Jill Blair

Jill spent her career bridging the worlds of the public, private and independent sectors with a dedicated focus on nonprofits and philanthropy. She and her wife, Fay Twersky founded BTW Informing Change a Berkeley-based consulting firm providing information based consulting and planning services to nonprofits and philanthropy. At the same time, Jill founded the Grantmaker Forum on Community & National Service – a trade association of philanthropy working to advance the ethic of service and service-learning. Driven by deep devotion to democratic practice and recognizing the relationship between service and civic participation, Jill converted the Grantmaker Forum into PACE – Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement in 2006. Jill and Fay sold Informing Change and Jill began her independent consulting practice, providing coaching, support, technical assistance and facilitation to organizational leaders and their teams.

In 2021, Jill and Fay relocated to the great City of Atlanta, GA where Jill now serves as an advisor on a pro bono basis to leaders of both national and local nonprofits with a special emphasis on Jewish communal institutions. Jill serves on the national board of Repair the World, mobilizing Jews and allies in acts of service and Jewish learning to create a better and more just world. She serves as an advisor to Blue Compass, a start-up resource and networking hub for Jewish professionals working in the secular nonprofit community.

Jill has authored numerous papers on issues facing the field of nonprofits and philanthropy. Her publication, New Leader, Endless Possibility (2019)… tells the story of legacy and leadership. Other publications include, 21st Century Civic Infrastructure: Under Construction and, The Nature of Leadership: Lessons from an Exemplary Statesman, a book about Senator “Scoop” Jackson’s leadership style and accomplishments. When not pursuing her passion for democracy, nonprofit excellence and golf, Jill and Fay share adventures with their children, David-Nathan – a 2023 graduate of UChicago who is pursuing a career in medical research, and Jaz, a fifth year Hebrew College Rabbinical student and a Repair the World Alumna. In her contemplative time, Jill writes an occasional newsletter pondering life’s meaning called Life with Lily (https://buttondown.email/Lily/archive).