Published in Social Velocity

By Kathy Reich

GEO turns 20 this year, and it’s come a long way since 12 people decided they needed a space for grantmakers who geek out on the art and science of their trade.

Today more than 600 foundations belong to GEO, and 950 people have gathered this week in San Francisco for the group’s biannual conference. Thanks in part to GEO’s tireless efforts, practices that once were outside the mainstream of organized philanthropy — general operating support, evaluation for improvement, funder collaboration, use of grantee feedback, and investments in nonprofit capacity building — are now widely recognized as essential in our field.