Friday Rewind

The Friday Rewind offers a snapshot of PhilanthroNews —  that means news stories, articles, events of note, or information updates — from around our network and throughout the broad world of philanthropy. Whether you take a quick skim of the material or a deep dive through each item we hope to help inform your work and inspire your thinking.

1.  How is the current economic and political environment impacting the capacity building needs of social-change leaders, nonprofits, networks, and movements? How are funders responding to these changing needs, and how can they better support this work going forward? This report, “The New Normal: Capacity Building During a Time of Disruption” from Open Impact, explores these questions and makes recommendations for how philanthropy can better support social change during times of  upheaval.
2. How can grantmakers expect nonprofits to deliver on their missions when many of them are struggling just to stay afloat? How can grantmakers expect nonprofits to perform effectively when they don’t have the funds they need to invest in decent salaries, technology and other infrastructure? As grantmakers determine how best to help nonprofits succeed in this difficult environment, one practice stands out as part of the solution: general operating support. Nonprofits can use this unrestricted funding as they see fit to address urgent and emerging issues, boost salaries and benefits, invest in technology and other infrastructure, strengthen communications and fundraising efforts and meet other operational needs. This piece from Grantmakers for Effective Organizations lays out the key components of general operating, or unrestricted, support and why it is important for both nonprofits and grantmakers alike grantmaking. Read it Here
3. To make gender equity a reality, philanthropy has to think boldly about how best to make a difference. That means, in addition to funding nonprofit partners that provide critical services and support to women, investing in developing policy that transforms systems and enables women and girls to reach their full potential is another method of inspiring change. This article from Inside Philanthropy gives several lessons and important takeaways in policy wins that help create equal opportunity for women.
4. There is understandable angst within and for the charitable sector regarding 2017’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. There are many unknowns, especially about the impact on charitable giving. There are ambiguities that make compliance difficult, at best. But the Act poses more than financial threats to the charitable sector. Certain provisions undermine the very notion of being tax “exempt” while at the same time eroding the sector’s fundamental character in service to our nation and its core principles. Both conclusions follow from the Act obfuscating what should seem obvious: charitable organizations and businesses are not the same. In fact, three provisions of the Act either overtly equate nonprofit charities with for-profit businesses or treat charities worse financially. Read them in this article from Philanthropy Daily
5. In this episode from Independent Sector, Dan Cardinali joins Paul Daugherty, president and CEO of Philanthropy West Virginia, to discuss what philanthropy at large can learn about civil society in rural communities. Dan and Paul break down Allen Smart and Betsey Russell’s piece in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, “What Rural America Can Teach Us About Civil Society.” During the conversation, Paul emphasizes that rural communities often provide a unique perspective for national conversations.

Friday Rewind is published each Friday by NY Funders Alliance staff. To submit a story for the Friday Rewind, please email programs@nyfunders.org.