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February 26, 2008

GOOD READ: Making Social Investment Decisions - What do we need to know?

 

Febuary 26, 2008

Alliance Magazine


I’ve just finished reading Making Social Investment Decisions:  What do we need to know? By David Bonbright.  In the article (Alliance Magazine…read more at http://www.alliancemagazine.org/free/html/dec07e.html,  he makes several valid points:
 
  • The trick to getting impact measurement right at ‘the organization’ is to move out of the organization into the larger ecosystem in which the organization lives.
  • Measuring social change requires a friendly pluralistic model in which qualitative, quantitative, perceptual and empirical data can be assembled into a comprehensible whole.
  • The responsibility of measuring social change work is two fold:  one is to directly measure the outcomes.  The other is to measure the changes in the system around the problem being addressed – measuring system impact. 
  • The resolution will be an ecosystem-level mechanism that captures, analyses, aggregates, compares, and freely publishes organization results for all.
  • From Paul Brest (President of the Hewlett Foundation) in his introductory essay to the Hewlett Foundation’s most annual report, components for the type of information that is necessary for solving important social problems:
    • Basic organizational and financial information
    • A description of the organization’s goals and strategies for achieving them
    • Indicators to trace the organization’s progress towards its goals
    • Evidence of actual impact, where available, and lessons learned.
    • Reviews of the organization by its beneficiaries and other constituents

 
ME:  What good is a system of measurement if no one sees it?  
 
Bonbright suggests that ‘a powerful expression of constituency feedback – particularly where internet usage is highest – is for those who know about an organization to publish their reviews on a public  platform.’
 
He adds that ‘the trick may be to invest in the creation of infrastructure such as open communities of practice and performance measurement commons that accelerate bottom-up processes of joint venturing, merging, imitating, and above all learning.’ 

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July 23, 2007

GOOD READ: On the Brink of New Promise

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On the Brink of New Promise:  The Future of U.S. Community Foundations
Lucy Bernholz, Katherine Fulton, and Gabriel Kasper

 

This reading offers a detailed exploration of the predicted growth patterns within community philanthropy.  By exploring societal, corporate, and government influences on the future development of philanthropy, this reading brings to the forefront the challenges and advantages facing US based community foundations.

 

As the history of philanthropy in the US has demonstrated, community based philanthropy has developed as a response to the constantly evolving community that it serves. Major factors, including economics, demographics, regulatory structures, and social attitudes guided the progress of philanthropy in the earlier part of the twentieth century. 

 

With so many other instruments of community philanthropy, such as identity-based focused funds, giving circles, healthcare conversion foundations, and United Way chapters, to name only a few, community foundations must begin to strategize and plan for their new and changing role in philanthropy.

 

This reading offered that over the next two decades, two cycles of adaptation and reformation for community philanthropy are purported to occur.  In this new era of community philanthropy, community foundations must respond to economic pressures, demographic changes, and changing expectations for regulation and accountability.

 

One of the major concepts highlighted in the reading was that other tools of giving will impact the donor-related work of community foundations.  With the advent of software that better connects donor interests with community causes, the donor services side of foundation work will be drastically diminished.  With this in mind, community foundations must plan for the way in which they will continue providing value-added services to the community. 

 

In addition, deregulation of once government operated industry and services has led to the need for community foundations to widen the variety of services provided. As community foundations make the shift from managing financial assets to providing long-term community leadership, the idea of programmatic initiatives and funding collaboratives come to mind.  

 

In becoming “social change agents,” community foundations can expand the outline of their roles to include convening the community, disbursing information, conducting research, and linking local leadership.

 

 

 

 

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July 22, 2007

GOOD READ: Civil Society in Comparative Perspective

 Reading

Civil Society in Comparative Perspective

Lester M. Salamon, Helmut K. Anheier, and Associates

The assemblage of organizations, institutions, conglomerates, federations, and other entities that form the nonprofit sector, or civil society, have attracted a significant amount of attention for a number of reasons.  The “crisis of the state,” which consists of societal issues and challenges left largely unaddressed by state entities, is one major factor that has led to widespread attention focused on the development of civil society.  Also, the number, scale, and growth patterns of nonprofit organizations have been the cause of widespread focus on the independent sector.  The concept of the “global associational revolution” characterizes the widespread growth, proliferation, and activity of nonprofit organizations.  This reading presents information and findings regarding the scope, impact, and role of the nonprofit sector within 22 countries.

 

*****

The first heading discussed focuses primarily on the profitable impact of the nonprofit sector on the world’s economic system.  Totaling $1.1 trillion dollars, the nonprofit sector in the 22 highlighted countries employs 19 million full-time workers, and is placed eighth in the context of the world economy (ahead of the economies of Brazil, Russia, Canada, and Spain), and employs more individuals that the largest private firms.  

 

*****

The report also examined the impact of geographic location on the development of the nonprofit sector in the 22 countries that were studied.  Finding that the nonprofit sector is larger in more developed countries, the study also articulated that the US no longer has the world’s largest nonprofit sector.  Countries including the Netherlands, Ireland, Belgium, and Israel (all developed countries), have larger sectors measured as a portion of total employment than does the United States. 

*****
Services that are provided by the nonprofit sector were also evaluated.  The study found that welfare-related services including education, health, and social services dominate nonprofit employment figures.  In eight of the 22 counties studied, education emerged as the leading base of nonprofit employment.  The historical role that the Catholic Church and Judaism have had in elementary and secondary education was also commonplace among these eight countries.

 

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In countries including Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, and Spain, the nonprofit sector is the first to react to and address societal challenges.  In these countries, religion has had a strong influence on social services and systems, promoting them as areas of focus for nonprofit organizations. 

 

*****
Recreation and culture follow closely behind, as in Central Europe, where these two areas occupy a larger portion of the nonprofit employee population.  These countries share a common history based on the Communist era, in which sport and recreational associations were emphasized.  Even after Communist control ceased in these areas, recreation and culture have still maintained importance in the evolution of civil society there. 

 

*****
In Latin America, the major area of nonprofit employment is education, while in the United States, Japan, Australia, and Israel, the health field accounts for much of the nonprofit employment base.  The unique emphasis on private healthcare in these countries serves as reasoning for the emphasis on high employment in these nations. 

 

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The study also evaluated the resource base of the nonprofit sector, which is supported largely by fees and the public sector, not philanthropy.  Of the 22 countries studied, 13 reported that income from fees is the dominant source of income.  For all of the Western European counties (except Spain and Finland), the nonprofit sector is supported largely by public sector grants and contracts. 

 

*****
Overall, the study evaluated the impact of the nonprofit sector on the world economy, employment base, and contributor to social stability.  The study concluded by noting that while the nonprofit sector positively influences the society in which it exists, areas in Central and Eastern Europe and Latin America are still working to realize the potential benefit of implementing a progressive nonprofit sector. 

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GOOD READ: Tools for Good: A Guide to Vehicles for Philanthropy and Charitable Giving

Reading

Tools for Good:  A Guide to Vehicles for Philanthropy and Charitable Giving

Paula Doherty Johnson, Stephen P. Johnson

 

In evaluating whether or not a community foundation is prepared to launch a programmatic initiative, it should first assess the philanthropic landscape of the area that it serves in order to project the initiative’s sustainability.  This reading, which evaluates the varying philanthropic channels through which giving occurs, offers community foundations detailed insight about the challenges of garnering support for their initiatives. 

*****


As intergenerational transfers of wealth have created more opportunities for giving, a number of creative alternatives in philanthropy have been established and exercised.  “High-engagement philanthropy, donor collaboration and interaction, collaborative funding, professional support, and family philanthropy” all lend themselves to supporting the programmatic initiatives that a community foundation establishes. 

*****


One of the most reliable forms of funding that a community foundation can generate to support its initiatives is direct giving from the community it serves.  By keeping donors informed of the development, success, and challenges of its initiatives, community foundations can continue to cultivate passion within their donors that is tied directly to donors’ sense of value and priorities.  In addition, by continuously managing contact with contributors, community foundations can also look forward to creating extended giving circles around the relationships that have been built with individual donors.  Giving circles have “become a popular way for donors to leverage their gifts, while networking with peers and educating themselves about giving opportunities and strategies (162).”  Direct testimony from one highly engaged donor is a favorable asset to fortify loyalty among potential donors and supporters of a community foundation’s initiative.

*****


As giving practices vary from country to country, community foundations must be cognizant of the philanthropic environment in which they operate before attempting to secure support for its initiatives.  Religion, legal implications, tax motivations, and the maturity at which philanthropy has been developed in a particular community are all significant factors that help a community foundation determine its potential success for implementing and supporting a programmatic initiative. 

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July 20, 2007

From Charity to Creativity: Philanthropic Foundations in the 21st Century

 

(Another publication by the same authors)

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From Charity to Creativity was one of the first resources that I came across in my research at the Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society (The Graduate Center at CUNY).  Here are some pieces of information that I found regarding this thoughtful work. 

I hope you find it helpful!!

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Commissioned by the Joseph Roundtree Reform Trust, this thorough snapshot of the state of private foundations in the United Kingdom finds the state of organized philanthropy to be secretive, guarded, and operating out of touch with the social and economic realities of the current pluralistic society. The authors call for a greater transparency, responsiveness, creativity, and a re-examination of foundations' traditional roles as administrators of public funds from the National Lottery increasingly set the agenda in partnership with private charities.  (from www.giarts.org)

                                                           

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 From Charity to Creativity opens the debate about the proper roles of philanthropic foundations in the 21st century, arguing that endowed, philanthropic foundations are a good and increasingly vital institution in modern societies. Foundations fit in well with the way advanced democratic societies are developing, in particular in an era of ‘small’ government and greater social diversity. Yet at the same time, foundations’ current visions, roles, and, above all, organisational forms make it difficult for them to fulfil their promise. For many foundations, there could ultimately be little defence for the significant privileges they enjoy, in particular their favourable tax treatment and their right to operate with a minimum of public oversight and accountability. Against this backdrop, a new vision and legitimate role for foundations based on their innovativeness and creativity is going to be essential. As a private problem-solving institution for public problems, the Creative Foundation which this ground-breaking book proposes is an exciting prospect.  (from www.lse.ac.uk)

 

happy reading!
allyson


 

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