Reports

In early 2023, our team led a mapping effort to track the emerging ecosystem of funders and intermediaries (i.e. organizations, projects, funds, initiatives, collaboratives) supporting communities to access and implement public funding for infrastructure, climate, workforce, and more in California. The findings from this mapping indicate that while many funders have been actively investing in technical assistance and capacity building efforts to support equitable access to funds, meeting the urgent need has resulted in a lack of coordination among philanthropies in the state.  Recognizing the once-in-a-generation influx in public resources and leveraging our team’s nearly five-year effort to support public-private partnerships in the state,...

16 May, 2023

The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation engaged Freedman Consulting to conduct a landscape analysis of Landmark Federal Funding and Opportunities for Impact. Prepared for economy funders interested in climate, labor, and equity outcomes, the analysis details the current federal funding implementation landscape as it pertains to the American Rescue Plan Act, Inflation Reduction Act, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and CHIPS and Science Act. The analysis aims to 1) understand the relevant flows of funding from this legislation, 2) identify critical leverage points affecting successful implementation, and 3) identify opportunities for philanthropic intervention to support implementation and maximize impact. The findings are intended to provide insights to funders as they...

29 March, 2023

To find innovative solutions that meaningfully address the diverse needs of California’s communities, and to meet this unique moment in our nation’s history, California has developed a dedicated, statewide public-private partnership model that has yielded $4 billion in matching philanthropic investments, produced over 40 innovative partnerships, and engaged over 250 philanthropic partners in the last two years. Since the beginning of California Governor Gavin Newsom’s administration, Freedman Consulting has worked directly with state government, notably the Governor’s Senior Advisor on Social Innovation, and state and national philanthropic leaders to build a new model for partnership development that is forward-looking, dynamic, community-centered,...

22 September, 2021

Our nation is polarized: distrust in government is high and the zone of potential agreement between Americans is at an all-time low. We, as a country, are tribally divided into categories of “us versus them.” These in/out group categorizations are based on intersecting factors that include geography, demography, class, race, and education level, as well as how we get our news and information.Polarization is not a new phenomenon in America, nor is it inherently problematic. In a diverse multiracial, multi-ethnic democracy, there will always be some levels of disagreement. Nonetheless, on January 6th, as we watched the insurrection at the...

26 February, 2021

This Collaborative Cities guide, written in partnership with Bloomberg Associates, outlines some of the key components needed for city leaders to administer and sustain strategic partnerships. This guide provides general best practices that apply across municipalities, while also offering guidance on how city leaders can adapt the approaches to their own challenges and circumstances. It draws on the experience of Bloomberg Philanthropies and Bloomberg Associates and highlights the efforts of mayors and cross-sector practitioners with unique experience and insights, providing a playbook to support leaders looking to build or strengthen partnerships. You can download the guide here. ...

29 October, 2020

This 2019 report is an update to the 2018 report drawing from interviews with 30 practitioners and leaders to highlight key features of the maturing PIT ecosystem. The Public Interest Technology University Network (PIT-UN), then an intangible hope for the field, is now a robust collaboration that enables leaders from 21 institutions to share best practices and spur collaboration, for example. The network held its first annual PIT-UN convening at Georgetown University in October 2019, at which over $3.1 million in PIT grants were announced. And the network is poised to grow in membership in 2020 after a successful application...

18 March, 2020

Philanthropy has turned its eye toward developing the field of public interest technology, citing public interest law as an example of how philanthropy has successfully jumpstarted a now- robust field. While it may be tempting to proceed onwards satisfied with the knowledge it can be done, now is a key moment to pause and understand how it was done. This memo, written for the Ford Foundation in 2016, outlines lessons from key investments made by philanthropy in developing the field of public interest law. ...

07 March, 2019

The Building the Future report made a strong case for the need to create a community of practitioners invested in exploring and building the nascent field of public interest technology. Through 17 in-depth interviews, academics and practitioners shared that a key barrier to growing the field was a lack of shared principles, goals, or even a definition of public interest technology as an academic discipline. Read more. ...

07 March, 2019

Nearly 41 million Americans were impoverished in 2016, and the United States continues to have one of the highest poverty rates of any OECD nation. The impacts of the Great Recession are still being felt across the country, and the 2016 presidential election brought a new focus on the rural poor and the so-called “white working class.” Despite the issue’s importance, new research from Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity shows that the nation’s most prominent newsrooms have not given significantly more attention to poverty since 2007. While poverty coverage has increased for some news outlets over the past ten years,...

23 October, 2017

Americans overwhelmingly support net neutrality principles and oppose efforts to repeal the FCC’s 2015 Open Internet rules, according to a recent nationwide poll on technology policy conducted by Civis Analytics. The poll also found a broadly shared belief across party lines that the internet is essential in the 21st century and that government has a vital role to play in expanding internet access, including by providing subsidies to help low-income Americans afford access. Online privacy remains a significant concern, and the public resoundingly believes that the lack of competition among internet service providers (ISPs) and media companies is harming consumers. Check out the...

08 July, 2017

The report Swiping Right for the Job: How Tech is Changing Matching in the Workforce was produced with the JPMorgan Chase Foundation and examines how labor market matching technologies have changed interactions between employers and job seekers, focusing particularly on the obstacles that low- and middle-skill workers face in accessing and using technology to find careers. The report also outlines best practices for the design and implementation of labor market matching technology to ensure these tools can have their greatest impact....

31 January, 2017

This report, developed with support from the NetGain partnership, draws on 60 interviews with field experts, scholars, and policy leaders to identify opportunities to improve technology capacity and talent of those working on behalf of the public interest. The interventions described in the report may be implemented by a variety of stakeholders and target a diverse set of elements of public interest technology....

03 May, 2016

Anzalone Liszt Grove Research and Freedman Consulting, LLC This memo presents findings from July 2015 polling on issues related to online privacy and Internet access that was conducted by Anzalone Liszt Grove Research in collaboration with Freedman Consulting, LLC. Key findings include the fact that more than 80 percent of Americans are concerned about their privacy online and that there is overwhelming support for proposals to strengthen online privacy protections. Read the full report here....

03 February, 2016

This report, developed with support from the Ford Foundation, highlights 11 communities from across the country that have conceptualized and deployed community wireless networks to achieve different goals. In addition to offering case studies of the 11 communities, the report examines the evolution of wireless technology and explores lessons learned by communities that have implemented these networks. Check out Best Practices in Community Wireless. This document summarizes the best practices identified by interviewees of the report. Further detail can be found in the report itself at the link above....

03 May, 2015

This report, developed with support from the Ford Foundation, examines successful technology innovation projects in health and human services, with particular attention on 11 ‘bright spot’ examples across the country. Lessons from these sites and other successful innovators provide an assessment of key challenges faced by would-be technology innovators in human services agencies, as well as useful strategies to be deployed in developing these projects. Check out Gaining Ground....

03 May, 2016

Commissioned by the Ford Foundation and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation This report investigates the talent pipeline that connects technology experts to careers in government and civil society, and provides an unvarnished assessment of the current state of the pipeline, key challenges and barriers to the development of technology-oriented human capital in government and civil society, models of successful interventions, and recommendations for a more robust pipeline. Read the full report here....

03 February, 2016

This Bloomberg Philanthropies report surveys the unique environment of public-private partnerships in New York City, identifying key lessons for those seeking to emulate the city’s success. The report draws on interviews with dozens of city leaders involved in these partnerships, including senior officials, agency leaders, philanthropists, business leaders, and community-based partners. Check out The Collaborative City....

03 May, 2016

This Democratic Leadership Council proposal calls for the current outdated, inefficient textbook system to be replaced with an eTextbook program. eTextbooks will be better for students and teachers, will save money after the first few years, and will help America become a leader in education once again. Check out A Kindle in Every Backpack....

03 May, 2016

This report for Women's Voices. Women Vote. suggests an ambitious policy agenda to address the needs of America's unmarried women. The agenda focuses on increasing the opportunities available to unmarried women to thrive economically in an turbulent economy. Check out Overlooked So Far: The Nation's Unmarried Women in 2008....

03 May, 2016

From Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity and Civic Enterprises This study examines U.S. media print coverage of the topic of poverty and politics from 2003 through 2007. Comparing the last pre-presidential year with 2007, we found a dramatic increase in the number of stories that mention “politics,” “candidate,” and “poverty.” Check out Issues on the Rise....

03 May, 2016

This memo presents findings from July 2015 polling on issues related to Internet access that was conducted by Anzalone Liszt Grove Research in collaboration with Freedman Consulting, LLC. It highlights a shared view that Internet access is essential and that Americans support actions by the government to increase access. The research demonstrates that nearly two-thirds think expanding Internet access should be a priority for the next president. Check out Americans Support Expanding Internet Access for All....

03 May, 2016

From The Center for the Next Generation Posted on The Center for the Next Generation’s blog: “We looked at all the media coverage of children and families issues from June to July and found that kids were definitely not on the press' agenda. The fiscal cliff, Social Security, and Medicare came up in news stories much more often, and although these all bear very heavily on the next generation, kids didn't enter into these discussions. Even Ann Romney's horse garnered more media attention than kids, getting nine times the coverage. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes' divorce got over 200 times as much...

03 May, 2016

By Thomas Z. Freedman and Michael Weinstein This Democratic Leadership Council paper proposes that policymakers consider expanding on a model program called Single Stop, an initiative piloted by the Robin Hood Foundation in New York and now being replicated nationwide by SingleStop USA. Check out Helping Americans Help Themselves....

03 May, 2016

From Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity and the Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation This study shows a steady and significant decline in U.S. print media coverage of the relationship between Gulf Coast poverty and hurricane Katrina. Coverage has dropped off significantly since the months following the storm and has paled in comparison with sports and celebrity news. Check out A Forgotten Crisis....

03 May, 2016

By Mark Penn & Thomas Z. Freedman This Democratic Leadership Council report describes the complex public opinions on globalization - how Americans feel a sense of optimism about the nation's future in a global economy and a sense of personal anxiety about how this new world will affect them. The polling includes an exploration of what policies and messages American officials should consider in order to ensure all Americans benefit from globalization. A brief synopsis of the research also appears in January 4, 2007 issue of Blueprint Magazine, under the article titled "The Politics of Globalization." Check out The Emerging Politics of...

03 May, 2016

This Democratic Leadership Council report presents a menu of new policy ideas designed for state and local leaders on dealing successfully with the challenges of globalization. The book, with a forward by the current Treasurer of Delaware and the Governor of Iowa, is divided into three sections: ideas for raising the bar in education, supporting growth and empowering workers in the economy, and new policy ideas for improving state and local security. Check out Winning America's Future....

03 May, 2016

This Partnership for Public Service study examines U.S. media print coverage of the topic of poverty and politics from 2003 through 2007. Comparing the last pre-presidential year with 2007, we found a dramatic increase in the number of stories that mention “politics,” “candidate,” and “poverty.” Check out Covering Katrina: Trends in Katrina Media Coverage....

03 May, 2016

Ending hunger in America is an achievable goal. This Democratic Leadership Council paper outlines an agenda to end childhood hunger. This agenda can both win middle-class support from across the political spectrum and empower low-income Americans to take charge of their lives. Check out Ending Hunger U.S. Child Hunger by 2012....

03 May, 2016

This Progressive Policy Institute paper describes recent public opinion surveys showing that voters care much more about the issues of poverty and hunger in America than conventional Washington political wisdom acknowledges, and are anxious to hear original formulations and solutions. The analysis suggests lessons for building a new majority. Check out Poverty and Public Opinion....

03 May, 2016

This Partnership for Public Service report is a survey of graduating college seniors in 2005, the first graduating class to have had their entire collegiate career after September 11th. The goal is to provide an authoritative and informative look at how 9/11 has shaped their worldview, influenced their thoughts on public service, and informed their upcoming career choices. We believe that it will serve as an important resource for government leaders, policymakers, journalists, and others with an interest in this unique class of young Americans. Check out Class of 9/11....

03 May, 2016