Posts by Maria Di Mento
January 19, 2010, 11:23 AM ET
In Rebuilding Haiti, a Reminder to Avoid Past Mistakes; Plus More: Tuesday's Roundup
- To rebuild Haiti and pull it out of its chronic poverty, philanthropists and aid organizations must learn from previous efforts to help the island country, efforts that were “not always honorable or effective,” says Paul Farmer, co-founder of Partners in Health, in an opinion article in The Miami Herald.
- High nonprofit salaries are often tolerated in higher education and well-known arts institutions, but heavily scrutinized for charities that help impoverished people, writes Dan Pallotta, author of Uncharitable, on a Harvard Business Review blog. Mr. Pallotta argues the double standard hurts efforts to fight poverty or other social problems.
- Lucy Bernholz, an adviser to foundations, discusses the ways technology is aiding the Haiti relief effort. Among them: the International Committee of the Red Cross’s Family Finder tool, which helps people regain contact with missing...
January 15, 2010, 11:30 AM ET
Why Businesses Should Give Cash, Not Products, to Aid Haiti; Plus More: Friday's Roundup
- With large companies giving more than $30-million to Haiti, Timothy Ogden, editor-in-chief of Philanthropy Action, a journal for wealthy donors, is urging business leaders to not give products, but provide cash to support experienced charities, and to think about assisting with the long-term recovery process, not just with immediate needs. His views appear on a Harvard Business Review blog.
- As disaster charities use text messaging to raise millions of dollars for Haiti relief efforts, Charity Navigator, a nonprofit watchdog, discusses on its blog how such text donations work and what potential problems donors should look out for.
- As Americans continue to show their interest in forming new charitable ventures, the nonprofit world needs to do a better job of educating them about the alternatives to starting a new nonprofit organization, writes Ellen Friedman, executive...
January 14, 2010, 03:59 PM ET
Tracking Conditions in Earthquake-Stricken Haiti, Plus More: Thursday's Roundup
- As the world responds to the disaster in Haiti, nonprofit blogs are offering updates on the situation. Aid workers in the country are writing about their experiences on AlertNet, a Reuters Foundation Web site about humanitarian emergencies. And on a Council on Foundations blog, the council’s president, Steve Gunderson, is encouraging grant makers to support relief efforts. “Leadership moments are not scheduled,” he says. “If philanthropy’s mission is to serve the common good, this is indeed one of those moments.”
- While many people see charitable giving as an alternative to taxes, the two are “inextricably linked” and donors should consider supporting changes in tax policies that would benefit philanthropy, writes Alison Goldberg, of Wealth for the Common Good, an advocacy group. Her views appear on the New Voices of Philanthropy blog.
- As more foundations and charities...
January 13, 2010, 11:14 AM ET
Why Public Education Should Beware of Philanthropists, and More: Wednesday's Roundup
- Public school systems should be wary of philanthropic support, says an editorial in the Los Angeles Times. “Even the best-intentioned gifts have a way of shifting behavior,” it says. “Educators and the public, not individual philanthropists, should set the agenda for schools.”
- While international charities seek to build a personal connection between donors and recipients of aid, such fund-raising efforts are misguided and amount to philanthropy of a “Dickensian sort,” writes Owen Barder, an aid worker in Ethiopia, on his blog.
- While everyday donors will never replace government aid agencies or big foundations, they are increasingly becoming a major player in international philanthropy thanks to new technologies, says Dan Morrison, founder of Citizen Effect, which helps people start charity projects abroad. His views appear on the Case Foundation’s blog.
- Solving social...
January 12, 2010, 11:33 AM ET
A Call for Health-Care Groups to Disclose Information, Plus More: Tuesday's Roundup
- As Congress grapples with how to overhaul of the health-care system, some advocacy groups involved in the debate provide little information about their financial support and have misleading names, which breeds “public mistrust” of nonprofit groups, says Bob Ottenhoff, chief executive of GuideStar, on his group’s blog.
- With investment giant Goldman Sachs considering whether to require its executives to give more to charity, Kelly Kleiman, a charity consultant, argues on her blog that charitable giving is not an adequate way for bankers to improve their public image.
- The bad economy may be hammering the nonprofit world, but today could be the best time in history to work for a charity with the rise of social networking, an estimated increase in philanthropic giving, and a new generation of Americans interested in helping the world, writes Patrick Sallee, director of...
January 11, 2010, 11:24 AM ET
Investment-Policy Questions, and More: Monday's Roundup
- On his blog, Jack Siegel, a nonprofit lawyer, examines how a legal battle between Wesleyan University and its former chief investment officer raises questions about nonprofit institutions and their investment policies.
- As the “what color is your bra?” campaign continues on Facebook, Mark Memmott, a blog writer for National Public Radio, wonders if the effort really educates people about breast cancer.
- Daniel Grant, author of The Business of Being an Artist, says that the Obama administration should press on with its proposal to limit the tax break wealthy people receive for charitable donations. Writing in The Christian Science Monitor, Mr. Grant says the discussion about the tax break has been “clouded by politics” and that there’s little evidence to suggest such a move would depress giving.
- The Skoll World Forum, New Partners for Smart Growth, and Revisioning...
January 8, 2010, 11:20 AM ET
Could Soliciting Donations at the Cash Register Backfire? Plus More: Friday's Roundup
- With more stores soliciting customers for charity at the cash register, Eric Felten, an opinion writer for The Wall Street Journal, finds the practice annoying and wonders if it’ll brew resentment against charities.
- Larry Blumenthal, director of social-media strategy at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, writes on the Foundation Center’s Philanthropy News Digest that foundations need to learn from failures. His steps to “failing well” include failing publicly and proudly and embracing “microfailure.”
- In an effort to raise awareness about orchestras and classical music, the League of American Orchestras is making its 68-year-old magazine, Symphony, available free online. The January/February issue includes an article about musicians who blog.
- When should someone turn down an invitation to sit on a nonprofit board? Anne W. Ackerson, a charity consultant, looks at ...
January 7, 2010, 11:20 AM ET
Why Foundation Promises to be 'Strategic' Fall Short, Plus More: Thursday's Roundup
- Despite pledges to be more “strategic,” grant makers largely have failed to live up to their talk, writes Bob Hughes, vice president of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, on the new blog for the Center for Effective Philanthropy, a research group. When it comes to strategy, he says, “philanthropy’s glass is half-empty.”
- As charities enter 2010, Janet Levine, a nonprofit consultant, offers on her blog a New Year’s resolution: “Let me suggest that we all focus less on how much good we think we do, and concentrate instead on how much better we all could be.”
- On her group’s blog, Nan Roman, the president of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, reflects on the charity’s 10-year plan to reduce the homeless population, which was introduced in 2000. While the recession and other factors have hampered its efforts, she says the plan largely has been successful.
January 6, 2010, 11:18 AM ET
What to Do if Your Charity's 'Brandjacked,' Plus More: Wednesday's Roundup
- How should a nonprofit group react when it has been “brandjacked” — meaning when a competing charity mimics its Web site or name? Steve Drake, the president of a company that helps manage nonprofit groups, discusses how he dealt with this problem when it happened to one of his clients. The advice appears on the Web site of Community Organizer 2.0, a consulting company.
- What are the tax consequences of the Rev. Rick Warren’s tithing? Leonard Burman, director of the Tax Policy Center, a Washington think tank, looks into this question about Mr. Warren, the founder of Saddleback Church who says he directs the majority of his income to the church.
- Foursquare, an Internet program that allows people to tell others where they are by “checking in” to a movie theater, restaurant, or other location with their phone, could help charities recruit supporters, says Frank Barry,...
January 5, 2010, 11:24 AM ET
Giving Influence Instead of Cash; and More: Tuesday's Roundup
- In 2010, “giving money will become less important than giving voice, giving time, giving influence, and giving work” thanks to new technologies, writes Marcia Stepanek, an expert in social media and philanthropy, on her blog.
- Will community foundations have a hard time applying for money from the new federal Social Innovation Fund because of its matching-grant requirement? On his blog, Adin Miller, a nonprofit consultant, raises this question and others about the new fund, which last month issued its guidelines.
- As nonprofit workers enter a new year, they should consider connecting with people in the business world and government as a way to broaden their career opportunities, says Allison Jones, a fund raiser in New York, on her blog. The suggestion is one of seven ideas Ms. Jones offers for how charity employees can jump start their careers in 2010.
- While a...