Christina Howard, Executive Director of the Todd Foundation
Christina Howard, Executive Director of the Todd Foundation, introduced the club to the world of philanthropy at last evening’s meeting.
The Todd Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the Todd Corporation and was founded in 1972 by Sir John Todd and his uncles. It still has close ties to the Todd family, with four of its eight trustees drawn from the family.
The Foundation has disbursed over $80M to good causes, always with a focus on children, youth, families, and education.
Prior to 2016 it solicited applications for funds and supported the most promising ones. In a strategic review it became clear that this traditional method of funding needed changing, as with the growth in applications, the applicants’ success rate had fallen from over 50% to less than 15%.
The Foundation became a proactive funder, researching needs, developing programmes with partners, and funding on a larger scale over longer horizons. The payoffs will often be intergenerational.
Current areas of particular focus are youth employment and equity of opportunity for disadvantaged families.
Poll: Should the government levy industries that contribute to financial hardship?
As reported in the Post, there’s a $30 million funding gap in financial mentoring. This has led to services closing and mentors stepping in unpaid just to keep helping people in need 🪙💰🪙
One proposed solution? Small levies on industries that profit from financial hardship — like banks, casinos, and similar companies.
So we want to hear what you think:
Should the government ask these industries to contribute?
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59.7% Yes, supporting people is important!
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26% No, individuals should take responsibility
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14.3% ... It is complicated
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