Tactical Philanthropy Advisors owns the domain names PhilanthropyEducation.org/com/net. I’ve decided not to renew the domains which expire on December 11 of this year. So I’d like to offer them up to the Tactical Philanthropy community. If you are interested in obtaining these domains (we’re giving them away for free, you’ll just need to pay the registration fee) please leave a comment on this post that describes how you intend to use them. I’ll transfer the domains to whoever has the most intriguing, audacious, or well thought out plan for putting them to use.
A little history: In December of 2008, I gave away the domains GivingTools.com/org. The winner of that mini-contest was an unknown group of Stanford students calling themselves the Nonprofit Knowledge Network. I was intrigued by the group’s plan to “improve the donation decision process for ordinary individuals by tapping into the knowledge of experts in the nonprofit sector.”
Today that group is called Philanthropedia, which has emerged as an important player in the charity rating space. I’m always amazed at all the little connections that make up the broad narrative of our field.
6 Comments
I developed the NYU Academy for Funder Education starting 11 years ago. It is the most comprehensive set of offerings for funders of all sorts at any university in the country [and maybe the world] But it doesn’t have any independent identity at NYU and this would be 100% consistent with the mission and proven experience. The timing is perfect since NYU is finally beginning to discuss giving this division of its Center for Philanthropy some independent visibility. The program at NYU was originally developed in collaboration with COF, ASF, NCFP, Rgl Assocs, etc but that was a while ago. Some of our programs attract funders from throughout the world.
Since we also do extensive funder/donor education beyond the NYU program, it can stand as a part of but not fully of the NYU program.
Would be happy to discuss further if you think there is any possibility of moving this along. R. Marker
Sounds great Richard. I’m going to let proposals roll in for a few days and then make a decision.
Education about philanthropy counts at a time when the number of nonprofit organizations is growing despite a down economy (Giving USA 2010) and as many as 400,000 registered nonprofit organizations risk losing their tax exempt status by the end of 2010 because they did not know about or did not understand the IRS requirements implemented in 2006 (New York Times, April 22, 2010).
On June 17, 2010 The Chronicle of Philanthropy reported on a meeting of more than 400 grant makers and nonprofit leaders who gathered to “help charities with proven approaches for solving social problems.” Paul Carttar, director of the Social Innovation Fund, specifically cited that the problem is not a lack of good work by nonprofit organizations, but “if we don’t get better evidence about impact, the entire sector will still be vulnerable to making bad decisions because we are succumbing to our own myths and impressions and not relying on hard evidence about what works.”
This call for “hard evidence about what works” is echoed by private and public funders alike. It also requires nonprofit leaders and practitioners to have increased knowledge and expertise about their work.
The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University is an active and committed advocate ensuring the education and training of nonprofit leaders. More than 8,000 nonprofit practitioners and students annually turn to the Center on Philanthropy for education, expertise, guidance, training and research. Through academic and training programs, the Center engages current practitioners in meaningful and relevant research-based learning and best practices at all levels (B.A. through Ph.D.), and through certifications in fund raising management and nonprofit executive leadership.
At the heart of our mission is strengthening the nonprofit sector as a significant force for improving communities, institutions and people. Our work is founded on the belief that research and education informs and strengthens the work of nonprofit professionals and organizations and that the experience of professional practice demonstrates measurable impact in the nonprofit sector.
We would be proud recipients of the philanthropyeducation domain name in order to engage and attract those who care about philanthropy to the education resources at their fingertips. In spring 2011, the Center is launching a redesigned website with improved navigation, accessibility to information and information architecture. We would love the opportunity to integrate the philanthropyeducation URL into our plans and redesign.
Thanks Heather. I’ve received a number of email inquiries about the domains as well. I’ve instructed people that requests must be made as comments to this post. I’ll make my final decision on Monday.
Thanks for the interest!
The network of Social Venture Partners organizations in the US, Canada and Japan provides philanthropy education to its 2000 plus members. SVP shares the materials and tools freely with the nonprofit sector.
The SVP mission is two-fold:
Philanthropy Development: Creating communities of lifelong, informed and inspired philanthropists. SVP Partners are individuals who make meaningful contributions to nonprofit organizations by sharing their skills, time, and financial resources.
Capacity Building: Making strategic investments that build long-term capacity for nonprofits so they can better fill their missions.
As far as I am aware, we are the only organization focussed on philanthropy development and education which can demonstrate the substantial, quantitative impact of its work on donors: the survey reports are on the SVP network site, http://www.svpi.org/news/studies and reports. They show that as a result of involvement with SVP, with its particular focus on learning and understanding philanthropy and the nonprofit sector, donors give substantially more: are more strategic in their giving; volunteer more; and are more civically engaged.
I think SVP grant recipients would also attest to the quality of our philanthropy education philosophy. Our most recent report on how nonprofit capacity building outcomes is”Creating Opportunities, Relationships, and Significant Support”: A Nonprofit Report Card on SVP (November 2010.) Respondents rated SVP donors and strategic volunteers very highly for their approachability, knowledge and responsiveness. We received a particularly high rating for “Overall reputation among funders.”
Maybe I should let one of the nonprofit grant recipients provide the final word on the effectiveness of SVP’s philanthropy education and how this affects SVP’s work with nonprofits:
“Everyone has been fabulous. The breadth of knowledge, willingness to help [our organization] achieve its goals and seek out additional resources and genuine caring and
commitment to our mission has been nothing short of amazing.”
‐ 2010 Survey Participant
I vote for the NYU entity. Thanks.