The Cleveland Foundation

The Cleveland Foundation stands as the world's first community foundation, established in 1914 with a foundational commitment to improving the lives of all residents in Greater Cleveland. Unlike traditional venture capital firms that focus on equity investments in high-growth startups for financial returns, the Cleveland Foundation operates primarily as a philanthropic grant-making institution. Its core mission revolves around deploying capital to address critical community needs across diverse sectors, including education, arts and culture, economic development, and health. The foundation manages a substantial endowment, which stood at approximately $2.5 billion as of December 31, 2022, enabling its extensive philanthropic activities.

In line with its mission, the Cleveland Foundation is a prolific grantmaker, having awarded more than $130 million in grants during 2022 alone. These grants support a wide array of local initiatives, non-profits, and community projects, reflecting its deep engagement with the region's social and economic fabric. While its primary mechanism for community impact is through grants, the foundation also engages in impact investing. This initiative involves deploying a dedicated pool of capital, with a commitment of $10 million, into projects that generate both measurable social or environmental benefits and a financial return within the Greater Cleveland area.

However, it is crucial to distinguish these impact investments from typical venture capital activities. The Cleveland Foundation's impact investments are generally directed towards local businesses, affordable housing initiatives, and community development projects, often structured as loans or equity stakes in mission-aligned enterprises. This approach is distinct from the early-stage, high-risk, high-reward equity investments characteristic of traditional venture capital. Consequently, the foundation does not maintain or publicize "first cheque" sizes in the manner of a venture capital firm, as its investment strategy is fundamentally different and geared towards community development rather than scalable tech startup funding.