Elana Wien

As a philanthropic advisor with over two decades of experience, including over a decade of nonprofit leadership experience, I specialize in supporting philanthropic individuals, families, community foundations, and private foundations to enhance community outcomes through targeted and strategic philanthropy, using both a community-based and global lens.

My work focuses on social ventures, start-up initiatives, next gen donor engagement, women's leadership, and collective giving, with a commitment to fostering equity and sustainability. Currently, I provide advisory services to a diverse portfolio of clients, enabling them to align their philanthropic goals with meaningful social impact on both a local and international scale. In my recent roles, I have contributed to the distribution of multi-million-dollar grant portfolios supporting local and international causes, and facilitated leadership transitions for organizations in Southern California as well as across North America. My expertise spans program design, capacity-building, and stakeholder collaboration, addressing diverse fields such as arts, education, workforce development, environment, housing, youth, leadership development and workplace culture best practices. With a thoughtful and collaborative approach, I aim to empower organizations and individuals to maximize the effectiveness of their giving strategies, while fostering long-term partnerships and innovative solutions. I am bilingual in English and Spanish, and have completed introductory coursework in Portuguese, French and Italian. I was born and raised in Los Angeles, California and am currently based on the Central Coast of California, having previously lived in the Bay Area, Washington D.C., NYC, Brazil, Mexico, and Spain. I graduated magna cum laude from UC Berkeley with a bachelor’s degree in geography and received a master’s degree in anthropology from the Universidad de las Americas as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar to Mexico. I have completed all coursework and exams for the Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy (CAP) designation through the American College of Financial Services. I am a certified full member of the National Network of Consultants to Grantmakers (NNCG). Fun facts: I have over 20 years of dance training experience across disciplines, including classical ballet, tap, modern, jazz, lyrical, hip hop, Afro-Brazilian and salsa. I love gardening and travel, and am an amateur birder.