buzzword Buzzword 2008.9 - Social Enterprise This next entry on the buzzword 2008 list - social enterprise - is a perfect example of the 20 year+ buildup that some buzz requires. The concepts and realities of social enterprise have been around for a long time (Bill Drayton founded ASHOKA in 1980). In 2008 the blending of
Thoughts on philanthropy If you got together with other smart people to discuss how to "optimize institutional philanthropy" you would have a lot to talk about. It would help to identify some of what needs to be made better. Here's a rather elegant and brilliant summary from a colleague,
commons Why not a "Giving Commons?" Both videos are by Jesse Dylan, who made the Will.i.am "Yes we can" video. These are from the blogs of Creative Commons and Larry Lessig. Tags: philanthropy, commons, technology, media
(Almost) real time grant data My hat is off to the Foundation Center!* - check out these maps of foundation giving and program related investments in response to recession - it isn't a $700 billion bailout, but there is activity to note, and the Foundation Center maps make it easy and useful! This
huffpo More social innovation, this time Jewish Over on Huffington Post there is a great post about innovation in times of recession. It focuses on opportunities for social innovation in the Jewish community, but only a little of what it has to offer are specific to that community. Here are the authors' three identified opportunities: "
buzzword2008 Buzzword de-listing! Hot on the heels of the Marketplace review of buzzwords (listen here) we've had our first ever buzzword de-listing! Thanks to the folks in Jewish philanthropy, we saw NextGen move into mainstream philanthropy and take the number 8 2008 buzzword spot. No sooner did it make the move
afropop 60th Anniversary of Universal Declaration of Human Rights December 10 is the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Celebrate it here with AfroPop. Tags: philanthropy, afropop, undhr, npr
buzzword Buzzword 2008.8 - Next Gen Here is buzzword number 8 for 2008....NextGen - the hip short hand for next generation. Unlike software, when used in philanthropy and nonprofits NextGen really refers to people - the next generation of leaders. This buzzword has its detractors - read this fabulous post about the need to focus
buzzword2008 Charitable Gift Cards - Buzzword #7 - on Marketplace Marketplace ran the first in its series on philanthropy on Friday - focusing on charitable gift cards (which regular readers will remember came in at number 7 on this year's buzzword list). Here's the story and here's the buzzword list. The story also refers
cross-platform philanthropy Let's pitch Hollywood Think "Craigslist + Kiva = ?" or "Twitter + United Way = ?" or "My.Barack.Obama + VolunteerMatch + WorldBank = ?" Now it's your turn. We can play on Twitter. I say "Salesforce" and you say "..." Or I say "vaccines" and you say "
2009 Necessity is the mother of social innovation Reposted (with edits and additions) from SSIR Ah, December. The anticipation of snow, unless you’re already several feet under. The warmth of a fire, unless you live in the south. The excitement of winter holidays, unless you’re a grouch. Don’t forget the thrill of reviewing the year
givelist All Hands on Deck Mario Morino of Venture Philanthropy Partners has a great view on the opportunities contained in tough times. Read his perspective here. From the grassroots the GiveList effort (#givelist) provides real-world, real-time, real-people examples of actions we can take to make the world a little better. (My plan is to sit
GiveList Hats off to Allison Fine and Marnie Webb for rapidly building GiveList - a place to share ideas about how to give in these tough times. Tags: philanthropy, fundraising
Predictions, past, present and future My thoughts, and those of others', on the impact of the economy on philanthropy are also in the December issue of Alliance. * Did you know Paul Light has predicted a 10% "death rate" for nonprofits in 2009, * and that others are saying that decline prediction is too
Prediction review Alliance Magazine's December issue has several articles worth reading. The issue of the issue is "how far will they go" and it includes discussions and examples of foundations going "all out" to achieve their goals. Some of you will, no doubt, say "not
And the list goes on..... Two more organizations to add to the list: * The Microfinance Rating and Assessment Initiative by M-CRIL, MicroFinanza Rating, MicroRate, and Planet Rating * Razoo And here's the rest of the list, so far: * FasterCures Philanthropy Advisory Service (I'm an advisor to this effort) * SocialCapital Index (Managers are
Give fast Epic Change raised over $10,000 in 48 hours to build a classroom in Tanzania. Beth Kanter raised more than $2500 in 90 minutes for an organization for which she has long volunteered. Here are a list of reflections about how to do this - most cites lead to blogs.
New magazine on nonprofits and IT Civil Society IT - dedicated to the effective use of IT in all kinds of not-for-profit organisations. Tags: philanthropy, technology
Social Capital index I just got updated news that xigi.net and GoodCapital, the two social capital organizations that gave us SoCap08 have moved the Social Capital Index to its own site with its own team. You can find it here. As the site managers point out: "Another constant theme [of SoCap08]
demos Events of interest Here are "items of interest" to me, and, perhaps, to you: A discussion on activism and momentum December 2, 12:30 - 2:00 pm EST Turning Voters into Activists Experts and activists chosen as Prime Mover fellows of the Hunt Alternatives Fund will offer ideas for how
jewish Lisa Goldberg Fellowships at NYU Two fellowships at The Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service have been established to honor Lisa Goldberg. These are graduate level fellowships for leaders in philanthropy or Jewish leadership. Application info is here. Tags: philanthropy, nyu, goldberg, jewish, jewishphilanthropy
buzzword $10,000, 48 Hours, One Classroom - ready, set, tweet Tweetsgiving - a 48 hour attempt to raise $10,000 to build a classroom in Tanzania - is off and running - they've raised $3300 in first 8.5 hours, been covered by Tom Watson, and are filling up my twitter feed. Great day to launch - following
communityphilanthropy Futures of Community Foundations The Financial Times has a story today (free, but annoying, registration required) on the future of community foundations and the role of philanthropic advisers. The story references On The Brink of New Promise: The Future of U.S. Community Foundations, a 2006 report I co-authored. All materials from that project,
headlines Headlines of a downturn On Sunday The New York Times ran stories on philanthropy under the following headlines: Charities Fear Cuts Will Wound the Needy In Downturn, Charities Face Needs of Their Own Nonprofits Say Needs Are Great, Cash Is Short Charities Struggling With Their Own Needs Billionaire Offers Arts Bailout in Los Angele
allianceinvesting Information markets in philanthropy Tim O'Reilly notes the following great examples of innovators around "transparency in government" and recommends they consider joining the incoming Presidential administration. Sunlight FoundationEveryblockpublic.resource.orgmysociety.org Is there a parallel list of philanthropic accountability, nonprofit innovators? Months ago I posted these "maps" to
