Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. [72787]
Synopsis: The sponsor supports a variety of charitable causes throughout the world, with a focus on education.
Objectives: The sponsor is helping young people leverage their education as a critical instrument for creating wealth and improving the quality of life in their communities and nations. As such, the education of underserved children and youth in the areas of financial literacy, entrepreneurship, leadership development, career planning and business awareness is Merrill Lynch’s principal philanthropic focus. The sponsor gives priority to specific innovative, sustainable programs and projects that serve the unmet educational needs and interests of an ethnically diverse population with limited access to financial resources.

Schalkenbach (Robert) Foundation [68511]
Synopsis: The sponsor offers support for research and policy application projects that advocate ideas and programs compatible with Henry George's philosophy of economic justice.
Objectives: The sponsor offers support for research and policy application projects that advocate ideas and programs compatible with Henry George's philosophy of economic justice.
Research: the sponsor supports research projects that deepen understanding of how Georgist principles are connected with issues and debates in the social science or humanities disciplines. Applications which seek to expand theoretical and emprical knowledge about issues listed below and other relevant topics will be considered. This may be done either by expanding upon the implications of Georgist thought on these issues or by showing how Georgist thought relates to another intellectual tradition (pragmatism, republicanism, socialism, romanticism, conflict theories of society, postmodernism, or any of dozens of other traditions). Topic areas include: history; sociology and urban planning; development studies; critical theory; philosophy and jurisprudence; political theory; and economics.
Policy: the sponsor supports policy-oriented projects that demonstrate how Georgist philosophy yields practical results in a variety of policy settings. Traditionally, the sponsor has primarily supported projects which advocate a gradual tax shift from buildings to land within the context of local property tax reform. At present, the sponsor wishes to expand the areas in which it will consider policy-oriented applications. Proposals of this type should demonstrate the capacity not only to evaluate the likely consequences of a policy but also to identify the businesses, advocacy groups, and other organizations that might be mobilized on its behalf, and the arguments that might be used to persuade them to join a coalition. Topic areas include: property tax issues; natural resources and the environment; fiscal policy; intellectual property and the commons; poverty; and international development.

Foundation for Managed Derivatives Research [94367]
Synopsis: The sponsor provides grants for economic, business and financial research on the use of derivatives as an essential investment management tool. FMDR makes grants available to universities, colleges, academic foundations, academic institutions, individuals and other research entities.
Objectives: The sponsor has approved grants for programs in areas related to managed derivatives. Managed derivatives research is the field of economic, business and financial research that examines on a scholarly basis the use of derivative instruments as an investment vehicle. Derivative instruments may include, but would not be limited to, futures contracts, options and futures contracts, forward contracts and swaps. The growth of these markets has led to increasing involvement by institutions and individuals for investment purposes. As a result, there is demand for academic research considering advantages and disadvantages of including managed derivatives in investors' portfolios. We are particularly interested in funding activities and projects that enrich the body of knowledge in the field of managed futures and that will have far-reaching application or impact on managed futures.
The sponsor is particularly interested in funding research that will enrich the body of knowledge in the field of managed derivatives and which will have far-reaching application or impact on managed derivatives. Key areas of interest include:
1) The role of hedge funds, funds-of-funds, commodity trading advisors, managed futures funds, commodity pools, managers of portfolios within the overall investment mix: return/risk characteristics; correlation with other asset classes; efficient; etc.
2) The source of returns from managed futures/derivatives: inherent returns; risk premia; business cycle; inflation or other economic factors.
3) Performance persistence for hedge funds or managed futures advisors; criteria for selection of funds or advisors based on past performance.
4) Portfolio issues: fully diversified vs. sector specific managed derivatives portfolios; multi-manager funds vs. single advisor funds; discretionary vs. systematic trading; the impact of size on performance.
The sponsor is generally not seeking proposals that examine specific aspects of trading in the derivatives markets, e.g., price distributional assumptions of futures markets; options trading strategies; volatility measurement of options; hedging strategies. While these topics may be of interest to some individual practitioners in the managed futures industry they are not of general interest to the industry as a whole.

Amboy Fd [60208]
Snyopsis: Support is provided to tax-exempt organizations for community development opportunities to support educational, civic, health, human services, and social and cultural organizations.
Objectives: The sponsor provides funding in support of two goals: Primarily, to promote community development activities as well as the social welfare of its community by supporting child and family organizations such as local shelters and health and welfare clinics. In furtherance of this purpose, the Foundation will support organizations that benefit the low to moderate income population and providers of educational programs designed to meet the housing needs of such populations including, but not limited to, Habitat for Humanity, the local housing coalitions and housing crisis programs. Secondarily, to support higher educational institutions and not-for-profit hospitals and their foundations. In furtherance of this purpose, the Foundation will explore the funding needs of higher educational institutions focusing on business programs. The Foundation will support the activities of local hospitals and their foundations through donations and participation in their fund raising activities.