Earlier this week, I uploaded MCF’s recent research reports to IssueLab, an online aggregator and distributor of research produced by nonprofit organizations, and an official honoree of the 13th Annual Webby Awards. IssueLab provides a much-needed service for writers and readers of social research, including research on philanthropy and nonprofits.
IssueLab’s mission is to archive, distribute and promote the body of research work being produced by the third sector, much of which has been (until now) unpublished, hard to find, or archived in issue-specific silos. To achieve this goal, IssueLab disseminates updates on its research holdings via an RSS feed (or e-mail, if you prefer) and through its LabRat function, which allows users to maintain a personal research library, as well as to rate and comment on research holdings. In addition, IssueLab does outreach to specific communities of bloggers, journalists, advocates, and policymakers, who might be interested in research that has recently been uploaded.
Contributors to IssueLab include some of the largest, most well-respected research organizations around the country, such as the Urban Institute, MDRC, and the Annie E. Casey Foundation, as well as smaller, issue-specific nonprofits, such as The National Shooting Sports Foundation and Healthy Teen Network.
Perusing the research holdings, I was able to locate quickly several articles that might be of interest to the MCF community, including, Effective Foundation Boards: The Importance of Roles by Christine Letts of the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations; Creating an Online Information Marketplace for Giving by Paul Brest of the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation; and Advancing Good Governance: How Grantmakers Invest in the Governance of Nonprofit Organizations by Kathy K. Hedge and co. at FSG Social Impact Advisors.
Billions of nonprofit dollars are spent each year to produce research on social issues. It’s about time we got smarter about archiving and disseminating it. I look forward to continuing to use IssueLab and hope others in the nonprofit research community will see value in this free service and contribute to the online archive.
–Juliana Tillema, MCF research manager
