Websites That Power Philanthropy

Before running a digital agency, I worked at the Rockefeller Foundation in New York City. There, I helped to launch and guide a fellowship program designed to strengthen civil society by supporting young, up-and-coming leaders from across the country. The dozens of fellows came from nearly every walk of life — medicine, the military, nonprofits, government, and business.

Called Next Generation Leadership, each person in the program brought their unique and often conflicting perspective on what it takes to build communities and to grow new ideas around democracy substantially and impactfully. Public figures such as CNN commentator Van Jones, former Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti, and U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin were just a few of the participants. 

Since that time, I have worked with dozens of philanthropies over the years. These organizations play a critical role in our society, funding ideas, research and social impact. Where public programs are often constrained by bureaucracy or political cycles, philanthropy can be bold, nimble and innovative. With real foresight, philanthropic institutions invest in fresh approaches, pilot new ideas, and take risks that governments cannot or will not.

At its very best, philanthropy serves as a counterweight to what public systems can offer — cultivating new institutions, developing leadership, strengthening communities, and advancing real social change that might otherwise never take hold.

I have deep respect for the role that contemporary philanthropy plays in shaping our collective future. And today, strong communications matter more than ever to foundations and to the initiatives and programs they create. Powerful ideas cannot grow if they can’t be shared in ways that resonate. Supported by the right tools, a well-presented story can connect donors, communities, and changemakers in transformational ways.

We have built many transformational sites for foundations and philanthropies

At Mangrove, we partner with large foundations and philanthropic organizations, helping them create websites and integrated platforms that extend their reach and strengthen their impact. A confident and clear website is more than a large digital business card. It is a donation channel, a storytelling hub, and a trust-building tool for the right audiences. A superb website raises money, builds bridges and shines new light on grantees.

I want to share a few recent examples of websites that we made for clients that illustrate how deliberate design and tight digital strategy amplifies philanthropic missions:

GiftPact Foundation – Accessible Giving Platform

We created a fully accessible WordPress website for the GiftPact Foundation, a Canadian charitable organization focused on helping donors give with greater purpose. The site makes the process of learning and giving clear, while ensuring usability for all visitors. We also crafted a striking new visual identity that can cut across all of its communications materials.

Impact highlight: A fully accessible site design ensures that donors of all abilities can engage with GiftPact’s mission to “give with greater impact.”

Sierra Club Canada – Sustainable, Accessible Advocacy

For Sierra Club Canada, we designed and built a site that met rigorous accessibility standards and prioritized environmental responsibility – and aligned with their new branding. The WordPress-powered site strengthens the organization’s ability to communicate its campaigns and broaden its supporter base. We also did our best to ensure that the site had a light carbon footprint.

Impact highlight: WCAG Level A compliant website design makes environmental advocacy more inclusive, ensuring Sierra Club’s message reaches communities who may have been previously underserved.

Beneficial State Foundation – Financial Justice in Focus

The Beneficial State Foundation works to create a more equitable and transparent banking system. We partnered with them to build a platform that positions them as thought leaders and makes advocacy resources easy to access and share. The site takes on the look and feel of its sibling Beneficial State Bank and showcases the incredible work the foundation does every day.

Impact highlight: A mission-aligned digital platform allows the Beneficial State Foundation to publicly translate complex financial reform work into content that is approachable and actionable.

Wikimedia Foundation – An Annual Report That Inspires

For the Wikimedia Foundation, we designed an interactive annual report that showcases the global scale of open knowledge. With a long-scroll homepage and engaging visuals, the report communicates impact while keeping readers engaged longer. The site, built in 2017, was ahead of its time in terms of its design interactivity, accessibility and rich infographics.

Impact highlight: A digital-first annual report turns static numbers into an inspiring narrative, celebrating millions of contributors worldwide.

(RED) – Flexibility for Bold Campaigns

(RED), the iconic nonprofit fighting AIDS, needed to move beyond the real limitations of Squarespace for its website. Mangrove migrated the entire (RED) site to a new, custom WordPress build, giving them more flexibility to run high-profile campaigns that can evolve quickly. After a decade, WordPress continues to impress our philanthropy clients, being just the right size platform for them to grow their communications.

Impact highlight: A flexible platform empowers (RED) to launch creative global campaigns with speed and consistency—keeping pace with their bold brand.

McConnell Foundation – Organizing a Complex Mission

The McConnell Foundation is one of Canada’s oldest and most established philanthropic organizations, supporting initiatives in resilience, reconciliation, and climate action. We helped the foundation redesign their site to better reflect the breadth of their mission while guiding users easily through multiple program areas. We also rebuilt their WordPress backend to make it much easier for staff to use and administer.

Impact highlight: A redesigned navigation system helps diverse stakeholders find what they need within McConnell’s wide-ranging work.

Clean Vehicle Assistance Program – Accessibility Meets Equity

In partnership with the Beneficial State Foundation and California Climate Investments, we developed an ADA-compliant, bilingual site for the Clean Vehicle Assistance Program. Offering clean, clear information, the site simplifies the application process for grants that help low-income families purchase clean vehicles. Few government agencies and foundations go this far to help stakeholders.

Impact highlight: A bilingual, accessible site design expanded access, ensuring more diverse communities can benefit from clean vehicle grants.

Why strategic websites matter to philanthropy

Each of these projects reflects a different corner of philanthropy — environmental justice, financial reform, health advocacy, community resilience — but they share a common need: digital tools that make foundation work visible, accessible, and actionable.

Philanthropy thrives on bold ideas and courageous investments in communities. But those ideas only grow when people can understand them, connect with them, and act on them. That’s where thoughtful website design and development comes in. At Mangrove, our role is to build digital foundations that allow philanthropy to flourish. If you’d like to learn more about how our work can support your foundation or nonprofit, please connect with us. We would love to see how we can work together.

Image by RDNE Stock project on Pexels