2005 Trends of the Week
December
18 - 31, 2005
“Drivers of Change in the Governance of Nonprofits”, a
chapter in Improving Board & Organizational Effectiveness,
published by the Southern Rural Development Center, provides a comprehensive
overview of trends affecting nonprofit boards. Trends are organized into the
following categories: Board Governance; Generational and Demographic Patterns:
Regulation, Legislation, and Legal Liability Trends; Finances, Accountability,
and Fund-raising Trends; Ethics, Image, and Public Relations; Diversity,
Specialization and Collaboration; and Technology and Data Management. To
download a .pdf file, go to:
srdc.msstate.edu/nonprofit/module01.pdf
December
11 - 17, 2005
The world of grants is changing rapidly, along with most of
modern society, and the grants professional needs to be aware of these changes.
Some are minor trends which may or may not last, such as "social venture
philanthropy," which grew out of the high-tech bubble of the late 1990s. Major
trends, like the use of the Internet, are just beginning to show their impact.
Go to:
charitychannel.com/enews
December
4 - 10, 2005
The Annie E. Casey Foundation has released the results of
the largest-ever study that examines the tenure and future plans of nonprofit
executives. The survey covers 2,200 respondents and the key findings point to
potentially disruptive implications in nonprofit leadership, as the Baby Boomer
generation transitions out of the sector. Some of the key findings of the survey
are:
 |
Representatives of the large Baby Boom generation now in
their 40s and 50s make up 72.5 percent of all nonprofit leaders.
|
|
|
Today, 72 million Baby Boomers are in the overall
workforce, with only about 38 million Generation X-ers to take their place.
|
|
|
There is limited leadership diversity in the sector, as
people of color lead just 16 percent of the organizations surveyed.
|
|
|
The Baby Boom generation of leaders will transition out of
the sector in two waves. The first is already beginning to occur and will
continue through 2010. The second wave will peak in 2020, as all Baby Boomers
approach traditional retirement age. |
How will this impact your nonprofit? You can view the full
survey on the Annie E. Casey Foundation Web site. To download a .pdf file, go
to:
www.aecf.org/publications
November
27 - December 3, 2005
Where a company is headquartered influences the types of
social programs it supports, such as housing assistance, disease research, and
the arts, according to new research by professor Christopher Marquis and his
coauthors. The authors ask “Is social spending too confined by geography?” As
part of their research, they have interviewed more than fifty people in two
cities and collected data on some 1,000 communities since the late 1980s. They
observe that organizations in different cities seem to have different foci when
it comes to their community involvement. Companies in Cleveland are focused on
housing, those in Columbus are oriented toward children's' issues, and
Minneapolis firms put much of their efforts into the arts. The goal for Marquis
and colleagues is to explain these systematic differences across locales.
Understanding the forces that drive corporate giving on a local level provides
important lessons for executives, policymakers, and the groups who benefit. But
such knowledge also suggests more work to be done in order to learn how global
business trends, such as industry consolidation and globalization, might
influence local philanthropy efforts Go to:
hbswk.hbs.edu
November
20 - 26, 2005
“The 21st Century NGO”, published by SustainAbility, an
independent think tank and strategy consultancy, explores questions around the
relationships between NGOs (nongovernmental organizations) AND businesses as
well as questions around the operation of NGOs AS businesses. The research
involved input from over 200 experts from NGOs, businesses, foundations and
other organizations, and concluded that, while markets and business engagement
represent an enormous opportunity for NGOs, in order to exploit this NGOs will
have to address critical challenges around their accountability, financing and
partnerships. The publication argues that many international NGOs stand on the
edge of a huge opportunity space to massively increase their impact by focusing
their efforts on reforming market systems, rather than simply confronting them.
The same can be said for nonprofits operating within the US. Go to:
www.sustainability.com
November
13 - 19, 2005
The Charitable Impulse, published
by Public Agenda and conducted in collaboration with the Kettering Foundation
and the Independent Sector, explores gaps between the views of typical donors
(those who contributed at least $300, volunteered, or were members of
organizations) and those who lead the philanthropic sector. Donor sentiment
about charitable organizations is "enthusiastic and positive," especially when
it comes to smaller, local charities and human service organizations, and
typical giving tends to be based on personal experience and emotional
connections. But givers also have a long memory for scandal and waste. Glossy
brochures, unsolicited gifts, telephone solicitations and high-pressure appeals
"all came in for criticism and generated a high level of annoyance." The 33-page
report is available for free download. Go to:
www.publicagenda.org
November 6 - 12, 2005
On the Brink of Promise: The
Future of U.S. Community Foundations predicts that community foundations will
have to look outward for opportunities for growth and partnership and, in some
cases, will be subsumed by other foundations or organizations. The report, which
was written by Lucy Bernholz, founder and president of San Francisco-based
Blueprint Research & Design, Katherine Fulton, president of the the Monitor
Institute in Emeryville, California, and Gabriel Kasper, a strategist with
Monitor, also notes that while community philanthropy, which historically has
focused on specific geographical regions, has evolved over the years, geography
has become just one way in which people identify with their communities.
Click here to download the full report as a .pdf file.
Click here to download the executive summary as a .pdf file.
October
30 - November 5, 2005
It has been well documented by
numerous surveys that young people today are volunteering at unprecedented
rates. A new report by Lewis A. Friedland and Shauna Morimoto examines the
motivating factors behind volunteering. Young people are facing higher stress,
greater uncertainty and risk (although coupled with opportunities for some), and
looser connections among family, friends, and communities. While parents'
occupation may still predict the broad income band that children will occupy in
adulthood, it will not necessarily predict educational achievement, occupation,
or lifestyle. Students recognize that their future life chances rest on college
attendance. Anxiety resulting from this recognition has suffused both the lives
and future life-planning of all sectors of high-school-aged youth. Under these
circumstances, young people of all classes are approaching service as (in part)
an instrumental price to pay for college admission. Go to:
www.civicyouth.org
October
23 - 29, 2005
Responding to concerns about nonprofit governance and
accountability surfaced in a discussion draft1 issued by the Senate Finance
Committee, the Johns Hopkins Nonprofit Listening Post Project conducted a
survey, or Sounding, of its nationwide sample of nonprofit organizations in five
key fields (children and family services, elderly housing and services,
community and economic development, theaters, and museums) to examine the
governance and accountability practices of the nation’s nonprofit organizations.
The report includes key findings in the following six areas: Board roles,
financial disclosure, ethics protections, best-practice standards,
organizational changes; and nonprofit awareness. To download a .pdf file, go to:
www.jhu.edu
October 16 - 22, 2005
New five-year budget plans
developed by President Bush and the Congress for fiscal year 2006 and beyond
suggest that tough times may be ahead for many-although not all-of the nation's
private, nonprofit organizations. This report by Alan Abramson, Director of the
Nonprofit Sector Research Fund, and Lester Salamon, Director, Center for Civil
Society Studies of the Institute for Policy Studies of Johns Hopkins University,
examines the most recent presidential and congressional budget proposals and
their potential impact on our country's nonprofit organizations. Go to:
www.nonprofitresearch.org
October
9 - 15, 2005
A user-friendly booklet of quick
facts and figures on the size, scope, finances, and employment of the nonprofit
sector, revealing that the number of 501(c)(3) organizations has experienced
extraordinary growth of 74 percent in little more than a decade. The booklet is
available as a free pdf download. Go to:
www.independentsector.org; then scroll down to the link toward the bottom of
the page
October 2 - 8, 2005
The Funders' Network for Smart Growth and Livable
Communities has just released this report which documents the diverse ways that
foundations can support better planning and decision making to improve
communities and regions. It includes 21 case study profiles that are designed to
inspire and inform new efforts to advance social, environmental, and economic
justice in neighborhoods and regions across North America. The 21 stories
highlight not only specific projects and organizations, but also share lessons
learned by the grantmakers who have been involved in and are committed to
supporting them. To download a .pdf file, go to:
fundersnetwork.org
September
25 - October 1, 2005
Retired households, on average,
own 58% more wealth but earn 35% less income than non-retired households. On
average, they also contribute substantially more (69%) to charitable causes than
do non-retired households. These are the initial results of a work in progress
at the Center on Wealth and Philanthropy (CWP)
at Boston College.
The work is based on data from the 2001 Survey of Consumer Finances, sponsored
by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve. A summary of the preliminary
findings is posted on the CWP web page. The
summary and its tables will be expanded into a working paper as the analysis
proceeds. To download a .pdf file, go to:
www.bc.edu
September
18 - 24, 2005
As corporate CFOs and CIOs
struggle with the provisions of the American Competitiveness and Corporate
Accountability Act of 2002 (otherwise known as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act) many of
their counterparts in the non-profit sector are bracing for similar legislation
to be passed for non-profits. This article examines how Sarbanes-Oxley applies
to the non-profit sector and what types of financial oversight requirements for
the non-profit sector are being considered. The article also offers suggestions
on
how non-profit organizations should prepare for this increased scrutiny. Go to:
www.onphilanthropy.com
September
11 - 17, 2005
A new report from INDEPENDENT SECTOR and Youth Service
America illustrates the strong impact of youth service on the giving and
volunteering habits of adults. Engaging Youth in Lifelong Service reports that
adults who engaged in volunteering in their youth give more money and volunteer
more time than adults who began their philanthropy later in life. Key findings
include: Forty-four percent of adults volunteer and two-thirds of these
volunteers began volunteering their time when they were young; and adults who
began volunteering as youth are twice as likely to volunteer as those who did
not volunteer when they were younger. Go to:
www.independentsector.org
September 4 - 10, 2005
According to the latest edition
of the foundation's annual KIDS COUNT Data Book, nearly four million children
live with parents who had no job in the previous year, an increase of one
million since the beginning of the decade. The report also notes that nearly
thirteen million children were living in poverty in 2003 — half a million more
than in 2000. The report also showed an increase in the percentage of
low-birth-weight babies between 2000 and 2002; an increase in infant mortality
for the first time in forty years; and a slight rise in the teen death rate.
Over roughly the same period, the high school dropout rate fell significantly,
the teen birth rate continued to fall, and the percentage of children in
single-parent households leveled off. Still, the report concludes that five out
of ten child well-being indicators have worsened since 2000. An important
feature is State Level Data Online. This system contains state-level data for
over 75 measures of child well-being. This easy-to-use, powerful online database
allows you to generate custom reports for a geographic area or to compare
geographic areas on a topic. To browse the KIDS COUNT Data Book online, Go to:
www.aecf.org
August
28 - September 3, 2005
A new report that defines and
discusses the concept of social justice philanthropy and provides an assessment
of its future in philanthropy. Social Justice Philanthropy: The Latest Trend or
a Lasting Lens for Grantmaking? explores how grantmakers define and apply the
concept of social justice to their work. The report’s findings indicate that
social justice philanthropy is fraught with many definitional variations, as
well as disagreements on how to apply social justice concepts to grantmaking.
While many agree that social justice philanthropy is somehow concerned with a
more equitable redistribution of economic, political, and social power, there is
little consensus on what a more just society would look like, or if philanthropy
is capable of fostering these changes. To download a .pdf file, go to:
www.ncrp.org
August 21 - 27, 2005
This report by the Donors Forum
of Chicago explores long-term trends affecting the philanthropic sector and
discusses the range of giving vehicles available to today's philanthropists. Go
to:
www.futureofphilanthropy.org
August
14 - 20, 2005
Published in 2002 by the John S.
and James L. Knight Foundation, this report of the foundation's Child Trends
research is presented as a reference to identify the approaches that are most
likely to succeed or fail in reaching the adolescents of a community. Child
Trends undertook a comprehensive review of more than 1,100 research articles on
adolescent development and the factors- both positive and negative- that affect
it. Seven specific areas were covered in this review: reproductive health;
physical health and safety; social skills; education; mental and emotional
health; and civic engagement. Child Trends synthesized findings from this body
of research first in seven lengthy and fully-referenced reports. Then, the
reviews were summarized in a series of seven short research briefs, collectively
called the American Teen series, which were published in 2002. These briefs
"translate" research findings into language that is easily accessible for policy
makers and service providers in the field of youth development and other
individuals who are concerned about adolescents. To download a .pdf file,
go to:
www.childtrends.org
August 7 - 13, 2005
While online giving still
accounts for only a small amount of total funds raised by
U.S.
nonprofits, people today are much less skeptical about the importance of the
Internet. Some estimates show that online giving among large nonprofits grew at
an estimated rate of more than 50 percent between 2003 and 2004. Although
success varies, some organizations are beginning to raise substantial funds
online. Success correlates by type of organization and fundraising model. For
analysis by Vinay Bhagat founder of Convio, Inc., go to:
www.pnnonline.org
July
24 - August 6, 2005
A new report by the Calgary
Centre for Non-Profit Management that confirms trends noted in recent studies of
US based nonprofits concludes that approximately 41% of
Calgary’s Executive Directors surveyed plan to leave
their current leadership position within the next 2 years. Over the next 5
years, 84% of Executive Directors surveyed predict they will be seeking new
employment
 |
86% of Executive Directors
surveyed stated their Board of Directors have not created a succession plan
for their position |
|
|
62% of Executive Directors
surveyed have not identified a staff member experienced enough to lead the
organization upon the departure of the current Executive Director
|
|
|
42% of non-profit
organizations surveyed have had two or more Executive Directors over the
past 5 years |
To download the full report as a
.pdf, go to:
www.thecentre.ab.ca
July
17 - 23, 2005
The
Foundation
Center’s 2005 Foundation Yearbook
provides the latest data on U.S.
foundations overall and by region and type. Some highlights: Giving by the
nation’s over 66,000 grantmaking foundations slipped 0.4 percent to $30.3
billion in 2003, following a 0.2 percent dip in the prior year. Nonetheless,
foundations in the Northeast raised their level of giving 3.1 percent in the
latest year, led by strong growth in funding by foundations based in
Maine
and New Jersey. Similarly,
grantmakers in the West managed a 1.3 percent increase in their giving, buoyed
by gains in giving by foundations in Wyoming
and California. In contrast,
Midwestern and Southern foundations registered declines of 5.4 percent and 2.4
percent, respectively. By share of overall giving, the Northeast continued to
lead, followed by the South. The West ranked third, surpassing the
Midwest
for the first time on record. While the pattern of giving was mixed, foundation
assets rebounded in all four regions. This upturn reflected the stock market
recovery and the improved economic climate. Overall, foundation assets rose 9.5
percent in 2003, ending two consecutive years of decline. Still, total assets
remained below the peak level reached in 2000. To download a .pdf file, go to:
http://www.fdncenter.org/research/trends_analysis/pdf/fyhiltes05.pdf
July 10 - 16, 2005
A consumer perceptions survey
released today by the American Marketing Association (AMA) and the American
Marketing Association Foundation (AMAF) reveals that for 78% of Americans, trust
in a nonprofit organization is the most important factor when considering a
donation. Organizational trust far outweighs personal experience, with factors
such as personal knowledge of others having donated and receiving support from
an organization trailing all other factors that could influence an individual’s
reason for giving. When asked about other factors affecting organizational
perceptions, having a celebrity endorser appears to carry little weight – 58% of
those surveyed found a celebrity endorsement to be “not at all important,” with
just 16% of respondents calling it “very important.” The survey was used by AMA
and AMAF to inform the focus and content of the American Marketing Association’s
(AMA) 2005 event: The Business of Trust: Marketing Integrity and Value Through
Accountability, Constituency Focus and Relationship Marketing. To download a
.pdf file, go to:
www.marketingpower.com
July 3 - 9, 2005
Online donations to the biggest U.S. charities grew 63
percent last year from 2003, a study from the
Chronicle of Philanthropy reveals,
with the value of Internet fundraising underscored by the tsunami relief effort
and Howard Dean's presidential campaign, USA Today reports. The Chronicle
surveyed 164 groups, including Doctors Without Borders USA and the National
Multiple Sclerosis Society. Together, they raised $166.2 million online. This
was less than 1 percent of the total raised by most of the charities, but
Chronicle editor Stacy Palmer said the big growth from 2003 will spur more
online fundraising as donors grow more comfortable with e-charity. Go to:
www.fdncenter.org
June
26 - July 2, 2005
The Alliance for Nonprofit
Management asked Bryan Barry, principal consultant with Wilder Center for
Communities, and author of Strategic Planning Workbook for Nonprofit
Organizations, to identify trends that will affect how capacity building work
is done in the future and the implications for capacity builders (i.e., how
might we respond?). Following are the trends that Bryan presented at the
Alliance's 2004 Midwest Regional Conference in Chicago. Go to:
www.fieldstonealliance.org
If you'd like more in-depth
information or have questions for Bryan Barry, he has invited your contact at:
bwb@fieldstonealliance.org
June 19 - 25, 2005
Gary Hubbell, author of Forces of
Change: The Coming Challenges in Hospital Philanthropy, has analyzed the
prospective peak giving years by generational cohort. The peak giving years are
ages 55-75:
|
Generation
Cohort |
Birth
Years |
Years of
Peak Giving
(Ages 55-75) |
|
Silent Generation |
1925 - 1942 |
1980 - 2017 |
|
Boom Generation |
1943 - 1960 |
1998 - 2035 |
|
Generation X |
1961 - 1981 |
2016 - 2056 |
|
Millennial Generation |
1982 - 2003(?) |
2037 - 2078 |
His conclusions, which will be useful for planning by
nonprofits in general, include:
|
|
As we enter the 2010 decade, the last cohort of the
silent generation will be reaching the end of their peak giving years. |
|
|
Early Boomer cohorts have already entered their peak
which will continue for the next twenty years. |
|
|
Generation X donors will just begin to enter their peak
giving in the middle of the next decade, continuing to the middle of this
century. |
|
|
At least 30 years from now, Millennials will enter their
prime giving years. |
|
|
Futurists anticipate longer life spans for each
successive generation so peak giving years may represent spans that start
later in life and/or last longer than what is known today.
|
June 12 - 18, 2005
A study from the Boston College
Center on Wealth and Philanthropy sheds light on trends in African-American
household income, wealth and philanthropic giving, including charitable bequests
and transferred wealth. To download a .pdf file, go to:
bc.edu/research
June 5 - 11, 2005
The American Baby Boom
generation represents the largest untapped pool of potential volunteers for the
nonprofit community in recent history, according to a new study entitled
Experience at Work: Volunteering and Giving Among Americans 50 and Over, by
INDEPENDENT SECTOR and AARP. As Baby Boomers begin to approach retirement age,
nonprofit organizations will be faced with unprecedented opportunities and
challenges to engage this population. Experience at Work gives an analysis of
the over-50 population in the United States by examining the current
giving and volunteering patterns of this age group and comparing the
philanthropic habits of Americans still in their working years, aged 50 to 64,
and those who are retired, aged 65 and over. Key findings include:
|
|
The over-50 population is
expected to grow by 18.3 million people over the next ten years;
|
|
|
Those in the 50 to 64 age
group will show the largest increase of 13.9 million people. These 50- to
64- year-olds will still be employed, earn the most and become the most
generous givers; |
|
|
Nonprofits can expect an
increase in the number of high givers from this age group; and
|
|
|
More of this population will
be available to volunteer more often. |
To order the report, go to:
www.independentsector.org
May 29 -
June 4, 2005
While the World Wide Web has been among the most
significant new fundraising tools in the past decade, it has not nearly reached
its full potential. Both in terms of the dollars raised and the number of
organizations using Web sites for fundraising, year-to-year growth continues at
more than 50 percent -- with the expectation that billions will be given online
in the coming year.
Online fundraising reached an estimated nearly $2 billion
in 2003, which was more than 60 percent above the amount raised in 2002,
according to an online survey of readers of The NonProfit Times. There was also
a projected greater than 55 percent increase in the percentage of organizations
that attempted to raise money online when the first half of 2003 is compared to
2002.
These are among the findings of a survey recently conducted
by The NonProfit Times and San Diego-based software as a service provider
Kintera, regarding the adoption and success of online fundraising by the
nonprofit community. Kintera officials described the online amount raised
estimates as “conservative,” given the relative dearth of large nonprofits in
the sample size. Some large nonprofits tend to be major users of online donation
technology. Go to:
www.nptimes.com
May 22 - 28, 2005
According to research, 93 percent of nonprofits
distribute financial statements to their boards at least on a quarterly basis.
Ninety-seven percent of organizations have undergone audits over the past two
years. Eighty-one percent of chief executives sign the organization’s IRS Form
990. Johns Hopkins University, in collaboration with numerous nonprofit
infrastructure organizations, studied the financial practices of charities and
found comforting news in this era of financial scrutiny. To download the
report as a .pdf file, go to:
www.jhu.edu/listeningpost/news/pdf/comm04.pdf
May 15 - 21, 2005
This article features the
opinions of six evaluation experts who discuss how evaluation has changed in the
last ten years and where they see the field going. Go to:
www.gse.harvard.edu
May 8 - 14, 2005
This report provides the latest information on the demographic, social, and
economic characteristics of rural children in families. Child poverty in 21st
century America is higher (18 percent in 2003) than the rate for the general
population (12.5 percent), as well as above the rates in most other
industrialized countries. Although rural child poverty rates declined in the
1990s, they remain higher than the rates for urban children (21 percent vs. 18
percent). In 2003, 2.7 million rural children were poor, representing 36 percent
of the rural poor.. The geographic distribution of child poverty—heavily
concentrated in the South—is important for targeting poverty reduction policies
and program assistance such as child nutrition programs, food stamps, and health
insurance coverage in rural areas. Go to:
www.ers.usda.gov May 1 - 7, 2005
The impending wave of executive transitions in the
nonprofit sector has received much attention in the last few years. A new study
has just been released: "Nonprofit Executive Leadership and Transitions Survey
2004: Milwaukee" provides the full report of the 2004 survey of nonprofit
executives in Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Washington and Waukesha counties. To download
this file as a .pdf file, go to:
www.nonprofitmilwaukee.org/transitions/mketransitions.pdf. The April 2005
issue of Research and Opinion, a publication of the UW-Milwaukee Center for
Urban Initiatives and Research, provides an excellent "executive summary" along
with local commentary on the results of the survey. To download this file as a
.pdf file, go to:
www.uwm.edu/Dept/CUIR/rando/RandO3_05.pdf
April 24 - 30, 2005
This issue brief describes the history and main provisions
of TANF, focusing on those that relate directly to teens, and describes what is
currently known about the program’s impact on three different groups of
adolescents: TANF teen parents, teenagers living in TANF households, and teens
who are involved in TANF-funded initiatives. Go to:
www.kff.org/womenshealth
April 17 - 23, 2005
The following Excerpt from this article by Mary Merrill. “Call them
serendipitous, entrepreneurial, spontaneous, unofficial, out of the box,
under the radar, independent or unaffiliated. These are the new volunteers
that do what they want, when and how they want to do it. They do not feel
obligated to do their volunteer work through established channels. They see
a need, or something that peaks their interest and they are off and running.
I call them the vigilante volunteers. The term vigilante refers to a
self-appointed doer of justice. The justice for them is doing “right
actions.” These volunteers see themselves as self-appointed doers of good.”
Go to:
www.worldvolunteerweb.org
April 10 - 16, 2005
Independent Sector has announced that the 2004 estimate for
the value of a volunteer hour has reached $17.55 per hour. This is a tool that
can be used to help organizations quantify the enormous value volunteers
provide. This year’s estimate increased from $17.19 per hour in 2003. Nationally
Independent Sector estimates in 2004 the total value of hours volunteered was
equivalent to approximately $272 billion of contributed service, assuming the
total number of volunteer hours held constant from previous years. Go to:
www.independentsector.org
April 3 - 9, 2005
The Pew Internet & American Life Project produces reports that explore the
impact of the Internet on families, communities, work and home, daily life,
education, health care, and civic and political life. The project website
contains charts and excel data files of a selection of the Pew Internet
Project’s latest trend findings including: current demographics of Internet
users, percentage of Internet users who have “ever done” an online activity,
percentage of Internet users who do a given activity on a "typical day", change
in U.S. Internet penetration over time, and Internet user demographics over
time. Go to:
www.pewinternet.org. For additional trend data and tips for businesses that
use the internet, view a PowerPoint Presentation at:
www.pewinternet.org.
March 27 - April 2, 2005
Given the current and projected growth in the Hispanic teen
population, combined with the relatively high rates of teen pregnancy and births
within this population, Hispanic teens represent an important target group for
pregnancy prevention programs. But very few pregnancy prevention programs have
been designed specifically to address the needs of Hispanic teens. A broader
understanding of the sexual, contraceptive, and relationship behaviors of
Hispanic teens can help program providers and others address these needs more
effectively. This Research Brief provides that broader context. It presents data
from several sources combining findings from recently collected data with new
analyses of data from the 1990s to draw a picture of the reproductive behaviors
and outcomes of Hispanic teens. To download a .pdf file, go to:
www.childtrends.org/Files/HispanicRB.pdf
March 20 - 26, 2005
In Grandfamilies: An Unsupported Safety Net, an article in
a recent issue of The Next American City, author Bobbi Pinkert reports that 2.4
million grandparents are the primary caregivers for their grandchildren, and the
number is growing rapidly. According to the 2000 census, 4.5 million children
live in grandparent-headed households, a 30 percent increase from the last
census, and 69 percent are in urban households headed by a single grandmother
with less than a high school education. This phenomenon is creating a "silent
epidemic" because these families are largely overlooked by programs that could
provide physical and emotional support, and access to housing. (Summary from PND
News) Go to:
www.americancity.org
March
13 - 19, 2005
The majority of disabled or elderly adults who are cared
for at home receive their care exclusively from unpaid family members or
friends. State of the States in Family Caregiver Support: A 50-State Study
examines the publicly funded caregiver support programs in all fifty states and
the District of Columbia since 2000 and the passage of the National Family
Caregiver Support Program. A joint project of the Family Caregiver Alliance and
the National Conference of State Legislatures, the study provides state
profiles, key findings, challenges and issues for the future, and a description
of the distinct needs of family caregivers. To download .pdf files, go to
www.caregiver.org/caregiver/jsp/content/pdfs/50_state_report_complete.pdf
for the full report; go to:
www.caregiver.org/caregiver/jsp/content/pdfs/executive_summary.pdf for the
executive summary.
March 6 - 12, 2005
Authored by BoardSource & Independent Sector, this report
discusses provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley corporate governance act. It examines
provisions of the law and makes recommendations for nonprofits to voluntarily
comply with certain provisions. To download a .pdf file, go to:
www.boardsource.org/clientfiles/Sarbanes-Oxley.pdf
February 27 - March 5, 2005
According to Foundation Giving Trends: An Update on
Funding Priorities 2005, a new report from the New York-based Foundation
Center, overall giving by the largest private and community foundations
decreased 10 percent between 2002 and 2003. Reductions in funding cut across
most major fields. Nonetheless, certain areas—such as voter education, disaster
preparedness, national security, and arms control—realized substantial growth in
funding. In addition, operating support claimed a new record-high share of
foundation giving. At the same time, foundations continued to reduce the volume
and size of their very largest grants, especially capital grants. Education
ranked first by share of foundation grant dollars in 2003; Human Services led by
share of grants. Go to:
fdncenter.org/research/trends_analysis/index.html
February 20 - 26, 2005
According to Brian Walsh of Changing Our World, at least
three U.S. phone companies, Verizon Wireless, All Tel, and Cingular Wireless,
have offered their customers the ability to send text message donations to
relief agencies assisting with the tsunami disaster. As with other major
communication tools - letters, television, phone calls, and emails - text
messaging has the potential to become a major tool for fundraising, even beyond
the tsunami relief efforts. Whether this remains as a one-time opportunity or
emerges as a new trend in fundraising remains to be seen. Go to:
www.onphilanthropy.com
February 13 - 19, 2005
This document, published by Demos, which describes itself
as an independent think tank based in the UK, chronicles the growth and impact
of organized professional volunteer activity in society. The data and analysis
come from the UK but is applicable in the US where much is being written these
days about the anticipated impact of aging baby boomers. Here’s the abstract
from the Demos website:
“From astronomy to activism, from surfing to saving
lives, Pro-Ams - people pursuing amateur activities to professional standards -
are an increasingly important part of our society and economy. For Pro-Ams,
leisure is not passive consumerism but active and participatory, it involves the
deployment of publicly accredited knowledge and skills, often built up over a
long career, which has involved sacrifices and frustrations. The 20th century
witnessed the rise of professionals in medicine, science, education, and
politics. In one field after another, amateurs and their ramshackle
organizations were driven out by people who knew what they were doing and had
certificates to prove it. The Pro-Am Revolution argues this historic shift is
reversing. We're witnessing the flowering of Pro-Am, bottom-up self-organization
and the crude, all or nothing, categories of professional or amateur will need
to be rethought. Based on in-depth interviews with a diverse range of Pro-Ams
and containing new data about the extent of Pro-Am activity in the UK, this
report proposes new policies to support and encourage valuable Pro-Am activity”.
Go to:
www.demos.co.uk
February 6 - 12, 2005
Published by National Committee for Responsive
Philanthropy, State of Philanthropy 2004 is a collection of analyses on
the accomplishments and shortcomings of the grant making field, with a focus on
the social justice arena. The second in a series of publications, the biennial
presents diverse perspectives from nonprofit, academic, foundation and advocacy
leaders, and discusses how philanthropic institutions can assist the nonprofit
sector in securing social and economic justice for the nation. To order a copy,
go to:
www.ncrp.org/ncrpstore
Trend of the Week:
January
30 - February 5, 2005
This article attempts to help nonprofit boards stay ahead of possible future
legislation by giving ten principles that boards can implement now and comply
with Sarbanes-Oxley. To download a .pdf file, go to:
www.silklaw.com
January
23 -
29, 2005
According to a new report prepared and published by the Foundation Center
with the support and collaboration of the D.C.-based Council on Foundations,
giving by the nation's foundations for U.S.-based and overseas international
programs reached $3 billion for the fourth year in a row in 2003, despite an
economic downturn, terrorist attacks, and the continuing war on terror.
International Grantmaking III: An Update on U.S. Foundation Trends, (highlights,
4 pages, PDF) notes that as recently as 1998, grants to international projects
totaled only $1.6 billion. A critical factor in the consistently high level of
giving in recent years is the presence of new funders — ranging from the
multi-billion-dollar Bill & Melinda Gates and Gordon and Betty Moore
foundations, to numerous smaller independent and corporate foundations and an
increasing number of community foundations — and increased giving by many
established funders. Go to:
fdncenter.org
January 16 - 22, 2005
While some nonprofit organizations are worried that the
unprecedented charitable response to the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami may
result in fewer donations at home, others are hopeful that an increase in new
donors will result in more charitable giving over the long term. But where many
see the possibility of adverse short-term consequences, others see opportunity.
Go to:
fdncenter.org January 9 -
15, 2005
The new network economy presents fresh challenges to nonprofit organizations.
Some of the relative advantages nonprofits now enjoy, compared to business and
government, in providing services characterized by information asymmetry and
public goods characteristics are likely to be eroded by changes in information
technology. At the same time, the network economy also offers nonprofits special
opportunities, including a role as trusted intermediaries to help people cope
with a deluge of complex information. This article applies economic theory to
derive expectations of the changing role of nonprofits in the information age
and considers how nonprofits can respond effectively to the new circumstances.
Go to:
nvs.sagepub.com
January 2 - 8, 2005
The Urban Institute has published the second in a series of briefs reporting on
a 2003 survey of volunteer management capacity among charities and
congregations. The findings in this report are based on conversations with a
systematic sample of charities about their practices, challenges, and
aspirations for their volunteer programs.This report, titled "Volunteer
Management Practices and Retention of Volunteers" focuses on charities' adoption
of nine recommended practices for volunteer management and explores the
relationship between adoption of these practices, other organizational
characteristics, and the retention of volunteers. The practices under study are
supervision and communication with volunteers, liability coverage for
volunteers, screening and matching volunteers to jobs, regular collection of
information on volunteer involvement, written policies and job descriptions for
volunteers, recognition activities, annual measurement of volunteer impact,
training and professional development for volunteers, and training for paid
staff in working with volunteers.
The study was supported by the Corporation for National and Community
Service, USA Freedom Corps, and the UPS Foundation. To download the PDF version
of the 16 page report, go to:
www.urban.org . At this web site there is also a link for purchasing a hard
copy.
December 19, 2004 - January 1, 2005
More than half of nonprofits say their donations increased
during the first nine months of the year, but seven in 10 say demand for their
services also rose. The results are part of the third annual nonprofit economic
survey conducted by GuideStar, a nonprofit that gathers and disseminates
information about charities. While the increase in donations was seen throughout
the U.S. and across focus areas, the study shows that nonprofits with annual
expenditures of $20 million or more are most likely to report an increase in
contributions. It also shows that nonprofits in the employment/job-related and
youth development fields were most likely to report an increase in demand for
their services.
Go to:
philanthropyjournal.org
To view 2004 Trends
of the Week, click here. |
