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Resource Library
This page provides links to and downloads of information and organizations we hope you find useful.
Resources for Nonprofits
Resources for Donors/Philanthropists
SVP Partners can login to access more resources in each of the above areas.
Resources for Nonprofits
General Capacity Building
The Alliance for Nonprofit Management is the professional association of individuals and organizations devoted to improving the management and governance capacity of nonprofits, to assist nonprofits in fulfilling their mission.
Grantmakers for Effective Organizations advances and expands organizational effectiveness practices in and by the philanthropic community. Their website has a growing list of resources and research.
The Bridgespan Group is a nonprofit organization bringing leading-edge strategies and tools to the challenges and opportunities facing nonprofit organizations and foundations. They believe that nonprofits are the best hope for addressing many of today’s pressing social and environmental problems. Bridgespan exists to apply the best thinking to the task of building stronger and more effective nonprofit organizations.
The Free Management Library provides easy-to-access, clutter-free, comprehensive resources regarding the leadership and management of yourself, other individuals, groups and organizations. Content is relevant to the vast majority of people, whether they are in large or small for-profit or nonprofit organizations.
Engaged Grantmaking
REDF (San Francisco, CA) has a portfolio of nonprofit organizations in the Bay Area currently operating revenue-generating social enterprises providing transitional and permanent employment to low income and formerly homeless individuals. On the website are excellent FAQs about engaged grantmaking and nonprofit enterprise.
Robin Hood Foundation (New York, NY) aims to end poverty in New York City by forming long-term relationships with a wide range of children's, job training, poverty and educational programs in NYC. Robin Hood provides extensive management and technical assistance through its staff.
Venture Philanthropy Partners (Washington, DC) is an initiative of the Morino Institute that uses engaged grantmaking principals to improve services to youth living in low-income areas in the region. Their site includes some excellent documents and speeches, including Venture Philanthropy: Landscape and Expectations.
New Profit, Inc. (Boston, MA) attracts new financial and intellectual capital to the nonprofit sector and develops new financing mechanisms for investing in social entrepreneurs. NP focuses on long-term, significant investments in a small number of nonprofits and mentors those organizations, serving on their boards, connecting them to service providers and financial supporters.
Center for Venture Philanthropy at Silicon Valley Community Foundation was launched in 1999 to create an environment where community donors could collaborate and drive positive change in our communities. Investors work directly with the Center for Venture Philanthropy staff and nonprofit leaders to understand community and nonprofit issues, problem-solve and structure their investments.
Resources for Donors/Philanthropists
Grantmaking
The Foundation Center offers many resources for grantseekers and grantmakers.
Grantmakers for Effective Organizations, a network of people located both in and outside the United States, is dedicated to promoting learning and encouraging dialogue among funders committed to the field of organizational effectiveness.
Cultural Competency
The Annie E. Casey Foundation published a starter’s guide for exploring diversity training and building culturally competent organizations.
Minnesota Council on Foundations offers a brief framework for exploring why diversity issues are important in philanthropy.
The Forum of Regional Associations of Grantmakers launched an online Racial, Ethnic, Tribal Philanthropy Knowledge Center, which contains a number of “how-to” documents on many aspects of starting and sustaining a racial, ethnic or tribal fund and donor education project.
Motivation and Integration
Washington Courage and Renewal offers workshops and retreats to renew and sustain the integrity, courage and commitment of those who serve children, families and communities.
More than Money publishes a magazine and conducts programs to support people who want to examine the role of money in their lives and act on their values.
Inspired Philanthropy: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Creating a Giving Plan, 2nd Edition, by Gary, Tracy and Melissa Kohner. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 2002. Learn how to create a giving plan that aligns your giving with your values through clear text and substantive exercises. This is applicable to giving of both time and money.
Issues
Environmental Grantmakers Association, a voluntary association of foundations and giving programs concerned with the protection of the natural environment, works to increase awareness of the relationships between environmental grantmaking and other areas of grantmaking and to encourage all types of philanthropic programs to support environmentally related activities. In addition, EGA provides the means by which members can improve their effectiveness as grantmakers and works to increase the resources available to address environmental concerns.
Grantmakers for Children, Youth & Families is a membership association of grantmaking institutions established to increase the ability of organized philanthropy to improve the well-being of children, youth and families. GCYF serves as a forum to review and analyze grantmaking strategies, exchange information about effective programs, examine public policy developments and maintain ongoing discussions with national leaders.
Grantmakers for Education is a membership organization for private and public grantmakers that supports education from early childhood through K-12 and beyond.
Grantmakers in the Arts represents over 250 organizations. It is a nonprofit membership organization comprised of private foundations, family foundations, community foundations, corporate foundations, corporate giving programs and nonprofit organizations that make arts grants. GIA welcomes public-sector grantmakers as affiliate members.
Three Guineas Fund (San Francisco, CA) promotes social justice by creating opportunity for women and girls in education and the economy. The Fund is focused on access to economic independence for women and empowering girls on the threshold of adulthood.
Philanthropy Northwest’s list of Affinity Groups allows grantmakers with common concerns to share ideas about problems and emerging issues and to listen to experts on these matters.
Nonprofit Sector
Background Reading
America’s Nonprofit Sector: A Primer, Lester Salamon. 2nd Ed. New York: The Foundation Center, 1999. A thorough and accessible guidebook defining the basic scope, structure, operation and role of the nonprofit sector within the U.S. in relation to government and the business community.
What is a nonprofit? offers a simple, broad description of nonprofits, touching on public perceptions and legal issues.
Rethinking Nonprofit Scaling: Should Our Focus Be On Growth? May 25, 2007 interview of Paul Shoemaker, Executive Director of Social Ventures Partners Seattle
Publications
The Nonprofit Quarterly is a print magazine with current topics and trends in the nonprofit sector.
The Philanthropy Journal is a publication of the A.J. Fletcher Foundation in Raleigh, N.C., whose vision is to help people understand, support and work in the nonprofit and philanthropic world, and help them recognize and solve social problems. They deliver news, information and opinion about charitable giving, fundraising and management, focusing in particular on organizational effectiveness, donor engagement and collaboration. They report on philanthropy and nonprofits throughout the U.S. and abroad.
Stanford Social Innovation Review is a magazine (available in print or online) covering best strategies for nonprofits, foundations and socially responsible businesses. Their website also has an opinion blog and publishes podcasts of some of their events with recognized “thought leaders” in the nonprofit sector.
Organizations
Association of Fundraising Professionals is a Professional association of individuals responsible for generating philanthropic support for a wide variety of nonprofit, charitable organizations.
The Independent Sector is a coalition of corporations, foundations, and private voluntary organizations that works to strengthen America's nonprofit organizations.
Executive Courses/Degree Programs
University of Washington’s Daniel J Evans School of Public Affairs offers a masters degree program in public policy and management and also offers executive courses through their Cascade Center for Public Service and Leadership.
Seattle University has an Executive Masters in Nonprofit Leadership Program.
Volunteering
Idealist.org is a clearinghouse of volunteer opportunities and resources globally, including "Ten Tips to Volunteering Wisely" and the "Idealist Volunteer Guide."
