Organizational Leadership

Silicon Valley Social Venture Fund

Silicon Valley Social Venture Fund, commonly known as SV2, is a giving network of more than 200 Bay Area-based individuals who partner with SV2 to learn about effective giving and pool their money, talent, and ties to support promising locally-based nonprofit organizations. Through a partner-powered model, SV2 engages in three main activities.  First, SV2 partners pool their capital to give financial support to high potential social ventures, working together to identify and support the most promising grantees.  Second, many partners contribute time and expertise to the grantees. Third, SV2 offers workshops, speaker series and other opportunities for partners and grantees to augment their growth and learning. An SV2 Kids Service-Learning Program is designed to bring families together to broaden their children’s perspectives through experiential service learning opportunities while meeting the needs of the local community.  The SV2 Teen Philanthropy Program offers a comprehensive philanthropic experience through which the teenagers of SV2 partners gain exposure to local social issues and the social ventures addressing them, develop deeper knowledge of the nonprofit sector and grantmaking, and are inspired to make a bigger difference through their own actions.   Since its founding in 1998, SV2 has engaged more than 500 adult partners and 80 teenagers, while supporting more than 40 nonprofit grantees with local and global reach and has provided more than $4 million in direct funding.  The Lauders have been partners with SV2 since 2003 and have provided nearly $300,000 to the pooled fund; Laura serves on the organization’s board of directors.