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.
Eric matched with Dave from Los Cenzontles Cultural Arts Academy for a Salesforce Database Customization project!
Jaime-Faye matched with Shahin from The Starry Plough for an Organizational Strategy consultation call!
Douglas matched with Shahin from The Starry Plough for an Organizational Strategy consultation call!
Clark matched with Shahin from The Starry Plough for an Organizational Strategy consultation call!
Shahin from The Starry Plough listed an Organizational Strategy consultation call.
Noel matched with Shahin from The Starry Plough for an Organizational Strategy consultation call!
Shahin from The Starry Plough listed an Organizational Strategy consultation call.
Vandita matched with Lee from At The Crossroads for a Google Ads Set Up project!
EatSF, Vouchers 4 Veggies received an application from Sophia for a Flexible Graphic Design Support project.
David from Leah's Pantry, Inc listed a Website User Experience project.
Kyoko from DeLIVER Care Van, UCSF listed a Flyer Graphic Design project.
Jack matched with Julie from The County of Alameda, California for an Online Survey project!
Read-Aloud Volunteer Program received an application from Ethan for a Social Media Content Calendar project.
The County of Alameda, California received an application from Clayton for a Branded Digital Assets project.
Himanshu matched with Susan from The Crucible for a Data Visualization project!
Sarah matched with Lee from At The Crossroads for a Social Media Content Calendar project!
Kim matched with Claire from End Hep C SF, SF Public Health Foundation for a Flexible Graphic Design Support project!
Ashwin matched with Julie from The County of Alameda, California for a Data & Analytics consultation call!
Nancy matched with Julie from The County of Alameda, California for a Data & Analytics consultation call!
EveryOne Home received an application from Zeeshan for a Social Media Content Calendar project.
James matched with Karen from CavityFree SF, UCSF Foundation for an Illustration project!
Gary matched with Erin from Coaching Corps for a Human Resources consultation call!
Tim matched with Claire from End Hep C SF, SF Public Health Foundation for an Excel Dashboard Creation project!
Read-Aloud Volunteer Program received an application from Lisa for a Social Media Content Calendar project.
Jethro from Oakland Literacy Coalition listed a Membership Strategy project.
Read-Aloud Volunteer Program received an application from Juan M. for a Social Media Content Calendar project.
Read-Aloud Staff from Read-Aloud Volunteer Program listed a Social Media Content Calendar project.
andrew matched with Angela from Lotus Bloom for a Board Operations & Systems project!
Philippe matched with David from Leah's Pantry, Inc for a Website consultation call!
EatSF, Vouchers 4 Veggies received an application from Diana for a Flexible Graphic Design Support project.
Kathryn matched with Lauren from Hepatitis C Warmline, UCSF Clinician Consultation Center for a Management Skills Coaching project!
Stephanie matched with Jennifer from EatSF, Vouchers 4 Veggies for a Data Visualization project!
Mani matched with Maribel from Richmond Promise for a Tech Systems consultation call!
Rebecca matched with Dane from California Film Institute for a Hiring Strategy project!
EatSF, Vouchers 4 Veggies received an application from Elizabeth for a Flexible Graphic Design Support project.
EveryOne Home received an application from Ryan for a Social Media Content Calendar project.
Chelsea from EveryOne Home listed a Social Media Content Calendar project.
Qian matched with Tamar from Native American Health Center, Inc. for a Flexible Copywriting Support project!
Maddie matched with Maria from BANANAS Inc. for a Logo Design & Visual Brand Identity project!
Lara matched with Chirag from Native American Health Center, Inc. for a Brochure Graphic Design project!
Jennifer from EatSF, Vouchers 4 Veggies listed a Flexible Graphic Design Support project.
Catherine matched with Liana from California Film Institute for an Excel Dashboard Creation project!
olivier matched with Lyla from The County of Alameda, California for a Logo Design & Visual Brand Identity project!
Jan matched with Lea from EatSF, Vouchers 4 Veggies for a Finance consultation call!
Loan matched with Adrienne from Leah's Pantry, Inc for a Data Crunching & Analysis project!
Lyla from The County of Alameda, California listed a Branded Digital Assets project.
Karen matched with Spencer from Food as Medicine for a Translation project!
Allison matched with Dane from California Film Institute for a New Employee Onboarding project!
Heidi matched with Chelsea from EveryOne Home for a Flexible Human Resources Support project!
Sara matched with Chelsea from EveryOne Home for a Presentation Template Creation 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
Matched Jul 30th, 2021
How Eric R. helped Los Cenzontles Cultural Arts Academy
Salesforce Database Customization
Matched Jul 23rd, 2021
How Vandita V. helped At The Crossroads
Google Ads Set Up
Matched Jul 19th, 2021
How Jack B. helped The County of Alameda, California
Online Survey
Matched Jul 15th, 2021
How Himanshu A. helped The Crucible
Data Visualization
Matched Jul 12th, 2021
How Kim T. helped End Hep C SF, SF Public Health Foundation
Flexible Graphic Design Support
Matched Jul 10th, 2021
How James O. helped CavityFree SF, UCSF Foundation
Illustration
Matched Jul 9th, 2021
How Gary G. helped Coaching Corps
Human Resources
Matched Jun 29th, 2021
How andrew k. helped Lotus Bloom
Board Operations & Systems
Matched Jun 6th, 2021
How Qian Z. helped Native American Health Center, Inc.
Flexible Copywriting Support
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 120 detailed project types.
You can work on an unlimited number of projects and calls throughout your membership. Once you finish a project, just mark 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 to troubleshoot 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
The San Francisco Foundation, 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 The San Francisco Foundation, 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
