Picks of the Week: October 19 - 25, 2008

Website of the Week -- Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development

The purpose of the Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development is to connect thinkers and leaders of all ages to develop fresh ideas, forge new partnerships, and design strategies that engage young people and their communities. The Center helps innovative programs become strong, sustainable ventures by offering technical assistance and practical guidance to organizations that want to deepen, expand, and launch new initiatives. Go to: http://www.theinnovationcenter.org/a_mission.shtml.


Publication of the Week -- Working Across Generations: Defining the Future of Nonprofit Leadership by Frances Kunreuther, Helen Kim and Robby Rodriguez

From the publisher: The authors provide a range of ideas on how to approach generational shifts in leadership so that the contributions of long-time leaders are valued, new and younger leaders' talent is recognized, and groups are better prepared to work across generational divides. Giving context to these differences, they explore the current assumptions about the upcoming transition between generations in the social sector; introduce new ideas or frames for thinking about generational leadership change; and examine how this change poses individual, organizational, and systemic challenges for those in the social sector. In addition, they provide numerous examples and practical exercises to show how to address these issues. The book concludes with critical advice on how to communicate across generations and key recommendations for future research and action. Click to preview this book on Amazon.com.


Trend of the Week -- Donors of the Future: Key Trends

The Donors of the Future scanning project was undertaken with the joint sponsorship of the New Ventures in Philanthropy Initiative at the Forum of Regional Associations of Grantmakers, and the Community Foundation Leadership Team at the Council on Foundations. The authors describe the following key trends which emerged from the Donors of the Future Scan:

• Racial and ethnic diversity will increase in almost all communities at large.
• Wealth appreciation in virtually all distinct/different population groups will become significant — e.g., more wealthy African Americans,, Asians, Hispanics, women, gay, young, self-made.
• The concept of endowment will face continuous pressure as new donors – from recent immigrants to self-made high-wealth entrepreneurs – enter the system.
• Interest in giving internationally will increase among all types of donors.
• Sending money home, among foreign born living in the U.S., in income categories from top to bottom, will increase significantly.
• Flash giving– triggered by international conflict, famine, natural disasters, all unfolded instantaneously by the media – has the potential to engage and empower many donors; may be the entry point of primary mode of giving for many donors.
• Donors will be increasingly attracted to self-formed learning and giving communities or gatherings, that foster connectivity and exploration, sponsor events, etc.
• More and more donors will take care of all of their giving – flash and more sustained – with internet giving portals.
• A more mobile population of all ages, combined with out-migration from smaller towns and rural areas, and more frequent “caravanning” among retirement aged adults, may continue to diminish the appeal and incidence of place based giving.
• Giving by faith-based donors, long acknowledged as providing the majority of all giving in the US, will become even more complex to deal with. Polarization around Christian and evangelical giving will increase, as “mainstream” philanthropy institutions tag it all as “evangelical”. In current political context, Muslim giving may also become very hot.
• Donor demand for a streamlined, 24-7, customized interface will push community foundations on the business operations side.
• Peoples’ need to see themselves (i.e., people of their kind), in the leadership of the institutions to whom they give their money, time or allegiance will increase.
• All the trends above are now evident among today’s adult population. All will become more extreme as generations X and Y – and those that follow them -- enter and assume leadership in the system.

For a copy of the report, go to: http://www.givingforum.org.


Resource of the Week -- Three Toolkits from the Kellogg Foundation

The Kellogg Foundation has developed three toolkits for nonprofits. The Communications and Marketing Kit is designed to help non-profit organizations use communications to achieve their social change goals. The Evaluation Toolkit is designed for nonprofits seeking to design an effective, useful evaluation. The Policy Toolkit has been designed to support nonprofits and grassroots organizations in understanding the role of policy at all levels of government - local, state and national, and more importantly, prepare them for engagement in the policy process. This web-based handbook features the policy process and principles, guiding questions to help translate and understand the process and principles, as well as case stories to illustrate key ideas. Go to: http://www.wkkf.org.


Tech Tip of the Week -- Navigation Pane in Access 2007

In Access 2007, the Navigation Pane has replaced the Database Window as the main way to get around in a database.

• To change the width of the Navigation Pane, Position the pointer over the right edge of the Navigation Pane and then, when it changes to a double-sided arrow drag the edge to increase or decrease the width.
• To expand or collapse the appearance of the Navigation Pane, click the Shutter Bar Open/Close Button, or press F11 to toggle the pane between the open and closed views.