Philanthropy2173 (Page 44)

Foundations and poverty

Philanthropy has taken a bit of heat lately for not doing enough about poverty. First came the Google report that only a small percentage of philanthropic giving goes to poverty alleviation, either domestically or internationally. Then comes a rejuvenated public discussion (I'd call it a debate but I

Facebook-ing philanthropy

This Newsweek article claims Facebook is on the cutting edge of changing philanthropy. It then points out that its not about raising huge amounts of money. Using Facebook Causes applications, users (donors) have already set up 27,000 campaigns for more than 11,000 organizations. The changes that matter, according

capitalmarkets

Moving the conversation to xchangexchange

The Green Skeptic responded to my post about environmental blogs and the need for cross-sectoral solutions with this post. Here's the basic gist of the discussion: My claim: solving them The Green Skeptic offered up these thoughts, with some quotes from Susan Raymond: So here now, is my

capitalmarkets

Philanthropy and the law

Lots of news on the legal front for nonprofits and philanthropy. Namely, three rather big moves in the courts and an interesting new nonprofit development. 1) Robertson V Princeton case moves to court - big win for donors. 1a) Note that this last month also saw the launch of a

givingchannel

Prizes on The Giving Channel

What does it mean when first an economist and then an environmentalist each win a major prize for peace? For that matter, what is it with philanthropy and prizes these days? While some prizes have been around for ages, new ones are popping up everywhere. Taken all together, they spark

accountability

Nutrition label for charities - and giving season

Trent Stamp of Charity Navigator posted this Daily Show episode and is featured in it. No disrespect, Trent, but my favorite moment is the nutrition label for nonprofit organizations, which comes along at 3:37 into the video... Its The Daily Show. Remember to turn down the volume if you

clinton

Giving Season starts now

We must be getting near to "Giving Season." Formerly confined to the weeks between American Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve, giving season is starting earlier and earlier in the year. Proof: Retailers are offering Christmas shopping specials even as you procrastinate on your Halloween costume. And

alignedinvesting

On philanthropy and environmental change

(This post started as a response to The Green Skeptic's comment on this post). In his comment, the Skeptic notes his shift to ASHOKA and social enterprise after years in nonprofit work - in his words: His experience is important for us all to consider. Does philanthropy have

environment

Environmental Blogs

October 15 was Blog Action Day - and blogger highlighted these environmental blogs. * Cleantech Blog - Commentary on technologies, news, and issues relating to next generation energy and the environment. * The Conscious Earth - Earth-centered news for the health of air, water, habitat and the fight against global warming. * Earth

markets

Pro Publica - philanthropy, media and market failures

Here's an important new experiment in philanthropy and media - the launch of Pro Publica. Funded by Herbert and Marion Sandler and led by former WSJ editor Paul Steiger, Pro Publica will focus on investigative journalism - the stuff that newspapers continue to cut as profits drop. A

markets

These are (just two) of my favorite things

© NewsFutures (Chart is of odds of Al Gore winning 2007 Nobel Peace Prize, for 7 days prior to announcement) What two things? Prediction markets and prizes. By now, Al Gore's Nobel Peace Prize win is old news. What you may not know is that he was the hands

Ethics and the listserv

A fascinating exchange took place on a listserv for nonprofits recently. Someone asked about the propriety of a consultant making a gift to a nonprofit for whom she/he had done contract work. Within a few posts, the discussion shifted to whether or not it was OK for a consultant

capitalmarkets

Green and black

I'm on my way to a discussion with Majora Carter, creator of Sustainable South Bronx and the woman who taught my seven year old how to take action against environmental racism. Here's a clip of Carter speaking at the New School: I also just found this

Charity Bloggers

A month or so back I was asked to participate in the Bloggers Challenge to raise funds for DonorsChoose. Abiding by my own ethics (as well as those emerging in the blog-world), I opted not to do this. Because I write about philanthropy and nonprofits and technology I don'

More on the blur - or follow the money part II

I'm at the Social Venture Network conference in San Diego. So far, fabulous. The creativity and energy of the individuals creating sustainable change is really interesting. Just this morning, I have spoken with bankers creating new bank structures, Native Americans creating and selling natural and native sourced energy

Deep Throat was right

(image: stockexpert.com) I'm trying to figure out the cumulative value of investable resources available through social venture capital/private equity firms, socially responsible mutual funds, CSR initiatives, mission related investments, program related investments, Community Development Venture Funds, double bottom line investors, and clean tech investment funds. One

Posting transcripts, proposals and reports

As promised, the folks at Union Square Ventures have posted the transcript from their Hacking Philanthropy conversation - it is here. I haven't read it yet, just wanted to fulfill my promise of pointing you to it before I forgot. While we're on the subject of

media

Random Tech Observations

Here are observations on technology/nonprofits/philanthropy since my last update in August. Social networking: * Several foundation staff people have asked questions of their Linkedin networks. * A few foundation staff people have joined Facebook. * JustMeans has added lots of content and some users. * MySpace and PayPal teamed up to let

gates

Gates gives 'cuz he's a geek

(photo from sxc.hu) Or at least that is what Clive Thompson claims in the September 2007 issue of Wired Magazine, (p. 62). To be more accurate, being a geek is not just why Bill Gates (and, Melinda too, presumably) gave $25BB+ to philanthropy, but why they give the way

You say tomato, I say tomah-to...

Names matter. What we call things matters. Ask George Lakoff. Or Karl Rove. Or Louis Armstrong. There is growing agreement that "nonprofit sector" is the wrong name, so what is the right name? Paul Shoemaker, a careful reader of Alliance Magazine, points out these three possibilities, all posited

capitalmarkets

Back to the future

Scrolling through the archives of this blog - which has been live since July 2002 - I found this post: Tuesday, July 09, 2002 Philanthropy and new capital markets The attached book outline is a work in progress, focused on how the disparate elements of the philanthropic resource pool -

Impact - commercial and public benefit

I have been watching, commenting on, and participating in the following two trends for years. * Corporate social responsibility, its growth, spread across sectors, influence on double/triple bottom lines, and efforts to quantify and value socially beneficial corporate behaviors. * Nonprofit, public benefit, nongovernmental uses of market-based strategies (earned income) to

Hacking philanthropy

I'm preparing to moderate a conference session called "Out with the Old, In with the New" so this blog post from the folks at Union Square Ventures caught my eye. Here's the participant list - but alas, no real content has been posted. They

pbs

Project Enterprise - Your Turn to Vote!

The judges (me included) have done our part - now its your turn. Choose from among the four posted finalists and vote here for the PBS NOW Project Enterprise winner. Polls are open until October 31st. The winning group will receive coverage on the website and be part of an

clinton

YouTube's Commitment - A Nonprofit Channel

Direct from the press release YouTube Debuts Nonprofit Program Organizations Can Now Apply for a Designated Nonprofit Channel and Collect Donations Through Google Checkout for Non-Profits San BRUNO, Calif. – September 27, 2007 – Hundreds of nonprofits currently leverage YouTube, the leader in online video, to raise awareness of their causes. Today