全球视野 | 8%与23%：美国的农村慈善面临着什么样的挑战与机遇？

For those who are unfamiliar, tell us a little bit about the Blandin Foundation, its home territory, and the history there.

对于不太了解的人，您能否简单介绍一下布兰丁基金会、它所服务的地区以及基金会的发展历程？

We’re one of the few rural-based, rural-serving private foundations in the country, and we’ve been supporting rural communities for over 80 years.

我们是全美为数不多的立足农村、服务农村的私人基金会之一，80多年来一直致力于支持农村社区的发展。

Our story goes back to Charles K. Blandin, who owned the paper mill in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, and founded the foundation in 1941. His vision was to create a foundation that could adapt over time to meet changing needs, and that’s something we take seriously to this day. 

我们的故事可以追溯到查尔斯·K·布兰丁，他曾是明尼苏达州大急流城一家造纸厂的所有者，并在1941年创立了布兰丁基金会。他的愿景是建立一个能够随着时间推移而调整，以满足不断变化的需求的基金会，这也是我们至今仍在认真对待的事情。 

Right now, we’re focused on building community wealth, rural placemaking, and strengthening the capacity of people and organizations in communities under 5,000 people. We also look at big challenges like rural inequities tied to place, race, and class. 

目前，我们的重点是建设社区财富、推动农村地方营造，以及增强人口不到5000的社区当中的个人与组织的能力。同时，我们也关注一些重大挑战，比如与地域、种族和阶级相关的农村不平等问题。 

Most of our work centers around Grand Rapids and Itasca County, where 60% of our funding stays, but we also support rural Minnesota communities statewide. At nearly 3,000 square miles, Itasca County is roughly the size of Yellowstone National Park, so it’s no small task. It’s all about listening, learning, and responding to what rural people say they need—and helping bring those ideas to life. 

我们的大部分工作都围绕大急流城和伊塔斯卡县展开，我们60%的资金都用于这两个地方，但我们也为明尼苏达州全州的农村社区提供支持。伊塔斯卡县的面积接近3000平方英里，差不多是黄石国家公园的大小，因此这不是一项小任务。我们要做的就是倾听、学习和回应农村居民的需求，并帮助他们将这些想法变为现实。

How did you come to your work in rural philanthropy and what’s your personal connection to the areas the foundation serves? 

您是如何开始从事农村慈善工作的？您个人与基金会服务的地区有什么联系？

I grew up as a “country kid,” surrounded by the joys of rural life. My mom, raised on a farm, wanted her family to experience the same, so my parents bought an old farmstead. While my dad, a plant pathologist, worked with crops and farmers in western Minnesota’s Red River Valley, my mom gardened, and my sisters and I cared for animals. I especially loved my chickens, the flaming prairie sunsets, and the retired farm couples who became like adopted grandparents—dropping by for coffee, asking about my track meets, and attending my band concerts.

我是一个典型的“乡村孩子”，从小被乡村生活的乐趣所包围。我妈妈在农场长大，她希望她的家人也能体验同样的生活，所以我父母买了一个老农场。我的父亲是一名植物病理学家，在明尼苏达州西部的红河谷从事农作物和农民工作，我的母亲则负责园艺工作，我和姐姐们则照顾动物。我特别喜欢我的小鸡、火红的草原日落，还有那些退休的农场夫妇，他们就像我的养祖父母一样，经常来喝咖啡，询问我田径比赛的情况，还参加我的乐队音乐会。 

Instead of heading to the city for college, I stayed rooted in rural Minnesota, attending a campus overlooking the Minnesota River Valley. Small-town life in St. Peter balanced perfectly with the broader perspectives I gained in class. 

我并没有选择去大城市读大学，而是扎根于明尼苏达州的乡村，在一所可以俯瞰明尼苏达河谷的校园里学习。圣彼得的小镇生活与我在课堂上获得的更广阔视野，形成了完美的平衡。 

I took my first job in a new rural place – the deep woods and rugged rocks of northern Minnesota’s Iron Range. I loved telling the stories of people building businesses, schools, and towns. Their grit, ingenuity, and passion — whether running a café or conducting particle physics research in the Northwoods—showed me I’d made the right choice in embracing rural life. 

我的第一份工作是在一个新的农村地区，位于明尼苏达州北部铁矿区的深山老林和崎岖岩石中。我喜欢讲述人们建设企业、学校和城镇的故事。他们的勇气、智慧和热情，无论是经营咖啡馆还是在北林区进行粒子物理学研究，都向我证明，我选择拥抱农村生活是正确的决定。 

Now, my family and I live in the Grand Rapids area along the Mississippi River, another rural community that’s welcomed me with open arms. Each of these communities has gifted me with special people and places. Like many who choose rural living, I’m drawn to the closeness to nature, the space for independence, and the deep sense of belonging that comes from being part of a close-knit community. 

现在，我和家人住在密西西比河畔的大急流城地区，这是另一个热情欢迎我的农村社区。每一个社区都赋予了我珍贵的人和事。和许多选择乡村生活的人一样，我也被这里亲近自然的环境、独立自主的空间，以及作为一个紧密团结的社区一员所带来的深深归属感所吸引。

As you noted, Blandin’s roots are in north central Minnesota, serving a collection of small towns not far from the Mississippi headwaters, but its programs and strategies also extend to rural Minnesota at large. Why is looking at rural Minnesota in this broader way important? And what’s the landscape look like in terms of philanthropic attention across rural Minnesota? I noticed in one of your recent grant announcements that rural areas in Minnesota receive less than 8% of philanthropic funding, a good deal smaller than their nearly 23% share of the state’s population. 

正如您所指出的，布兰丁基金会的根基在明尼苏达州中北部，服务的是靠近密西西比河源头的一些小镇，但基金会计划和战略也扩展延伸到了整个明尼苏达州的农村地区。为什么以这种更广阔的视角来看待明尼苏达州的农村地区很重要？而在农村慈善事业的关注度方面，整个明尼苏达州的情况又是怎样的？我注意到，在你们最近发布的一项资助公告中，明尼苏达州农村地区获得的慈善资助不到8%，而这些地区的居民约占全州人口的23%，这个比例明显偏低。

I’m stating the obvious here, but under-resourced rural communities are present all across America – not just in rural Minnesota. Food, transportation, medical and news deserts in rural America are the hallmarks of decades of outdated fiscal policies. 

我在这里说的可能是显而易见的，但资源不足的农村社区遍布全美，而不仅仅只是明尼苏达州的农村。美国农村的食品、交通、医疗和新闻沙漠是几十年来过时财政政策的显著特征。 

Broadening our view beyond our local giving area makes these impacts crystal clear, from northern Minnesota’s mining and forestlands to the farming, wind energy and manufacturing areas in the central and south of the state. Rural is NOT a monolith. Each community has its own unique identity and DNA. Yet we see and hear from rural people seeking to spark change and rebuild resilience that navigating most sources of support is complicated and time-consuming. Most funders assume applicants regularly work with grantwriters, and that communities can seek or raise significant matching funds. These types of parameters do not play to rural’s strengths of strong, trusted social connections, can-do attitude, and crafting community-specific solutions on a shoestring. 

将我们的视野扩大到当地捐赠区域之外，这些影响就一目了然了，从明尼苏达州北部的矿区和林地，到州中部和南部的农业、风能和制造业地区。农村地区绝非一个统一的整体。每个社区都有其独特的身份和特征。然而，我们从寻求变革并重建复原力的农村居民那里听到的信息是，大部分获取支持的途径都非常复杂和费时。大多数资助者都默认申请人经常会与资助申请撰写人合作，并且社区能够寻求或筹集到可观的配套资金。这些要求条件无法发挥农村的优势，即强大、值得信赖的社会关系、积极进取的态度以及在有限资金下制定符合社区需求的解决方案。 

Yet we also know that rural places have significant philanthropic power. The University of Minnesota conducted an important study earlier this year chronicling what will be the largest generational transfer of wealth in the history of the country. Since rural communities skew older than urban areas, the transition is happening faster in rural places. 

然而，我们也知道，农村地区拥有巨大的慈善力量。今年早些时候，明尼苏达大学进行了一项重要研究，研究记录了将成为美国历史上最大一笔代际财富转移的过程。由于农村社区的人口老龄化程度高于城市地区，农村地区的财富转移速度更快。 

The study estimates that $61 billion in wealth will change hands in the next 10 years alone. If rural communities capture even a tiny portion of that – say 1-5% – for rural grantmaking and endowments – and apply these funds to local nonprofit and philanthropic use, we could significantly benefit local arts, recreation, crisis centers and other critical community needs. 

该研究估计，仅在未来10年内，就将有610亿美元的财富发生转移。如果农村社区能从中获得一小部分（比如1-5%）用于农村资助和捐赠基金，并将这些资金用于当地的非营利组织和慈善事业，我们就能极大地惠及当地的艺术、娱乐、危机中心和其他的重要社区需求。 

If invested in new endowments over two decades, the captured pool could support grantmaking in the hundreds of millions of dollars. Nonprofits and their communities could leverage those dollars to support new workforce housing construction, develop major nonprofit capital projects and help lower-income residents launch new businesses. 

如果这些资金在二十年内被投资到新的捐赠基金中，所积累的资金池可以支持数亿美元的资助。非营利组织及其社区可以利用这些资金支持新建的劳动力住房、开发重大非营利资本项目，并帮助低收入居民启动新的企业。

What are some of the unique challenges – and opportunities – for foundations serving rural communities? And what might they teach us about trying to build more momentum for rural philanthropy? 

对于服务于农村社区的基金会来说，有哪些独特的挑战和机遇？它们可能会给我们带来什么启示，帮助我们为农村慈善事业积累更多的动力？

One of the biggest challenges is the continual flow of requests for support that exceeds our available resources, money and time. We know we never have everything we would need to fulfill every ask. 

最大的挑战之一是不断涌来的支持请求，这些请求远远超出了我们现有的资源、资金和时间。我们知道，我们永远无法满足每一个需求。 

Challenges we see in rural people and places hit even harder. We know from local studies that demand for rural leadership is three times higher in the nonprofit sector and 25 times higher in government than in urban areas. The “role fatigue” of people stretched thin in leadership can dent our spirits and make us wary of volunteering. But with just a little help, the per capita impact of change in a small community can be greatly amplified. Yet those multilayered responsibilities also spur rural people to take on new roles, because they realize that they ARE “the someone” who gets things done for their community. 

我们在农村社区和居民中看到的挑战更加严峻。我们从当地的研究中了解到：在非营利领域，农村地区对领导力的需求是城市地区的三倍，而在政府部门，这一需求则是城市的25倍。由于领导力的捉襟见肘，导致许多人陷入了“角色疲劳”，这不仅会削弱我们的斗志，还会让我们对志愿服务产生抵触情绪。但是，只要有一点点的帮助，一个小社区里的每个人的改变，就能产生巨大的影响。然而，这些多重责任也激励着农村人去承担新的角色，因为他们意识到他们就是那个为社区做事的“人”。 

Around the office, we call it “for us, by us” philanthropy. It’s community-informed. Community-centered. Community-specific. We’re continually amazed by the practical, workable, effective solutions shared with us. They come from a place of wisdom about the family contexts, economic realities and closely-held dreams people have to make their community a place where people can live with dignity and feel welcome – no matter how small your community. The power and poignancy of seeing that work happen every day, right where you live and work, gives rural philanthropy an immediacy, relevance – momentum –that’s hard to top. 

在我们的办公室里，我们称之为“为我们，由我们”的慈善事业。它是由社区提供信息、以社区为中心，并且针对具体社区的。我们不断被那些分享给我们的、切实可行的且行之有效的解决方案所惊艳。这些方案源于人们对家庭背景、经济现实和深藏心中的梦想的洞察与智慧积累，其目标是让社区成为一个充满尊严和归属感的家园，无论其规模大小。每天在自己生活和工作所在的地方，亲眼见证这些改变的发生，其力量和感染力赋予了农村慈善事业一种无可比拟的直接性、现实意义和推动力。

Blandin recently rolled out a round of grants helping Minnesota’s smallest communities — with populations under 5,000 people — address a wide variety of local needs. What was the inspiration behind that program and what are some of the community projects it has supported? The announcement noted that something as simple as installing a door for a municipal office could make a big difference in these places. 

布兰丁基金会最近推出了一轮资助计划，来帮助明尼苏达州人口不足5000人的小型社区解决各类当地需求。该计划背后的灵感是什么？它支持了哪些社区项目？公告中提到，即使是为市政办公室安装一扇门这样简单的举措，也可能在这些社区带来巨大变化。

During the pandemic, we were overwhelmed with responses to grants targeted to communities with populations under 3,000. We expected up to 100 requests totaling $1 million. We fielded 324 requests for $24 million. 

在疫情期间，我们收到了大量针对3000人以下社区的资助申请。我们原本预计最多会收到100份申请，总金额约为100万美元。结果实际收到了324份申请，申请总金额达2400万美元。 

It was good insight into the incredible need in our small communities and also their dreams and innovation. 

这让我们深刻体会到小型社区的巨大需求，同时也看到了他们的梦想与创新精神。 

Informed by that overwhelming response and new data that showed a profound disparity in rural philanthropy, our leadership and trustees have staked out new priorities for the Blandin Foundation in the areas of Small Communities and Rural Placemaking. Small communities often do not have the resources or staff to search for and apply for grants, so we made the system as simple as possible. 

鉴于这一热烈的反响和新数据显示农村慈善事业存在巨大差异，我们的领导层和董事会为布兰丁基金会确立了新的优先方向，聚焦于小型社区和乡村的地方营造。小型社区通常没有资源或人员来寻找和申请资助，因此我们尽可能简化了系统。 

The grant application we received from Richville – population 78 – was just like small towns are: plain spoken and conveyed with a can-do attitude. Leslie Lee, Richville’s city clerk, wrote this in her grant application. 

我们收到了来自里奇维尔（人口78）的资助申请，正如小镇的特点一样：直截了当，充满了乐观进取的态度。里奇维尔的书记官莱斯莉·李在她的资助申请中这样写道： 

“Our goal is very simple. We wish to build a wall with a door. The goal of this project is to give the city an office space. This will make us more available to the community and enable us to safeguard the city’s business in a designated place.” 

“我们的目标很简单。我们希望建一面墙，并装一扇门。这个项目的目的是为城市提供一个办公室空间。这将使我们更容易为社区服务，也能为市政事务提供一个专门的场所，以便妥善管理。 

This is not a request for hundreds of thousands of dollars. It did not take a team of people or consultants to submit it. But this small and seemingly simple request – for a door and some basic office equipment – gives the city of Richville something that pound for pound is just as important as some of our biggest grants: it gives them the power to design their own future. 

这不是一笔数十万美元的资助申请，也不需要一支团队或顾问来提交。但这个看似简单的小请求：一扇门和一些基本的办公设备，却为里奇维尔提供了与我们最大资助项目同样重要的东西：它赋予了他们设计自己未来的权力。 

We have learned that with a modest amount of money and a little support, towns like Richville can do incredible things. The key is respecting their own unique identity. It means meeting communities where they are at, rather than imposing someone else’s ideas and structure on them. 

我们了解到，凭借少量资金和一些支持，像里奇维尔这样的城镇也能做出令人惊叹的变化。关键在于尊重他们自己的独特身份。这意味着要根据社区的实际情况提供帮助，而不是把别人的想法和结构强加给他们。 

It also helps fight the narrative of “rural decline” and brings visible change and enhances community engagement. 

这也有助于对抗“农村衰退”的说法，带来可见的变化，并增强社区参与感。 

As a staff, we can’t talk about Richville and the 71 other communities awarded grants through the Small Communities and Rural Placemaking program without breaking into grins, and tears. It’s the type of community-based philanthropy we’re convinced works. We’re also excited that since 2022 our grant funds have reached more than 100 new communities. Their requests provide insight into the needs and dreams of small-town Minnesota, like a digital literacy hub, new grandstands and speakers at pow-wow grounds, and updating a community center’s stove, tables and chairs and adding space for a food pantry. Having a functioning stove might seem insignificant from a conventional philanthropic perspective. But that equipment allows a community center—likely one of the town’s few civic institutions—to host the functions and events that bring community members together to address the challenges they face. Our grants staff considers these types of multiplier factors in their grant review, and program evaluation. We need to measure not just what gets completed but also the things that the community then uses that project to do in the future. 

谈起里奇维尔和其他71个通过“小型社区和农村地方营造计划”获得资助的社区，我们的工作人员都会忍不住笑出声来，甚至流下眼泪。这正是我们坚信有效的、以社区基础的慈善方式。同样令我们感到兴奋的是，自2022年以来，我们的资助资金已惠及了100多个新社区。这些社区的请求为我们提供了关于明尼苏达州小镇需求和梦想的宝贵洞察，比如数字扫盲中心、聚会场地的新看台和扬声器，以及更新社区中心的炉子、桌椅，增加食品银行的空间。从传统慈善角度来看，拥有一台正常运转的炉子似乎微不足道。但有了这些设备，社区中心（可能是该镇为数不多的公共机构之一），就可以发挥功能、举办各种活动，将社区成员聚集在一起，共同应对他们所面临的挑战。我们的资助工作人员在审查资助和评估项目时，还会考虑这些类型的倍增效应。我们需要衡量的不仅仅是已完成的项目，还要评估社区如何利用这些项目做更多的事情。

Your title is Senior Rural Advocacy Manager, so I want to give you a chance to do some advocating, to give voice to your rural people. With the soapbox and the megaphone at hand, what are your hopes for rural places in 2025 and beyond? Taking the big picture view, what will it take to get to the vibrant, sustainable, equitable rural futures envisioned by Blandin and other advocates? 

你的头衔是高级农村宣传经理，所以我想给你一个机会，让你做一些宣传，为你的农村人民发声。有了演讲台和扩音器，您对2025年及以后的农村地区有什么期望？从大局出发，如何才能实现布兰丁基金会和其他倡导者所设想的充满活力、可持续、公平的农村未来？

I want rural places to be confident in what and who they are. Clear-eyed and honest about the challenges right under our noses. To unapologetically claim the valuable natural and social resources we have, and put them to work to our advantage. To resist the momentum of the many stereotypes that aim to box us into spaces that don’t fit, and hinder our ability to see ourselves accurately and act in our best interests. To have courage through change, and the seeds of hope for the future. 

我希望农村地区对自己的定位和身份充满信心。清醒而诚实地面对眼前的挑战。毫无顾忌地主张我们拥有的宝贵自然和社会资源，并让它们为我们所用。抵制各种刻板印象的势头，这些刻板印象会将我们限制在不适合的空间中，阻碍我们准确认识自己并采取符合自身利益的行动。勇于改变，播下对未来的希望种子。 

Reaching toward the future we envision will take mutual respect, at all levels. Among people in each community, so we’re clear on where we’re headed and why, who’s good at what, and how together we move forward. Between communities, so we see the patterns that link us, share a view of a collective future and build a strong sense of regionalism to guide our future decisions. And across the alleged rural/urban divide, so the regions of our state contribute their all, in service to a Minnesota that is more than the sum of its parts. 

要实现我们设想的未来，需要各个层面的相互尊重。在每个社区的人们之间，我们要明确自己将要走向哪里，为什么走那条路，谁擅长什么，以及如何携手共进。在社区之间，我们要看到将我们联系在一起的模式，分享对集体未来的看法，并建立强烈的地区意识，以指导我们未来的决策。跨越所谓的城乡差距，我们州的各个地区都贡献出自己的一切，为明尼苏达州服务，让明尼苏达州超越其各个部分的总和。 

As one of the guardians of Blandin Foundation’s voice, I love that I get to recognize and surface the mosaic of rural life, to bridge gaps and shed light on issues that often go unnoticed – particularly at the intersection of race, place and class. If I’ve helped make something invisible visible, and shared stories that aren’t just heard, but understood and acted on – it’s been a good week. 

作为布兰丁基金会声音的守护者之一，我很高兴能够认识和揭示农村生活的方方面面，弥合差距，揭示经常被忽视的问题，尤其是在种族、地域和阶级的交汇处。如果我帮助人们看到了一些看不见的东西，分享的故事不仅仅是被人们听到，而且是被人们理解并付诸行动，那么这就是美好的一周。

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