The Rundown - May 13, 2022
The latest news and notes from the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors.
The Rundown - Crypto Crash Edition
If you have being paying attention many of the cryptocurrencies that have become a hot topic for investing have become even…..hotter. Many of these cryptocurrencies have melted down. The flagship Bitcoin is down 39% for the year, Ethereum, another cryptocurrency with over $238 billion in market capitalization is down nearly 50% over the same time period.
Why is this important to the nonprofit world? Well, many individuals are interested in donating cryptocurrency, just like they would with any other assets, such as stocks and bonds. (As an aside, we talked a little bit about cryptocurrency in this edition of The Rundown from back in January.) And the values of those investment vehicles can greatly change, both for the positive or the negative.
And just like our own personal finances, in the nonprofit world we need to understand the resources we are stewarding and what we are investments are. Nonprofit leaders would be well served by asking themselves some pretty important questions: Does your organization have a donation acceptance policy for these types of non-cash investments? Does your organization have a process on how to hold these types of non-cash investments?
Nothing would have been worse than getting a sizable donation of Luna cryptocurrency (that was running about $109 per unit in April) just to have it basically become worthless in five short weeks. A unit of Luna is currently trading for less than 1 cent.
This Week, I Learned a New Word, “Philanthrocapitalism”
Dafna Meitar-Nechmad is the Chair of the Board of Governors of Tel Aviv University in Israel and penned this opinion piece in the Jerusalem Post. In her piece, she expresses concern that Israeli philanthropy (and her argument could be extrapolated to the rest of the world) is becoming too stingy, too arrogant and too demanding of the nonprofit world to cater to the desires of those who are providing large philanthropic gifts. This behavior is described as “philanthrocapitalism” by The Economist
But Meitar-Nechmad takes the “philanthrocapitalism” concept and puts it on it’s head:
Contrary to common belief, honor and recognition are not always the motivation to give but rather a sense of satisfaction, solidarity and, of course, the ability to make things happen.
The author is spot on.
Most of our donors give to us because our cause is their cause. Our work is their work. They see the same problems we see and they view the challenges in much the same way. The good fundraiser links the good work of the nonprofit with the necessary resources of the philanthropist.
Give me a $1,000 donor that sees our work, understands our challenges and values our stewardship over $10,000 donor who does none of those things. Why? Because, over a lifetime, I can make that $1,000 donor a $10,000 donor. I can work with that person, I can build a relationship. People that want to give to our work, but don’t have a heart for what we do is fine, but odds are that donor is giving a one-time gift.
And Then I Learned a New Term, “Trust-Based Philanthropy”
This opinion piece was written by Emily Finchum-Mason and talked about how “Trust-Based Philanthropy” is becoming more of the norm when it comes to foundations granting funds to those organizations they support.
According to Finchum-Mason, Trust-Based Philanthropy can take on different forms, but these three seem the most plausible:
Funders are including unrestricted funding in their grant requests, meaning that money is provided to charities that choose how to spend it.
Funders are limiting (or at least streamlining) application and reporting requirements or making the reporting process a two-way conversation between the funder and the supported non-profit.
Funders are also letting grantees and communities that are supposed to benefit from funding weigh in on decision-making processes around the grant-making.
One of the better benefits of the Covid-19 pandemic was the attitude many foundations took with the organizations that they have partnered with. Many of these foundations worked with their grantees to streamline processes and get dollars out to the organizations as quickly as possible. And through it all, supported nonprofits and foundations were still serving the communities that they set out to serve. Important work was still being done and goals and objectives were still being accomplished.
The pandemic provided a framework, that I personally hope becomes more permanent. A framework where foundations and funders can work with non-profits in a true partnership model based on agreed upon goals and objectives, with the freedom that non-profits need to use dollars to get the work accomplished.
Is This Event on Your Calendar?
The Mosaic of Community Leadership Conference, hosted by the Paul G. Duke Academy for Community Leadership and the Edison State Center for Leadership Development is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, May 18th at Edison State Community College in Piqua, Ohio. This is a wonderful one-day conference that will feature Dr. Karen Townsend of KTownsend Consulting and multiple breakout sessions.
Check out more at this link!
What Can We Work on Together?
Did you know that Pinnacle Strategies works individually with nonprofit and public sector leaders to help them solve problems, achieve goals and gain confidence in their roles?
Why?
Because, this work is hard and it’s often a lonely road. Our nonprofit and public sector leaders need people that they can talk to to get solid advice and encouragement to do the work that is in front of them. If you feel that this can be of value to you, or a member of your team, please reach out to pinnaclestrategiesltd@gmail.com and let’s talk.
A Quick Note of Thanks!
Thank you all for subscribing to this newsletter. The subscription numbers continue to grow and from what I am learning, this side job seems like it has “sticking power”. I am not getting inquiries and calls from literally all over the world wanting to partner and work together to create value for you, the non profit and philanthropy leader. I feel very excited about the future of this newsletter and if you have any ideas or comments, please feel free to share them with me at pinnaclestrategiesltd@gmail.com
I know many of you have shared this with your friends and colleagues and I am very grateful. Thank you! If you haven’t shared it yet…..well, here is your chance….
Ready to Learn Something New?
Spring is a wonderful time to visit Indianapolis and it opens a perfect opportunity to sharpen your skills and meet new professionals in the field. I would encourage you to look at some of the offerings of The Fund Raising School at the Lilly School of Philanthropy at Indiana University’s campus in Indianapolis. The professional development school has great programming both on-line and in-person both in Indianapolis and at other sites across the country. Take a look at their course offerings here!
Other Ways to Connect
Our coaching practice has openings starting here in 2022. If you are interested in working with me to get your nonprofit organization on a track to achieve the big missions you have for your organization, please reach out to me at pinnaclestrategiesltd@gmail.com.
Here are some other ways you can keep in contact with Pinnacle Strategies!
Check us out on our LinkedIn Page
Check us out on the Celebrating Leadership Facebook Page.