What image pops into your head when you think of the future and innovation? Do you think of someone young and hip playing with the latest electronic gadget? I can’t help but wonder if in our fast paced drive to look and move into the future that we often discount the important role and function of older Americans as critical participants and creators of that hip future.
Archive for the ‘Civic Engagement and Volunteerism’ Category
Age of Innovation
Tuesday, November 24th, 2009
Leadership and innovation needed as we face the future
Saturday, November 7th, 2009As the 2009 Independent Sector/Council of Michigan Foundations annual conference wound down today, I marveled at the thematic unity that emerged about the future of the nonprofit sector: leadership, innovation, and respectful dialogue are critical competencies in supporting what is increasingly understood to be a necessary re-conceptualization of how we approach our work – especially in relation to other organizations and sectors.
Big Problems, Big Solutions
Friday, November 6th, 2009Geoffrey Canada, president and CEO of Harlem Children’s Zone, spoke at Independent Sector last night. He was awarded the 2009 John W. Gardner Leadership Award “in recognition of his groundbreaking success in helping children and families in Central Harlem to break the cycle of generational poverty.” In a word, he is amazing. Visionary, inspirational, entertaining… a model for all of us. His work with the Harlem Children’s Zone exemplifies an approach that is receiving a lot of attention at this conference, and rightly so: we cannot work in silos, attacking a problem from one angle only. To be truly successful, we need to think much more holistically. It’s not just violence, or hunger, or education, or parenting skills… to address big problems, we need big solutions – solutions that address all elements of life in the community we’re trying to serve. One organization can try to do that alone, but it is in partnership with others that the true potential for greatness lies.
New Podcast: How Social Media Impacts the Social Sector
Wednesday, November 4th, 2009In this podcast, we interview Beth Kanter, author of Beth’s Blog: How Nonprofits Can Use Social Media, and Michael Hoffman, CEO of see3 Communications. Beth and Michael comment on the impact of web 2.0 on the social sector, including how nonprofits are increasingly using networks to get their work done and how smaller nonprofits can leverage technology to get their message out.
Download the Podcast with Beth Kanter and Michael Hoffman (.mp3, 4.5 mb) and tell us what you think.
Civic Engagement and Volunteerism
Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009Designing and managing meaningful and mission-advancing volunteer opportunities for a diverse array of individuals and interests takes time and investment.
How might networks of social benefit organizations work together to make that more feasible for each one individually?
