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Category Archives: National

In The News …

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Welcome to Wednesday, folks! A bit of snow appears to be coming our way — along with some mid-weeks news here on GoodWorks.

Nonprofits Must Lead the Push for Civility — A post in The Chronicle of Philanthropy this Monday proclaims that, in the wake of the tragedy in Arizona, “we must ask ourselves what people at foundations and nonprofits can do to prevent such senseless acts of violence in the future.” Moreover:

Our public leaders and leading media personalities set the tone for the public square. It is their duty to promote civil discourse and encourage peaceful participation in society. In the wake of this tragedy, we must demand nothing less.

People in the nonprofit world — as trusted members of communities everywhere — are in a powerful position to set the parameters for a decent society. We can use the power of our collective voice in many ways.

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Literacy City

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As the Post reported yesterday, “DC residents rank as the nation’s most well-read” according to a new study from Central Connecticut State University. The America’s Most Literate Cities study “ranks the largest cities (population 250,000 and above) in the United States on six key indicators of literacy: newspaper circulation, number of bookstores, library resources, periodical publishing resources, educational attainment, and Internet resources.”

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In and Out

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We are now into the second week of a new year and a new decade — so recaps and resolutions are still very much on the brain. Along those lines, I would suggest checking out Network for Good’s Non-Profit Marketing Blog, which has offered a number of helpful resolution-related posts over the past week. In particular, Katya Andresen’s list of “What’s In and Out for Nonprofits in 2011” caught my eye:

In: Integrated communications/Out: Multi-channel communications

In: Appropriate use of technology/Out: Maximum use of technology

In: Speaking from the heart/Out: Speaking from the left brain

In: Narrative/Out: Bullet points

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In The News …

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‘Tis the day for mid-week news and notes… And let us know if you have anything to share with the Catalogue crowd!

How to Find Generous Donors — Just before 2011, the Chronicle of Philanthropy reported on three new giving studies, conducted by Blackbaud, Network for Good, and the Daily Beast. Their findings? Our area stacks up quite well! In the Blackbaud study, DC and Maryland ranked #1 and #2 respectively for the number of donors with incomes over $100K. And Network for Good reported that DC is #1 and Virginia #8 in average giving per household.

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Our Economies

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Good morning, Greater Washington! Let’s start off Monday with an intriguing article from the Chronicle of Philanthropy: “3 Big Concerns About the Economy — and How to Fight Them.” Regarding her third concern, Elizabeth Ortiz writes:

What will happen when the scarcity mentality takes a more-lasting hold? For many of us who came of age in the more prosperous times of the late 1980s and the tech boom of the early 1990s, it’s hard to imagine organizations having to fight to the finish for the few crumbs that are left. I fear a future in which we have individually and collectively lost confidence in our ability to solve problems, overcome challenges, and create our own, better reality.

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In The News …

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Welcome to Wednesday! Some mid-week news is coming your way … And rumor has it that snow may be coming our way tomorrow. What do you think? WAMU gave it a 30% chance about an hour ago.

Opinion: Here’s some philanthropy advice for Mark Zuckerberg — GoodWorks did a series of posts back in September regarding the media buzz around Facebook founder and CEO’s $100 million donation to the Newark schools. Now that Zuckerberg had signed the Giving Pledge, the buzz has returned. Yet I quite like this piece from the Mercury News by Phil Buchanan (President of the Center for Effective Philanthropy) and Stephen Heintz (President of the Rockefeller Brothers Fund), offering advice both to the 26-year-old Zuckerberg and the entire new generation of philanthropists — in particular, reminding them that the country does not simply need philanthropy, but effective philanthropy. Do check it out!

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Around the World

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Good morning, Greater Washington! I hope that you all enjoyed the rainy-yet-somewhat-warm weekend in DC — and I thought that I’d start the week with a more global news item.

For an interesting evaluation of our charitable habits compared to those of other large countries around the globe, check out this article from today’s Wall Street Journal. How much does the US give away and, moreover, what prompts our citizens to give in the amount or precise manner that they do?

The urge to do good through philanthropy varies across the globe. Differing cultures breed differing motivations and some countries appear vastly more generous than others.

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In The News …

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Welcome to Wednesday, Washingtonians!

“Are There Limits to Collaborations?” — this post over at Deep Social Impact definitely caught my eye. First, I wrote a quick post on the resurgence of an ethic of collaboration among disparate organizations. Second, on an intra-organization level, “collaboration” has certainly become a buzzword in recent years. But is collaboration always in the best interest of our mission and operations? As Cynthia Gibson writes, “What I — and others — are starting to see, however, is that there can be a tendency for organizations to see collaboration as an end unto itself, rather than a process, management style, or approach that’s a means to an end.”

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Three, Two, One … Non-Profits!

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Good morning, Washington! We’ll have more mid-week news coming your way on Wednesday, but I just wanted to share this one unusual item today. First, it honestly made me smile. But moreover, I wondered if it might mark the beginning of an intriguing partnership between the public and non-profit sector — and whether it signaled a growing awareness of the power inherent in cross-disciplinary collaboration.

As Popular Science reported this weekend: “NASA Plans to Put Non-Profit Group in Charge of International Space Station Experiments:”

As NASA prepares to put the finishing touches on the International Space Station — just as soon as space shuttle Discovery can make one last visit — the space agency is looking to outsource its science experiments.

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In The News …

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Happy Hanukkah, Greater Washington!

I’m passing along a bundle of interesting news items today. We’ve gone a couple of weeks without an “In The News …,” so just leave us a message if you have an article or two to add to the mix.

First, we wanted to give a Catalogue shout-out to the charities featured in this month’s Washingtonian Magazine article, “Spirit of Giving: How to lend a hand to those in need this holiday season,” by Mary Clare Glover. The Catalogue was one of three sources that Washingtonian used in compiling its suggestions (along with the Meyer Foundation and Community Foundation for the National Capital Region). The piece focuses on what individuals can give or do to make the holidays brighter for the people that these charities serve. I actually just picked up my copy yesterday and you should be sure to check it out! Catalogue non-profits highlighted in the piece include:

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