High-Impact Capacity Building
By Barbara Blumenthal, Princeton University, Princeton, N.J. (barbblumen@aol.com)
While investments in capacity building continue to rise, there is growing concern that nonprofits often fail to make lasting improvements, and that scarce resources are being wasted. This research seeks to: understand the effectiveness of capacity-building strategies so as to help grantmakers and intermediaries design more effective programs; help consultants adopt more effective practices; and, help nonprofit leaders become better consumers of capacity building assistance.
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What Makes Volunteers and Givers Distinctive? Findings From a Canadian Study
By Paul Reed, Statistics Canada and Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada (paul.reed@statcan.ca)
A multi-year initiative for sustained, focused effort to build a body of empirical knowledge about the voluntary sector and the giving and volunteering behavior of Canadians was begun by the author. The objectives were to clarify the state of knowledge and what questions could not be answered about the voluntary sector, to strengthen conceptual structures that would help advance understanding of the voluntary domain, and to develop a vision for long-term information development. One area of detailed study in this report was the distinctive traits of active givers and active volunteers.
To read more about what this study revealed about volunteers and donors, click here.

Independent Sector Releases Model Code of Ethics for Nonprofits and Foundations
Independent Sector (IS) adopted a Statement of Values and Code of Ethics for Nonprofit and Philanthropic Organizations and released it as a model for use by nonprofit organizations and foundations nationwide. IS strongly recommends that all nonprofits and foundations have a code of ethics and provides this model, available at http://www.IndependentSector.org, as a tool to help them develop a code or review an existing one.
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“Death by a Thousand Cuts” Predicted for Nonprofits Because of State Fiscal Crunch, According to Aspen Institute Reports
Warning that programs of interest to the nonprofit sector will face “death by a thousand cuts for years to come,” two reports recently released by the Aspen Institute’s Nonprofit Sector Research Fund suggest that people dependent on crucial, community-based services across the nation will suffer for years even after the predicted economic rebound. Experts commissioned by the Institute’s Nonprofit Sector Research Fund argue that youth programs, after-school programs, job services for low-income people, and programs to help low-income fathers and parents are particularly vulnerable.
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Copies of the two reports above are available at www.nonprofitresearch.org.

ARNOVA Members to Receive New, Revised ARNOVA Abstracts
ARNOVA members will begin receiving a new, revised ARNOVA Abstracts. The quarterly publication will be sent with the ARNOVA-member newsletter—ARNOVA News—and will include abstracts of working papers, studies, reports, theses and dissertations from a number of journals. This is a great resource to help busy practitioners keep up with the latest literature in the field. For more information about joining ARNOVA and receiving ARNOVA Abstracts, click here.

   

Managing Risk in Nonprofit Organizations: A Comprehensive Guide (2003)
Melanie L. Herman, George L. Head, Peggy M. Jackson and Toni E. Fogarty, Hoboken, NJ, John Wiley & Sons, (www.wiley.com), 322 pages, $45.00 (Hardcover)
The practice of risk management attempts to identify and then manage threats that could severely impact or bring down an organization. Managing Risk in Nonprofit Organizations: A Comprehensive Guide discusses the activities that a nonprofit organization can conduct to reduce its chances of experiencing a catastrophic event that severely impairs the organization. Four experienced authors from the field of risk management explain how to minimize the negative and maximize the positive consequences of risk-taking.

Effective Economic Decision-Making by Nonprofit Organizations (2004)
Edited by Dennis R. Young, New York, NY, The Foundation Center, (www.fdncenter.org), 228 pages, $34.95 (Paperback)
Today’s nonprofit managers are expected to practice responsible and informed economic decision-making to maximize the effectiveness of organizations that serve many different stakeholders. The first major publication of the National Center on Nonprofit Enterprise, the book provides a variety of economic analysis concepts and describes the domains of economic decision-making that nonprofits should address. It also explains how the application of economic logic can lead nonprofits to conclusions about how to use their resources most effectively.

   

May 12
The Fifth Annual Symposium for Nonprofit Professionals, “Measuring and Managing for High Impact,” North Park University, Contact: www.northpark.edu/axelson.

May 16-18
2004 Minnesota Conference on Volunteerism: “Leading Volunteers…Building Communities,” Madden’s Resort, Brainerd, Minn.; Contact: Minnesota Association for Volunteer Administration at 651-255-0469 or at www.mavanetwork.org.

July 14-17
Association of Leadership Educators 2004 Annual Conference, “The Soul of Leadership,” Peabody Hotel, Memphis, Tenn.; Contact: Association of Leadership Educators at www.leadershipeducators.org

August 12-15
Alliance for Nonprofit Management Annual Conference, “Empowering the Nonprofit Sector,” Capital Hilton, Washington, D.C.; Contact: www.allianceonline.org.

August 26-28
The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University Annual Symposium, Indianapolis, Ind.; Contact: The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University at 317-274-4200 or at www.philanthropy.iupui.edu/.

October 20-23
2004 International Conference on Volunteer Administration, “Journey of Discovery: Charting Your Course,” Portland, Ore.; Contact: Association for Volunteer Administration at 804-672-3353; website: www.avaintl.org.

November 7-9
Independent Sector 2004 Annual Conference, “Making Participation Count,” The Fairmont Chicago, Chicago, Ill.; Contact: Independent Sector at www.independentsector.org.

November 18-20
33rd Annual ARNOVA Conference, Omni Los Angeles Hotel, Los Angeles, Calif.; Contact: ARNOVA at 317-684-2120; website: www.arnova.org.

   

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