Welcome to the Bay Area Capacity Building Collective
Strengthen your organization with the help of pro bono volunteers
Connect With Talented and Engaged Professionals
This program connects you with talented professionals looking to give back, allowing you to access expertise in areas such as marketing, web development, operations, strategy, and more.
Catchafire's menu of 150+ pre-scoped projects, each with specific deliverables and project steps, makes it easy to find what you need and match with a volunteer with the right skills for the job. And if you aren't sure where to begin, start by talking to a volunteer to get advice and explore ideas.
Karen from Insight Garden Program listed a Translation project.
Karen from Insight Garden Program listed a Translation project.
Karen from Insight Garden Program listed a Translation project.
Karen from Insight Garden Program listed a Translation project.
Karen from Insight Garden Program listed a Translation project.
Maura from Homeward Bound of Marin listed a Social Media consultation call.
MAN 2 MAN - URBAN YOUTH ADVOCATE, INC received an application from Rexie for a Short Video Creation Training project.
Parent Services Project, Inc. received an application from Achi for a Board Responsibilities & Structure project.
FAIRFAX-SAN ANSELMO CHILDREN'S CENTER received an application from Jay for a Human Resources consultation call.
Performing Stars of Marin received an application from Kelsey for an Instagram Set Up & Strategy project.
Next Generation Scholars received an application from Daniel for a Communications consultation call.
Insight Garden Program received an application from Al for a Transcription project.
FAIRFAX-SAN ANSELMO CHILDREN'S CENTER received an application from Nivi for a Human Resources consultation call.
Next Generation Scholars received an application from Gayathri for a Communications consultation call.
Next Generation Scholars received an application from Bethany for a Communications consultation call.
Erik from FAIRFAX-SAN ANSELMO CHILDREN'S CENTER listed a Human Resources consultation call.
WildCare received an application from Rebecca for a Marketing Materials consultation call.
FAIRFAX-SAN ANSELMO CHILDREN'S CENTER received an application from Jyoti for a Human Resources consultation call.
Caroline from Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California listed a Succession Planning Sessions project.
Nghiem from Next Generation Scholars listed a Communications consultation call.
Balandra from Parent Services Project, Inc. listed a Board Responsibilities & Structure project.
Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California received an application from Phoonie for a Translation project.
Insight Garden Program received an application from Emily for a Transcription project.
Insight Garden Program received an application from Priscilla for a Transcription project.
Insight Garden Program received an application from Karthik for a Transcription project.
Karen from Insight Garden Program listed a Transcription project.
Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California received an application from Mahab for a Translation project.
Jill matched with Zoe from WildCare for a Social Media consultation call!
Alcohol Justice received an application from Luis for a Website consultation call.
Alcohol Justice received an application from Jovana for a Website consultation call.
MAN 2 MAN - URBAN YOUTH ADVOCATE, INC received an application from Raja for an Event Concept & Plan project.
Zoe from WildCare listed a Marketing Materials consultation call.
Lillian matched with Lori from Sanzuma for an Illustration project!
Alcohol Justice received an application from lee for a Website consultation call.
West Marin Fund received an application from Greg for an Organizational Strategy consultation call.
Performing Stars of Marin received an application from MD Samir for an Instagram Set Up & Strategy project.
Joseph matched with Denise from Drawdown Bay Area for a Google Ads Campaign Support project!
Alcohol Justice received an application from Ignacio for a Website consultation call.
Alcohol Justice received an application from Pranali for a Website consultation call.
Alcohol Justice received an application from Brenden for a Website consultation call.
Alcohol Justice received an application from Legit for a Website consultation call.
Insight Garden Program received an application from Micah for a Transcription project.
West Marin Fund received an application from Arum for an Organizational Strategy consultation call.
MAN 2 MAN - URBAN YOUTH ADVOCATE, INC received an application from Veair for a Video Editing project.
Insight Garden Program received an application from Mariana for a Transcription project.
Insight Garden Program received an application from Rose for a Transcription project.
Alcohol Justice received an application from Derrick for a Website consultation call.
Insight Garden Program received an application from Sophia for a Transcription project.
Insight Garden Program received an application from Mishita for a Transcription project.
Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California received an application from Babar for a Translation project.
How It Works
1. Explore Available Projects
Browse through over 150 pre-scoped projects and post your own.2. Find Your Pro Bono Professional
Review applications from interested professionals and choose who you want to work with.3. Get The Help You Need
Kick off your project and start making progress.Two ways to connect!
Consultation Calls
Projects
What Do You Need Help With?
Select from 150+ pre-scoped projects or post a consultation call to get started.
Great Connections Are Made Here
How Jill M. helped WildCare
How Lillian J. helped Sanzuma
How Joseph F. helped Drawdown Bay Area
How Roxana T. helped MAN 2 MAN - URBAN YOUTH ADVOCATE, INC
How Deepa S. helped Community Action Marin (San Rafael)
How Chatterjee P. helped Performing Stars of Marin
How Brenda K. helped Advokids
How Victoria E. helped Insight Garden Program
How Faline R. helped YWCA Golden Gate Silicon Valley
ABOUT THE VOLUNTEERS
Work With Talented Professionals From Around the World
Finding the right match is important. Each of the 150+ pre-scoped projects contains prerequisite skills and experience, core deliverables, and time estimates, so volunteers know exactly what is required when they apply to work with you.
The rigorous application process, which includes work experience, portfolios, and statements of interest, limits applicants to those who are serious about working with you. It's not a one-click application, and it shouldn't be.
You can review up to three applications at a time, and interview candidates before deciding. The decision is yours.
What Other Organizations are Saying
Frequently Asked Questions
New around here? Start with the basics.
Catchafire is an online platform for virtual, skills-based volunteering. Through Catchafire, professionals are able to directly support causes they care about by helping nonprofits with projects that match their skill sets. And because projects can be completed from anywhere, Catchafire makes it possible for organizations and skilled volunteers to connect for good, from all around the world!
Skills-based volunteering is a high impact form of volunteering that allows an individual to donate his or her professional skills and expertise, which in turn allows a nonprofit to build its capacity and focus more efficiently on its mission.
Skilled volunteers help nonprofits fill critical knowledge and staffing gaps, they work as thought partners on strategic projects, and they complete specific projects that require specialized skills, training, or experience. Very often, the relationships between volunteers and nonprofits extend far beyond the scope of the initial project that brought them together.
A specific example of skills-based volunteering is a marketing professional who volunteers to help a nonprofit create a marketing strategy.
We are partnering with Catchafire to provide grantees with access to virtual, skilled volunteers. We believe that by providing this valuable resource for capacity building and strategic project work, we can help our grantees amplify and accelerate the impact they have on the communities and beneficiaries they serve.
No. Your access to Catchafire is sponsored through this program, so it’s completely free for your organization.
In order to participate, you must first register your organization and then post your first project or consultation call. Get started by visiting the Project Menu to browse through over 150+ detailed project types.
You can work on an unlimited number of projects and calls throughout your membership. Once you finish a project, just make sure to mark it “complete”.
Your posted projects are visible to Catchafire’s entire skills-based volunteer community of 40,000+ talented professionals on the platform, and millions more via Catchafire's partnership with LinkedIn. Those who are interested in your organization’s cause area and who have the skills required for your project will be able to apply.
Skills-based volunteers may apply to your projects from all across the country and around the world. We encourage you to engage with virtual skills-based volunteers. If you prefer to work with somebody local, please expect it to take longer than normal to receive applications from a professional in the area.
On average, projects are matched within two weeks. If you are not seeing the response you hoped for, please reach out to [email protected], and one of Catchafire's Nonprofit Advisors will get in touch with you.
After the interview, you can log into your account dashboard and ACCEPT or PASS on the match. Once both parties accept, you are officially matched and can begin the project! If you need to exchange any materials or have follow-up conversations to determine if it is a good fit after the interview, you are encouraged to do so.
Absolutely! Schedule a call, or email your questions to [email protected] and one of Catchafire’s Nonprofit Advisors will be in touch within 24 business hours.
About this Program
Marin Community Foundation, Walter & Elise Haas Fund, San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development, East Bay Community Foundation’s ASCEND:BLO Initiative and the Hellman Foundation have joined together to launch the Catchafire Bay Area Collective. This program provides capacity building resources to local nonprofit organizations working to build stronger, more equitable communities.
The participating foundations have partnered with Catchafire to support nonprofit organizations by making connections to pro bono professionals here in the Bay Area and across the world. Through these connections, the Collective maximizes the impact organizations are able to make on the communities they serve.
Catchafire is the largest, online tool that connects social good organizations with talented professionals looking to donate their skills. This resource provides organizations with expert support in areas like marketing and communications, web development, operations, strategy and much, much more.
Learn more about Marin Community Foundation, Walter & Elise Haas Fund, San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development, East Bay Community Foundation’s ASCEND:BLO Initiative, and the Hellman Foundation.
Have more questions? Drop us a line.
Email the Catchafire team at [email protected], or schedule a Catchafire introduction call to learn more about how your organization can build capacity with help from skilled pro bono professionals
