In the News … (Part 1)

Posted on February 16, 2011 by Julia Cain

Welcome to Wednesday, folks.

First, to address the questions that are arising both in the wake of the President’s budget proposal and from the debate to come, do check out yesterday’s coverage at Chronicle of Philanthropyand in the Nonprofit Quarterly. The former takes a more level approach, pointing out that “the news wasn’t all bad. The president proposed adding money, for example, to programs to help homeless people and provide rental assistance to low-income families.” The latter then offers a partial “list of program terminations and reductions … tucked into one of the supplemental volumes” of the President’s proposal and concludes that his “middle-of-the road … strategy might be part of the reality that nonprofits have to address.” In terms of indirect effects, the plan also “proposes limiting the value of itemized deductions for the better off [such that] deductions could only be claimed against a 28% rate.”

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In the News …

Posted on February 9, 2011 by Julia Cain

Welcome to Wednesday, Greater Washington! Here comes our weekly news round-up …

To Fight Povery, Invest in Girls — In the upcoming issue of TIME, Nancy Gibbs makes a compelling point: “sometimes freedom and opportunity slip in through the back door, when a quieter subversion of the status quo unleashes change that is just as revolutionary. This is the tantalizing idea for activists concerned with poverty, with disease, with the rise of violent extremism: if you want to change the world, invest in girls.” The numbers are also quite noteworthy: “An extra year of primary school boosts girls’ eventual wages by 10% to 20%. An extra year of secondary school adds 15% to 25% … And the World Food Programme has found that when girls and women earn income, they reinvest 90% of it in their families.” (On a related note: several of our non-profits are already doing just this!) Continue reading →

In The News …

Posted on February 2, 2011 by Julia Cain

Welcome to Wednesday, folks! We have a good bundle of local and non-profit news items coming your way …

CSG’s 2011 State of the Washington Region — Following the State of the Union, Greater Greater Washington has an excellent post this week from Coalition for Smarter Growth’s Laura DeSantis on the state of our community, focusing on “our top five opportunities and challenges.” She summarizes that “adopting a range of smart growth policies — from transit-oriented development to a range of housing options — will set us firmly on a course to become the most energy efficient, and environmentally and fiscally sustainable region in the nation.” I would only add that CSG’s call for more mixed-use corridors and broader housing options are particularly apt: “We must ensure every community throughout the region has a full range of affordable housing choices through mixed-use revitalization, housing trust funds, affordable housing preservation strategies, and inclusionary zoning policies.”

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In The News …

Posted on January 26, 2011 by Julia Cain

Welcome to Wednesday, DMV folks! Just passing along some mid-week news …

Student Test Scores Show US Science-Education Deficiency — The results from the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress were released this week and, according to the Wall Street Journal, may well “reinvigorate the national debate over America’s future competitiveness in science and technology.” Possible reasons for the science deficiency “included shortages of qualified science educators and of advanced science classes in low-income and rural schools” and many teachers “blamed the lackluster showing on No Child Left Behind.” While the results are a cause for concern, do they clearly indicate that science education is lacking? Or rather, could they suggest that standardized tests are the wrong medium for assessing that education — or fairly assessing ability for students of all backgrounds?

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Open Sesame

Posted on January 24, 2011 by Julia Cain

Courtesy of Philanthropy 2137, this short (two-letter-focused) post from last Friday:

It just occurred to me. The last decade was defined by the prefix “e” — ePhilanthropy, eDiplomany, eCommerce.

The next decade will be similarly defined by the prefix “o” for Open — oGov, oData, oPhilanthropy.

As they say on Sesame Street, this past decade was brought to you by the letter “E.” Will the next indeed be brought to us by the letter “O”? And moreover, what do these single-letter prefixes even imply? I always see that lower-case vowel as an indication of means and medium. In other words, “ePhilanthropy” is philanthropy brought to you by means of the Internet, giving that takes place and is shaped by its digital nature — and by its accessibility.

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Quote for the Day

Posted on January 20, 2011 by Julia Cain

Courtesy of Tactical Philanthropy Blog:

Not everything is art. Art has meaning and value. Not everything is philanthropy. Philanthropy has meaning and value.

But with the White Painting we see the ultimate stripped down attempt at art and amazingly we find that it has meaning. I think we should take the same approach to thinking about philanthropy as we contemplate the value and meaning (or lack thereof) in new efforts to create social impact that stray far outside the familiar realm of donating and volunteering.

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In The News…

Posted on January 19, 2011 by Julia Cain

In focusing on world-wide philanthropy news this week, I both wanted to share the following items and give a shout-out to Catalogue’s international non-profits. Definitely check them out to learn more about making a difference all around the world.

Haiti, one year later — For the 1-year anniversary of the 7.0Mw earthquake in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, the Big Picture on boston.com paid tribute last week to the “12 months of struggle and heartache [with] photos of (and by) Haitians as they continue to cope with the aftermath of such a massive disaster.” These images certainly transcend words, so do look for yourself.

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In The News …

Posted on January 12, 2011 by Julia Cain

Welcome to Wednesday, folks! A bit of snow appears to be coming our way — along with some mid-weeks news here on GoodWorks.

Nonprofits Must Lead the Push for Civility — A post in The Chronicle of Philanthropy this Monday proclaims that, in the wake of the tragedy in Arizona, “we must ask ourselves what people at foundations and nonprofits can do to prevent such senseless acts of violence in the future.” Moreover:

Our public leaders and leading media personalities set the tone for the public square. It is their duty to promote civil discourse and encourage peaceful participation in society. In the wake of this tragedy, we must demand nothing less.

People in the nonprofit world — as trusted members of communities everywhere — are in a powerful position to set the parameters for a decent society. We can use the power of our collective voice in many ways.

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In and Out

Posted on January 10, 2011 by Julia Cain

We are now into the second week of a new year and a new decade — so recaps and resolutions are still very much on the brain. Along those lines, I would suggest checking out Network for Good’s Non-Profit Marketing Blog, which has offered a number of helpful resolution-related posts over the past week. In particular, Katya Andresen’s list of “What’s In and Out for Nonprofits in 2011” caught my eye:

In: Integrated communications/Out: Multi-channel communications

In: Appropriate use of technology/Out: Maximum use of technology

In: Speaking from the heart/Out: Speaking from the left brain

In: Narrative/Out: Bullet points

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Category Archives: Philanthropy

In the News … (Part 1)

In the News …

In The News …

In The News …

Open Sesame

Quote for the Day

In The News…

In The News …

In and Out