model become a new avenue for filmmakers to tell ambitious stories that don’t fit neatly into the Hollywood system. “This is social impact investment,” she said. “The idea that films that are not documentaries can fit into that framework is new.” Read more: https://lnkd.in/epsEGkdZ
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Ford Foundation reposted this
If you are interested in learning about important narrative change work taking place in #Appalachia, please join me in my conversation with Willa Johnson of Appalshop #OnWhatMatters on Sept 4th at 11 am ET.
Join us on September 4th at 11 am ET l #OnWhatMatters In the next #OnWhatMatters conversation, Sarita Gupta, vice president of U.S. programs at the Ford Foundation, joins Willa Johnson, a leader of Kentucky-based media, arts, and education center Appalshop, Inc. Born as a small film workshop in 1969 that sought to educate young people in #Appalachia about the arts, Appalshop has evolved into a beating pulse of the heartland, spotlighting rural narratives and issuing counternarratives to the one that made rural communities the poster child of American poverty. Tune in on September 4th, at 11 am ET. https://lnkd.in/e6tkD6W7
www.linkedin.com
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Join us on September 4th at 11 am ET l #OnWhatMatters In the next #OnWhatMatters conversation, Sarita Gupta, vice president of U.S. programs at the Ford Foundation, joins Willa Johnson, a leader of Kentucky-based media, arts, and education center Appalshop, Inc. Born as a small film workshop in 1969 that sought to educate young people in #Appalachia about the arts, Appalshop has evolved into a beating pulse of the heartland, spotlighting rural narratives and issuing counternarratives to the one that made rural communities the poster child of American poverty. Tune in on September 4th, at 11 am ET. https://lnkd.in/e6tkD6W7
www.linkedin.com
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Communities across America, especially in rural areas, have increasingly seen less money and more problems. With access to broadband, quality medical care, and good jobs dwindling, the heartland of America urgently needs attention. Golden Globe Winning actor, musician, and founder of SixDegrees.Org, Kevin Bacon, and agriculture pioneer and star of the documentary "Common Ground," Gabe Brown joined Charles M. Blow for the latest episode of #IdeasAtFord, where they discussed what it means to build a more healthy, prosperous future for all. Watch the conversation at fordf.org/HeartlandVoices.
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Celebrating Equity in Women’s Sports this #WomensEqualityDay! We continue to be inspired by Billie Jean King. More: https://lnkd.in/et73psK9 #IdeasAtFord
In the inaugural #IdeasAtFord conversation with Charles Blow, Billie Jean King, Billie Jean King Foundation, discusses the importance of laying the groundwork for future generations. Her commitment to social justice in the sports world started at the age of 12 when she realized that the sport she grew up loving and playing — tennis — was dominated by white athletes. Today, she is a champion for equity in women’s sports, with a particular focus on uplifting females of color. Watch the entire conversation featuring King and businesswoman Clara Wu Tsai, NY LIBERTY, at fordf.org/IdeasAtFord.