An Accidental Philanthropist
How A Small Family Foundation Made A Big Difference
by Winsome Dunn McIntosh and Howard E. Covington Jr.

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This is the story of how a chance encounter led to romance, marriage, and a partnership covering a half century of creative philanthropy by Michael and Winsome Dunn McIntosh. In the 1970s, they began using an unexpected inheritance to expand the protection of America’s natural resources through life-giving early support to the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Sierra Club’s legal arm. On numerous occasions they demonstrated how a small foundation can have an outsized impact in the United States and abroad where a dynamic non-profit they founded, London-based ClientEarth, carries forward legal protections for the environment around the world. At 80 years of age, Winsome continues to promote the role of women in philanthropy and their place in the management of non-profit organizations.

www.winsomedunnmcintosh.com

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"This memoir captures a life of personal growth, risk-taking, entrepreneurism, and adventure. Winsome’s very personal journey will resonate with and inspire strong-willed women seeking to lead lives of value and impact." —Frances Beinecke, president emerita, Natural Resources Defense Council "You changed my life with a question: 'Would you like to have a cup of coffee?' What followed was an introduction to climate scientists, activists, and individuals who educated me on the issues and pushed me forward to act." —The Reverend Richard Cizik, president of the New Evangelical Partnership for the Common Good "As a supporter to the Environmental Funders Network in the early days, Winsome played an important role in the success of the environmental sector in England as well as the United States." —Florence Miller, Environmental Funders Network, London, England "Winsome captures the enthusiasm and forcefulness of the early days of the environmental movement. At great risk, she and Michael used their foundation to develop public interest law, using relatively small amounts of money for big impact. Their work to prevent clearcutting in The Tongass in Alaska resulted in millions of acres being preserved." —John Adams, founding director of the Natural Resources Defense Council. "This book is a primer for novice philanthropists. The effect of the McIntoshes’ collaboration is truly breathtaking. Winsome is a guiding light for women leaders in the environmental movement." —Liz Sutherland-Riney, EarthJustice board member. "Winsome McIntosh has been a leader in the environmental and women’s movements for many years. No one else has had her breadth of experience in funding social change. Her book is a personal journey of how one person can make a huge difference by joining strategic vision with insight, courage, and empathy for others." —James Thornton, ClientEarth

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Winsome Dunn McIntosh grew up in a military family that moved regularly across the United States and on to Europe. She was a 1966 honor graduate in business administration at the University of Florida at a time when a woman couldn’t get a credit card without a man’s endorsement. She found work as a stewardess at Pan Am before leaving to raise three sons while collaborating with her husband in creative philanthropic ventures. In the 1990s, she began her own trail-blazing career in non-profits. Now a widow, she remains a working philanthropist living in Washington, D.C., and on the Florida Gulf Coast near her sister, Bonny, a psychic who can bend spoons with her telekinetic powers. Howard E. Covington Jr. has published more than two dozen works of history and biography, most of them about institutions and people in North Carolina where he makes his home. Early in his career he was a newspaper reporter and editor whose series of articles for the Charlotte Observer received the Pulitzer Public Service Award in 1981.

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Contributors

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Winsome Dunn McIntosh

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Howard E. Covington Jr.