Website of the Week -- WomenOnCall.Org
WomenOnCall.Org is a unique
online network that connects women with specific volunteer opportunities that
allow them to share their professional skills and expertise with nonprofits.
Through on-site and virtual volunteer opportunities, WomenOnCall.org members
provide short, high-impact, skills-based service, making giving back realistic
and efficient. In 2005, Margot Pritzker developed the idea for a web-based
organization that eased the difficulty of matching the right volunteer with
professional skills with the right non-profit that needed them. In addition,
the organization had to emphasize how much could be done in one hour –
maximizing both the non-profit’s and volunteer’s valuable time. Thus,
WomenOnCall.org was born. While there are many volunteer match sites, none
focus specifically on the high-impact method of utilizing professional skills
and short-term commitments that WomenOnCall.org emphasizes. In addition, many
of the volunteer opportunities can be completed virtually–during a busy woman’s
lunch hour or in the evening. Go to:
http://womenoncall.org
Publication of the Week -- Transformative
Scenario Planning: Working Together to Change the Future by Adam Kahane
From the publisher: People
who are trying to solve tough economic, social, and environmental problems
often find themselves frustratingly stuck. They can’t solve their problems in
their current context, which is too unstable or unfair or unsustainable. They
can’t transform this context on their own—it’s too complex to be grasped or
shifted by any one person or organization or sector. And the people whose
cooperation they need don’t understand or agree with or trust them or each
other. Transformative scenario planning is a powerful new methodology for
dealing with these challenges. It enables us to transform ourselves and our
relationships and thereby the systems of which we are a part. At a time when
divisions within and among societies are producing so many people to get stuck
and to suffer, it offers hope—and a proven approach—for moving forward
together.
Trend of the Week -- Latest US Foundation Trends
Overall foundation giving is
estimated to have reached nearly $55 billion in 2013, $8 billion more than in
2008, the peak year for giving prior to the economic downturn. According to a
preview of the forthcoming Key Facts on U.S. Foundations, overall foundation
giving will continue to grow ahead of inflation in 2014. Giving has held steady
over the past several years, which is partly the result of foundations having
kept their giving at higher-than-expected levels during the Great Recession.
Key Facts on U.S. Foundations is the primary publication in which the
Foundation Center documents the overall size of the U.S. foundation community
and provides perspective on the giving priorities of the nation's largest
foundations. To download the report, go to:
http://foundationcenter.org/gainknowledge/research/pdf/keyfacts2014.pdf
Resource of the Week – Board Members Guide to Partnership Planning
This guide was authored by
Dr. Ramya Ramanath and John A. Van Eyk. Partnerships may arise with the
potential to allow nonprofit organizations to carry out their missions more
effectively and efficiently. Board involvement is imperative when such an opportunity
arises. Although the level of board involvement may differ depending on the
complexity of the arrangement, yet its role in leading discussions on the
potential impact on organizational performance is critical to all types of
arrangements. The guide addresses some of the key factors nonprofit boards
should consider when entering a partnership arrangement. This publication was
created by the Johnson Center for Philanthropy. In partnership with the AIM
Alliance. To download the Guide, go to: https://lodestar.asu.edu/research/aim-alliance/collaboration-research/files-and-images/aim-board-members-guide
Tech Tip of the Week --
Recolor a Picture or Change the Color or Transparency
In PowerPoint 2010 you can
recolor a picture, adjust the color saturation and tone, and more! Here's how:
- Select the picture you want to recolor
- Click the Picture Tools Format tab on the Ribbon
- In the Adjust group, click Color
- Select one of the many options
This tip works in PowerPoint,
Word and Excel 2010.
