| The
Emirates Foundation
Seeking to position itself as a world-class philanthropic
institution, the Emirates Foundation has engaged the LGI team
to provide large-scale communications support during the Foundation’s
start-up phase and beyond. The Foundation faces a range of
challenges, some of which are culturally distinct and others
very common to a large start-up foundation. For example, foundations
themselves are a relatively new concept in the Middle East
and the literal Arabic translation is a word that also means
“corporation.” As a result, a wide variety of
regional target audiences require very customized messaging
to begin to understand and appreciate the basic concept of
a philanthropic institution. Among the experiences common
to any new foundation was a deluge of requests following a
media announcement of the Foundation’s forthcoming launch.
LGI’s role in this early phase is to address the challenges
and identify opportunities for the new foundation, help Foundation
leadership reconcile objectives and priority interests, provide
insights regarding the global philanthropic landscape, and
develop tools that will enable the Foundation to maximize
its philanthropic effectiveness. This includes development
of a fully articulated internal and external communications
strategy, customized outreach and partnership-building activities
with corporate donors (who collectively fund the endowment),
local, regional, and international message development, media
relations, development of internal management tools such as
a Communications Guidebook to direct staff, grantees and board
members on the consistent use of Foundation messages and graphic
identity, etc. In support of the launch of the Foundation,
the LGI team has also created a Web site and collateral materials.
In addition to its strategic communications support, the LGI
team is providing programmatic counsel and developing strategic
alliances with academic institutions, international media,
NGOs and businesses for the Emirates Foundation in its four
key areas of focus: Research & Development (Science and
Technology), Social and Environmental Development, Arts &
Culture and Education.
Moreover, the LGI team has created a set of initial management
tools for use by foundation leadership including governance
manuals, funding strategies by programmatic area, and organizational
partnerships to support the Foundation’s first major
initiative focused on volunteerism in the UAE.
Other LGI success stories in guiding foundation strategy and
development include the Ford Foundation
Corporate Involvement Initiative and the John
D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
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