AP Top News｜为何蕾哈娜（Rihanna）扩大的克拉拉·利奥尼尔基金会（Clara Lionel Foundation）被视为名人慈善的典范

发布时间：2025-11-24 22:07

NEW YORK (AP) Rihanna is accustomed to defying convention.

The nine-time Grammy winner has turned her wide-ranging string of hits, including Umbrella and Work, into a business empire worth an estimated $1.4 billion, placing her high on last years Forbes list of the richest self-made American women. The Barbados native stunned entertainments biggest stage with a pregnancy reveal during her solo 2023 Super Bowl halftime show. And her successful Fenty Beauty cosmetics brand revolutionized the makeup industry with its inclusive shades.

But it is not the megastar-turned-moguls long-awaited follow-up to 2016s Anti album set to make waves this year. Its her philanthropy.

Named after Rihannas grandparents and funded partially through her brands, the Clara Lionel Foundation is coming off a refresh that is poised to direct more funds toward climate solutions and womens entrepreneurship in the under-invested regions of East Africa, the Caribbean and the U.S. South. After 13 years of relative anonymity, the nonprofit is ready for more visibility.

Jessie Schutt-Aine, the executive director of the Clara Lionel Foundation, poses for a portrait, Tuesday, March 4, 2025, in Kensington, Md. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Our founder is a woman from a small island nation whos got global reach. Shes an entrepreneur. Shes a mom. Shes a creative, said Executive Director Jessie Schutt-Aine. So, we want an organization that reflects that spirit and that energy. Shes bold and shes ambitious. Shes innovative. She always does things different. Shes a game changer.

Experts say its rare to see such intentionality among famous philanthropists. Clara Lionel Foundation has also garnered praise for its embrace of trust-based giving, which empowers recipients with unrestricted funding.

NDN Collective founder Nick Tilsen said CLF lets his Indigenous power-building nonprofit do the work on our terms and that other funders should take notes.

Theyre not a foundation thats all up in your business, either, Tilsen said. They support. They see the work. They allow us to do what we need to do.

Clara Lionel Foundations personal roots

Rihanna poses for photographers upon arrival at the The Fashion Awards 2024 on Monday, Dec. 2, 2024, in London. (Photo by Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP, File)

Rihanna started the foundation with a $516,000 contribution after her grandmother died of cancer complications in 2012. That year, the musician established an oncology center at Barbados main hospital to expand cancer screening and treatment. And the young foundation focused on healthcare and Barbados for much of last decade.

By 2019, though, CLF had begun prioritizing emergency preparedness. Grantmaking jumped to more than $33 million in 2020 as the nonprofit provided much-needed pandemic relief and backed racial justice efforts. Post-pandemic spending slowdowns coincided with its internal transition, according to tax filings.

A revamped team and refined priorities now match its broader ambitions. A new director for womens entrepreneurship, based in South Carolina, will build out that pillars programs. Black Feminist Fund co-founder Amina Doherty now oversees programs and impact. Rounding out its five new pillars are climate solutions, arts and culture, health access and equity, and future generations.

The youth focus was commended by Ashley Lashley, a 25-year-old whose foundation has worked with CLF to address environmental challenges in her native Barbados. She often hears leaders say that youth are the future, she said, but those statements rarely translate into actual support.

Rihannas foundation is a prime example of how women in power can help contribute to work that is being done at the community level, Lashley said.

Rihanna told The Associated Press she hopes CLF will continue to be a force for global inclusion in philanthropy.

She reflected on the foundations 13-year transformation in a statement: Today we have global reach, but that notion of love for community and for our roots runs deep in the DNA of the foundation.

Finding partners big and small

Jessie Schutt-Aine, the executive director of the Clara Lionel Foundation, poses for a portrait, Tuesday, March 4, 2025, in Kensington, Md. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

The latest example of that evolution is a partnership with The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Barbados invaluable history as an essential chapter in the broader story of the African diaspora is threatened by climate change, according to a Mellon press release.

Together, the two foundations announced, they will fund artist-led initiatives to protect that culture while inspiring new narratives and opportunities internationally.

Schutt-Aine views the partnership with Mellon the largest philanthropic supporter of the arts in the U.S. as a milestone for CLF. Justin Garrett Moore, the director of the Mellons Humanities in Place program, said the nonprofits name arose when his team asked contacts to recommend partners.

We think there is an incredible platform that Clara Lionel Foundation has, with their founder, to bring this type of work into a legibility and visibility for the organizations that will be supported, Moore said. Also, just generally in the society, to help amplify the power of the arts.

Among those grantees is a developmental performance arts program that also provides free social services to students in the nations capital of Bridgetown. Operation Triple Threat founder Janelle Headley said Clara Lionel Foundation helped the nonprofit afford a warehouse outfitted with acoustics panels, sound equipment and a dance floor.

The relationship began with a microgrant for scholarships. Operation Triple Threat now receives general operating support a revolutionary investment, Headley said, because charitable donations are usually earmarked for specific causes. That flexibility proved especially helpful during the pandemic when rapidly changing circumstances created new needs like iPads for remote learning.

Its uncommon, to be honest, to have someone give a sizable donation unrestricted and say, We trust you, your vision, Headley said. That is very forward-thinking of them.

A unique model for celebrity philanthropy

The approach is unique, according to Mary Beth Collins, the executive director of the Center for Community and Nonprofit Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She finds that celebrities typically engage in philanthropy only when necessary.

But Collins said CLF appears to think long-term about its partners and deliberately in its bottom-up funding. The strategies align with her own recommendations to engage expert professionals, address root causes, select focus areas important to founders and lift up leaders living those issues.

We want to see funds and resources from the more endowed people in the world going to those leaders on the ground that really know the place and the experience and the issues best, Collins said.

CLF used that model late last year when it provided additional funding to a clean energy nonprofit partner impacted by Hurricane Helene . Melanie Allen, co-director of The Hive Fund for Climate and Gender Justice, said they suddenly received around $60,000 to quickly distribute among vetted partners in devastated communities.

The contribution came amid an increasingly hostile environment for nonprofits like hers supporting women of color, which has prompted some philanthropists to reduce giving. Allen said she is excited about CLFs deep commitment to the South going forward.

As others reduce resources, CLF wants to bring more philanthropic partners to the table. Theyre planning a summer convening for grantees to expand networks. The message, CLFs Doherty said, is We will stick with you.

Some people might say times look bleak, Doherty said. But this is a moment of possibility.

The importance of remaining grounded in communities you serve is a lesson Schutt-Aine learned throughout a 25-year global health career.

Most recently the Chief of Equity, Gender and Cultural Diversity at the Pan American Health Organization, Schutt-Aine has treated the worlds deadliest infections of tuberculosis, malaria and HIV/AIDS.

If youre going to work on malaria, she said, you need to have lived with the mosquito.

___

Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives support through the APs collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. For all of APs philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy .

纽约（美联社）——蕾哈娜习惯于挑战常规。

这位九次荣获格莱美奖的歌手，已将她一系列热门歌曲，如《Umbrella》和《Work》，打造成一个价值约14亿美元的商业帝国，在去年的《福布斯》最富有的“白手起家”美国女性榜单上位居前列。这位巴巴多斯出生的歌手在2023年独唱超级碗中场秀时宣布怀孕，这一消息震惊了整个娱乐界。她的Fenty Beauty化妆品品牌以其包容的色号彻底革新了化妆品行业。

但这并非这位从巨星转变为大亨的艺人，在2016年发行的《Anti》专辑的期待已久的续作，而是在今年掀起波澜的她的慈善事业。

以蕾哈娜的祖父母命名，并由其品牌部分资助的克拉拉·莱昂内尔基金会（Clara Lionel Foundation）正在进行一次“更新”，旨在将更多资金投向东非、加勒比地区和美国南部等投资不足地区的气候解决方案和女性创业。在经历了13年的相对默默无闻之后，这个非营利组织正准备吸引更多的关注。

我们的创始人来自一个有着全球影响力的小岛国家。她是一位企业家，也是一位母亲，还是一位富有创造力的人，执行董事Jessie Schutt-Aine说道。因此，我们希望我们的组织能反映出这种精神和能量。她大胆而富有雄心壮志，她具有创新精神，她总是做不同的事情，她是一个改变游戏规则的人。

专家表示，在知名慈善家中如此有意识地行动是罕见的。克拉拉·莱昂内尔基金会也因其采用“基于信任”的捐赠方式而受到赞誉，这种方式为受赠方提供了不受限制的资金。

NDN Collective的创始人Nick Tilsen表示，CLF让他的土著权力建设非营利组织“按照我们的条件来做这项工作”，并建议其他资助者做好笔记。

蒂尔森（Tilsen）表示，他们并非总插手干涉你的事务。他们提供支持，关注你的工作，并允许我们按需行事。

克拉拉·莱昂内尔基金会的个人根源

蕾哈娜的基金会以51.6万美元的捐款开始运作，这是在她祖母于2012年因癌症并发症去世后。那年，这位音乐家在巴巴多斯的主要医院设立了一个肿瘤学中心，以扩大癌症筛查和治疗。该年轻基金会在过去十年中主要关注巴巴多斯的医疗保健。

截至2019年，CLF开始优先处理紧急准备工作。在2020年，该非营利组织为疫情提供了急需的援助并支持种族正义的努力，其拨款金额跃升至超过3300万美元。根据纳税申报单，疫情后的支出放缓与其内部转型相吻合。

经过重新组建的团队和调整后的优先事项，现在与其更广泛的雄心相匹配。南卡罗来纳州的新任女性创业项目主管将拓展该支柱的计划。黑人女权基金联合创始人阿米娜·多尔蒂（Amina Doherty）现在负责计划和影响。完善其五个新支柱的是气候解决方案、艺术和文化、健康获取和平等，以及后代。

25岁的阿什利·拉什利（Ashley Lashley）赞扬了对于青年关注的重视，她的基金会与CLF合作，以解决她出生地巴巴多斯的环境挑战。她表示，她经常听到领导者说“青年是未来”，但这些话很少转化为实际的支持。

拉什利表示，蕾哈娜的基金会就是一个很好的例子，说明了在位的女性如何能够为在社区层面进行的工作做出贡献。

蕾哈娜（Rihanna）在接受美联社（The Associated Press）采访时表示，她希望慈善领导力基金会（CLF）能够继续成为“全球慈善包容”的推动力量。

她在声明中反思了该基金会13年的转型过程：“如今我们已拥有全球影响力，但那份对社区和根源的热爱，深深植根于基金会的DNA之中。”

寻找合作伙伴，无论大小

梅隆基金会（The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation）的最新合作案例表明了这一演变的最新情况。根据梅隆基金会的新闻稿，巴巴多斯岛作为“非洲后裔更广泛故事中的关键篇章”，其宝贵的历史正受到气候变化的威胁。

这两家基金会共同宣布，将资助“艺术家主导的举措”，以保护这种文化，同时“激发国际上新的叙述和机会”。

Schutt-Aine将与Mellon的合作视为CLF的里程碑，后者是美国艺术领域最大的慈善支持者。Mellon's Humanities in Place项目总监贾斯汀·加勒特·摩尔（Justin Garrett Moore）表示，该非营利组织的名称是在其团队向联系人询问推荐合作伙伴时产生的。

Moore表示，Clara Lionel基金会及其创始人拥有一个令人难以置信的平台，可以将这类工作变得明晰和可见，为那些将被支持的机构提供便利。此外，在社会上，也能帮助增强艺术的力量。

在这些受助方中，有一个发展性表演艺术项目，该项目还为首都布里奇敦的学生提供免费的社会服务。三重威胁行动（Operation Triple Threat）的创始人珍妮尔·海德利（Janelle Headley）表示，克拉拉·利奥尼尔基金会（Clara Lionel Foundation）帮助这家非营利组织负担了一间配备有吸音板、音响设备和舞蹈地板的仓库的费用。

Headley表示，该合作始于为奖学金提供的微额资助，而“三重威胁行动”现在获得了通用的运营支持，这是一种“革命性的”投资，因为慈善捐赠通常只用于特定的目的。在疫情期间，这种灵活性尤其重要，因为不断变化的情况产生了新的需求，如远程学习所需的iPad。

老实说，有个人捐赠一大笔钱，还要求无限制，并说“我们信任你，你的愿景”，这种情况并不常见。Headley说：“这表明他们具有前瞻性。”

一个独特的名人慈善模式

根据威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校社区与非营利性研究中心的执行主任玛丽·贝斯·柯林斯的观点，这一方法具有独特性。

但科林斯（Collins）表示，CLF似乎对其合作伙伴采取了长期思考的策略，并且在自下而上的资金筹集中采取了有意的策略。这些策略与她自己的建议相吻合，即要聘请专家和专业人士，解决根本原因，选择对创始人重要的重点领域，并提升那些关注这些问题的领导者。

我们希望看到来自世界上最富有的人们的资金和资源流向那些真正了解当地情况、拥有最佳经验和问题的领导者。

去年年底，CLF在为受飓风海伦影响的一个清洁能源非营利合作伙伴提供额外资金时，采用了这一模式。The Hive Fund for Climate and Gender Justice的联合总监梅兰妮·艾伦表示，他们突然收到了约6万美元，以迅速在受灾社区中向经过审核的合作伙伴进行分配。

这项捐款发生在像她这样为有色人种女性提供支持的非营利组织面临日益敌对环境的情况下，这也促使一些慈善家减少了捐赠。艾伦表示，她对CLF“对未来的南方地区做出的坚定承诺”感到兴奋。

当其他组织减少资源时，CLF希望引入更多的慈善合作伙伴。他们正在计划为受助者举办夏季会议，以扩大网络。CLF的Doherty表示，信息是“我们将与你同在。”

多尔蒂说：“有些人可能会认为形势看起来很严峻，但这是充满可能性的时刻。”

在服务社区中保持根基的重要性，是舒特-艾恩在其25年的全球卫生职业生涯中学习到的一课。

最近，泛美卫生组织负责公平、性别和文化多样性的主管，Schutt-Aine已经治疗了世界上最致命的传染病——结核病、疟疾和艾滋病毒/艾滋病。

她说，如果你想研究疟疾，你就得和蚊子生活在一起。

美联社（Associated Press）对慈善和非营利组织的报道得到了美联社与The Conversation US合作的资金支持，该资金由Lilly Endowment Inc.提供。美联社对此内容负全责。如需了解美联社关于慈善的所有报道，请访问https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy。

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