Perspectives

  • Perspective

    Cross-post: Are Nonprofits Getting the Support They Really Need?

    The Center for Effective Philanthropy conducted a study to discover what support nonprofits need and how funders are currently meeting those needs. This post, which originally appeared on the Center for Effective Philanthropy's website, highlights some key lessons from the research.
    • October 4, 2018
  • Perspective

    Get on the Balcony

    In September 2018, Grantmakers for Effective Organizations released "Get on the Balcony: How Grantmakers Can Ignite Change." This members only publication explores helpful approaches for jump-starting a change initiative, drawn from the reflections of GEO members.
    • September 27, 2018
  • Perspective

    Complex Problems Require Collaborative Solutions

    After 17 successful years of inspiring and nurturing people with innovative, grassroots ideas to positively impact their communities, The Sprout Fund has decided to sunset in 2018. In doing so, the Pittsburgh-based organization has decided to share their lessons learned in "The Sprout Fund Field Guide for Philanthropy & Civic Action." This is part two of a two-part series sharing their lessons learned.
    • September 20, 2018
  • Perspective

    Introducing The Sprout Fund Field Guide for Philanthropy & Civic Action

    After 17 successful years of inspiring and nurturing people with innovative, grassroots ideas to positively impact their communities, The Sprout Fund has decided to sunset in 2018. In doing so, the Pittsburgh-based organization has decided to share their lessons learned in "The Sprout Fund Field Guide for Philanthropy & Civic Action." This is part one of a two-part series sharing their lessons learned.
    • September 20, 2018
  • Perspective

    Centering Our Website on Relationships, Accessibility and Transparency

    The Maddox Charitable Fund's original website bespoke a transactional as opposed to a visionary approach to grantmaking. Ten years later, it no longer represented who or what Maddox had become. Maddox developed a new website based on the guiding principles of relationships, accessibility and transparency.
    • August 24, 2018
  • Perspective

    Cross-post: The Case for General Operating Support

    The Claniel Foundation has shifted to providing 100 percent of its grants for general operating support. This post, which originally appeared on the Center for Effective Philanthropy's website, outlines why they made the shift and the importance of general operating support.
    • August 16, 2018
  • Perspective

    Cross-post: Finding—and Using—the Right Tool for the Job

    Organizational assessment tools can be used to gauge an organization’s strategic focus, leadership, governance, human resource capacity, financial and fundraising structure, and learning and evaluation ability. The Hewlett Foundation commissioned a scan to discover which tools are available, and how these tools can be most effectively used.
    • August 3, 2018
  • Perspective

    Strengthening Relationships Language Poll

    Help GEO decide on language to use when we talk about increasing community and nonprofit participation in philanthropy.
    • August 1, 2018
  • Perspective

    Returning Learning to the System

    The more frequently members of a system communicate with each other about what they are seeing, what they are doing, and with what results, the more quickly that system as a whole is able to adapt to changing conditions in order to survive and thrive.
    • July 25, 2018
  • Perspective

    Philanthropy's Debt to our Country's Biggest Region

    The southeastern U.S. is heavy with history and layered with nuanced culture that can take a lifetime to fully understand. All places have magic and secrets, but NCRP and GSP's 'As the South Grows' initiative documents the unique and hidden complexities of advancing systems change in the South.
    • July 12, 2018