By Andy Carroll, Exponent Philanthropy
I regularly explore trends influencing philanthropy by spotlighting articles, reports, and essays in the media. I cast a wide net, venturing beyond philanthropy and traditional topics to consider a variety of ideas, innovations, debates, and critiques. Read previous posts in the series
Philanthropy Leaders Air Concerns, Bright Spots at National Conversations
At a series of brainstorming sessions convened by Independent Sector President Diana Aviv to explore how nonprofits and foundations should adjust to upheavals in their working environment, leaders expressed how difficult collaboration is, writes Suzanne Perry in The Chronicle of Philanthropy, and that “the whole structure for financing nonprofits is ‘broken.’ ‘Money is driving goals,’ with organizations changing their activities to meet demands for certain outcomes from their donors.”
Participants also named several innovative efforts that are moving the needle. “Minneapolis participants praised the Northside Achievement Zone, an effort by more than 30 nonprofits and schools to fight poverty and improve academic performance in a north Minneapolis neighborhood; successful campaigns to legalize gay marriage and defeat a proposed constitutional amendment requiring voter IDs, which ‘required nonprofits to come together across boundaries’; and the Blue Line Coalition, which unites more than 15 groups working to ensure that a light-rail extension benefits low-income communities.”
