Nonprofit in the News

Is this the end of charity as we know it? Probably not, but things do not look good for the philanthropic among us. With the recent passage of the GOP tax plan, the non-profit sector stands to lose billions of dollars of revenue and hundreds of thousands are expected to lose their jobs. The government can drastically affect the sector and this bills shows just how. It is hard to envision a world where there is no charitable giving, but if the GOP tax plan is as bad for non-profits and consumers as Tim Delaney believes it will be, we might be on that track.

Medical sciences in this area have not worked cohesively as they should have; for years hospitals, universities, governments, etc have all worked mostly independently on the issue. The Dementia Discovery Fund is a cross-national conglomerate that brings together these groups and more in an effort to streamline the research. The argument of philanthropy vs. charity is clearly on display with this donation as philanthropy aims to cure the disease, not simply treat the effects.

NGO’s can work best when they supplement the work of a willing government to rebuild, make change, etc. However, when the NGO’s work independently with no input from what the country actually needs, this causes situations where the country is not being helped and the people are just as bad off now as they were years ago. Without a collaborative force coming together, Haiti may yet take years to recover.

This begs the question of how should governments use funds designated for “foreign aid” with respect to their own agendas. Are there ways for funds to have a multi-use or should the government focus on one problem at a time?

Regardless of one’s political views, it is hard to deny there is a wave of polarization sweeping across this country; even hitting our non-profits. This Hufftington Post article is the first in a series written on diversity within the non-profit sector. The author approaches the challenge of diversity in three ways: 1) The overwhelming and best documented diversity-deficit in non-profits relates to race. 2) Another crucial diversity deficit relates to women’s leadership. 3) The diversity deficit is not fully documented. While identification is important in non-profit organizations, and especially when it comes to who donates and why, it is essential that non-profit organizations do not let groups “fall into the cracks” and become marginalized. 

Interesting read that touches on the idea of identity philanthropy and how, on its face, can be a bad thing for the nation. Each and every philanthropic foundation has a mission, a goal, a set agenda. Foundations also typically lean toward one side of the political spectrum. When these foundations work to push their goals and nothing else, they can fall into the idea of “all or nothing” which usually ends with nothing. However, the authors argue that there is a way to meet goals while still working in a bi-partisan manner that can move the country further. The authors ask leaders to “get uncomfortable” in order to make meaningful progress. For example, “ In the immigration debate, it is possible for philanthropy to help build a political coalition around legislation that legalizes the undocumented population in concert with measurable improvements in border security and enforcement.” 

An informal study done by the University of Chicago explores why people give, especially during the holiday season. The study found that, when given the choice to op-out or not be disturbed, participants actually met their solicitor 25% less than those with no choice. This raises the question of why people give: is there an element of social pressure to altruism? If people are altruistic by nature, they will not opt-out of communication from a solicitor, but would likely at least hear their cause out. Participants who received phone calls as opposed to door-to-door solicitation were less likely to give, let alone answer. This led the study to conclude that there is a social element to altruism through peer pressure. 

This article discusses the term “effective altruism” as humans giving to maximize the impact and value of their donation. The author argues there can be scientific ways of giving to make the “best use” of the gift or donation. It begs the question: is it better to give to maximize the effect on the less fortunate, or is it better to give to causes that the donor feels passionately about and supports? The argument can be made both ways and certainly has no right answer. However, there is a good argument to be made that finding ways to maximize a donation or gift, in cooperation with other donors around the world, can be a catalyst for change.

This new service allows non-profit organizations to leave anonymous feedback for the foundations that help fund them. The council of non-profits that created this service argue that non-profit organizations cannot fully express how they feel about the way a foundation operates or the grant-writing process without fearing retribution from those foundations. By allowing non-profit organizations to leave anonymous feedback, the goal is to make the experience easier and more user-friendly. This type of service does raise a legitimate question, however: should foundations allocate funds based on their models, principles, and mission, or should they operate in a manner that puts the non-profit organizations first? Is this foundation driven or non-profit driven?

A recent study of 509 board members of non-profit organizations and associations across the US shows that many board members feel their on-boarding and orientation process did not fully prepare them for their service. This should be alarming to all stakeholders of these organizations and should prompt many organizations to reevaluate their orientation process for board members. This study shows that only 45% of respondents indicated they had a clear, defined orientation process while only 46% of respondents indicated they felt prepared to take on their new role as board members. 

The American Cancer Society, in partnership with the Cancer Action Network, ,have launched an initiative to provide “friend of the court” briefs to cases with an interest to all people affected by cancer. This shows non-profit organizations playing the role of advocate for its stakeholders. By interjecting itself in these court cases, the ACS is able to fight for its mission on a front where many laypeople cannot.

Two non-profit, cancer focused organizations, have recently teamed up for a new campaign “Attacking From Every Angle.” This campaign aims to expand upon the services ACS already provides in terms of research to allow it to connect on a more personal level to its stakeholders. Parts of this campaign include information dissemination and lobbying to state and federal governments in a way that gets everyone involved in their mission.

This article touches on the way that the non-profit sector and government intersect. For this merger to happen, the New York Attorney General had to approve the deal. Large mergers like this are contemplated on a daily basis, but are not always followed through, due to legal challenges. #merger #AG #nonprofit

#USP #FDA #nonprofitvacuum

Pres. Trump’s proposed tax plan might not hurt charitable giving as much as it seems on the surface, but there are many reservations about decreasing the number of tax brackets. #taxreform

Congress is almost universally rejecting President Trump’s budget plans and proposing an increase of funding for the NIH.