Economy:
- Nonprofits Face Funding Cuts and Waning Donations
Star Tribune: Social-services providers are struggling to stay on course as federal and local governments plan budget cuts. - Endowments Grow Wary, But See Opportunities
Reuters: At least one group of high-powered investors appears to be holding true to industry doctrine and not selling into a panicked market. - Campus Fundraising Just Got a Lot Harder
Star Tribune: In an uncertain economy, colleges are finding donors much more cautious and tight when asked to contribute. - EBay Founder’s Philanthropic Firm To Donate More
Wall Street Journal: The billionaire founder of eBay Inc., Pierre Omidyar, is expanding his philanthropic investment firm, as some of the biggest private foundations continue to weather the growing economic turmoil. - Seeking Gifts in Uncertain Times
Chronicle of Philanthropy discussion transcript.
Local:
- Teen Challenge’s Petters Investments: A Wake-Up Call for Nonprofits
MinnPost: Minnesota Teen Challenge will try to rebuild its finances and credibility after apparently large investment losses in Petters Co., a company now being investigated for fraud. It’s a wake-up call for other nonprofits to review their investment policies and portfolios. - Four Big Clients Sue Wells Fargo Over Investment Loss
Star Tribune: The Minnesota Workers’ Compensation Reinsurance Association, the Minnesota Medical Foundation, the Minneapolis Foundation and the Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi Foundation for Children asked a judge to find Wells Fargo in violation of state consumer fraud and unlawful trade practices laws and to pay unspecified damages and return several hundred million dollars in related securities. - St. James Receives Town Meeting Grant
Mankato Free Press: A $15,000 grant from Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation will be used toward the completion of a “community-selected project” about entrepreneurs and experiential career education for students. - A Poet Hooked on Rhyme, Reason and Recycling
MinnPost profile of one of The McKnight Foundations’ writer fellows.
National/international:
- Charities Urge Next President to Expand Giving Incentives
Chronicle of Philanthropy: As charities grapple with the economic crisis, their executives would like to see the next president take steps to promote giving and to strengthen the nonprofit work force, according to a report released by the Johns Hopkins Center for Civil Society Studies. - Nobody Does It Better
Wall Street Journal: Should the charitable tax deduction be reserved only for those organizations that can show they are directly serving “the poor and disadvantaged”? If the IRS begins micromanaging the charitable tax deduction, it is hard to know where it will stop. - Post-Cyclone Aid Divides Myanmar Between the Helped and the Helpless
New York Times: Outside the delta, the list of those in need of food and medical attention in Myanmar is long and distressing. - Wal-Mart Charity Chief: Nonprofits Must Team Up
Boston Herald: Instead of fighting for survival in an economic downturn, these groups ought to be looking for ways to work together while continuing their mission, Margaret McKenna said. - Gates Foundation Searches Out Nontypical Research to Fund
Wall Street Journal: The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will give $100 million in small doses to researchers doing novel medical-research experiments — part of a new way to use the Web to reach medical researchers who might be missed in a traditional grant-selection process. - Gifts to Pet Charities Keep Lawmakers Happy
New York Times: During the first six months of 2008, lobbyists, corporations and interest groups gave approximately $13 million to charities and nonprofit organizations in honor of more than 200 members of the House and Senate. - On Capitol Hill: Philanthropy Caucus
NonProfit Times: With staff turnover expected in the House, Senate and administration after the fall elections, a new Senate caucus will help to educate those on The Hill about the nonprofit sector.
