Spotlight Archive

Be Proactive in Your Giving Smart givers generally don't give reactively in a knee-jerk reaction. They don't respond to the first organization that appeals for help. They take the time to identify which causes are most important to them and their families. And they are specific about the change they want to effect. For example, they don't just support generic cancer charities, but instead have targeted outcome goals for their giving, such as providing mammograms to at-risk women in their community.
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How can parents make the spirit of giving a way of life for their children? If you want your children to acquire the habit of charity, consider implementing as a family the strategies that follow:
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As one year ends and another begins, it's time to set some new goals. How will you use your time to have more fun, be more productive, and make 2007 a great year? One way to make a difference while hanging out with your friends and meeting new people is to volunteer. Do it your way. Serve through your school, church, synagogue, or mosque. Volunteer on your own, or get together with your friends, family, co-workers, or neighbors. Join an existing project or create your own. Here's some help to get you started.
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The average tax refund this year is $2,379, according to USA Today, and three of four taxpayers are getting one. The question is: What to do with all that money? Before you splurge on something you could probably do without, consider this: Your refund could do the world some good.
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Here we are: the holidays. Every year, I promise myself I'll stay clear of the malls, avoiding the crowds and commercialism that seem to be a mainstay from November 1 on. Yet inevitably I, like many others, get immersed in the last-minute frenzy of it all. I usually find myself in one store or another, pushing past a mosh pit of mothers and sons and brothers -- all on a similar mission. We all need to find the perfect gift, and we need to find it now. But what is the perfect gift, especially when most everyone we know has more than enough?
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Whether you're a U.S. service member returning home from a tour of duty with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or a young military wife whose four-year-old has had nightmares since her father's deployment to Iraq, a nonprofit organization known as Give an Hour is ready to connect you with a volunteer mental health professional willing to help.
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An Interview with Alison Goldberg Within the next 50 years, an estimated $41 trillion in wealth will be transferred from one generation to the next. Many people wonder: How will the next generation of philanthropists direct these resources? What impact will they have on philanthropy's future?
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Get political Get informed Get going Get heard Get connected Get recognized   Get political Voting is fundamental to our democracy. Several states have same-day voter registration and many have registration available at the DMV or post office.  
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The world of philanthropy and the world around philanthropy are changing. To thrive, foundations must reinvigorate their approaches by being more visionary, collaborative, and innovative, according to Steve Case, chairman of the Case Foundation. Many of those changes are already coming, including a new crop of philanthropists with fresh ideas and approaches.
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Q+A with author Allison Fine After reading Allison Fine's book Momentum: Igniting Social Change in the Connected Age, we were eager to talk with her about her tips, warnings, and predictions about the role of technology in advancing social change. She asserts that tools like email, the web, cell phones, PDAs, and iPods are most important not because of their wizardry, but because they connect people in inexpensive, accessible, and scaleable ways.
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Getting citizens more involved in the civic life and health of their communities must begin with citizens themselves, according to Citizens at the Center: A New Approach to Civic Engagement, written by Dr. Cynthia Gibson and commissioned by the Case Foundation.
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The modern era has ushered in tremendous progress in nearly every facet of human life, from science to medicine to transportation to communications. Advancements in technology and global trade have made the world community more connected than at any other point in human history. Yet for all of our unparalleled recent advancements, there is still progress to be made in learning to live together peacefully and cooperatively.
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