What does it mean to "fund the people"? Many funders will earnestly and forthrightly state, "when it comes down to it, we fund people." That alway sends a good kind of shiver down my spine. It is a recognition that below all the talk of strategy, the power of relationships, intuition, and passion are still alive. It [...]

What if Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had just marched up to the pulpit of his upper middle class church -- and stayed there, instead of marching into the center of the Civil Rights Movement? What if Rosa Parks had not had access to training in civil disobedience and community leadership? What if Ghandi had spent his years [...]

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has released new data about nonprofit sector employment. Here are BLS slides with the data findings. Some important highlights: Employment for nonprofit organizations steadily increased from 2007 through 2012 Nonprofits accounted for 10.3% of all private sector employment (11.4 million employees) in 2012 Nonprofit wages accounted for 9.8% of total private wages ($532 billion) If we had data like this each updated annually by the government, we would be much better equipped to tell an impressive story: Nonprofit professionals compose a large, important part of the economy and society. We are job-creators. We are economic drivers as well as cultural, education, health and social service providers in  our communities. And our sector gets going when the rest of the economy recedes. Now is the time nonprofit leaders to take action. Here’s a Flyer that tells you how you can educate the Bureau about the potential benefits of counting us annually. Take a minute to educate the BLS staff by commenting on the Bureau’s website today. We owe this development to the ground-breaking research and influence of John Hopkins University’s Center for Civil Society Studies and the Aspen Institute’s Program on Philanthropy and Social Innovation. […]