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Nadia Asparouhova | Seed stage philanthropy

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It’s been nearly two years since I started doing Helium Grants, so I thought it’d be good to reflect on what I’ve learned about personal giving, and where I’d like to go next. When it comes to supporting individuals, philanthropy has a huge funding gap. What’s more, incentives are lacking to address that gap. From a tax perspective, institutional funders (i.e. foundations) in the United States can only give money directly to 501c3 nonprofits. Giving to individuals doesn’t count towards the charitable spend that qualifies foundations for tax exemption. My original inspiration for Helium Grants was a $36,000 grant from the Compton Foundation that I got right out of college, paid out in the form of two checks. The simplicity of this program belies a lot of operational complexity under the surface. Because foundations can’t fund individuals, the money had to be distributed through my alma mater. The Compton Foundation partnered with a handful of universities to solicit applications and dis

Nadia Asparouhova | Seed stage philanthropy Seed stage philanthropy | Nadia Asparouhova Nadia Asparouhova projects newsletter twitter <-- home Seed stage philanthropy January 8, 2019 It’s been nearly two years since I started doing Helium Grants , so I thought it’d be good to reflect on what I’ve learned about personal giving, and where I’d like to go next. Funding individuals, not organizations When it comes to supporting individuals, philanthropy has a huge funding gap. What’s more, incentives are lacking to address that gap. From a tax perspective, institutional funders (i.e. foundations) i

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