nonprofits

There is a bit of tension in the nonprofit sector. Boomers are concerned about what they see as a crisis of leadership - they've invested years in their causes, and are not entirely comfortable stepping out of the way and leaving a void too large for the next generation to fill. At the same time, I spent some time this week talking to a group of Millennials at Council on Foundations and Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy's preconference session, and a recurring theme was the need for mentoring and lack of opportunities to engage with seasoned leaders in our sector and receive help charting our own careers in the business of changing the world.

At the risk of sounding like a young and entitled Millennial, I would say that many of us are eager to lead, and while we do lack many of the experiences of our predecessors, we also have valuable technology and social media skills, a different leadership style, which can be more inclusive and draw a new group of people who have been feeling jaded or disengaged, and an insistence on a double-bottom line – all of which are beginning to change the ways we support the causes we care about.

I wonder if there isn't a solution to these issues in creating intergenerational skilled volunteering programs. Especially with the economic crisis, nonprofits will need to rely more on pro bono work - not just for legal services, but for fundraising, marketing, HR programs, websites and more. In this, let's face it, slightly depressing job market Millennials like myself are eager to gain valuable experiences to beef up our resumes and find opportunities to establish ourselves as leaders. And most Boomers will admit that while they have mastered many things, understanding why someone might poke them on facebook, isn't one of them.

You might be thinking this is obvious, and I know I’m not the only person to ever suggest intergenerational learning – but my peers and I are still having trouble finding access to these opportunities. I attended a panel on corporate volunteering at COF, I didn’t hear any examples of programs which intentionally brought Millennials and Boomers together where they could give back and learn from each other. A few people mentioned the added benefit of being able to connect with senior leadership or potential mentors that they would otherwise not have a chance to interact with, but it seemed largely anecdotal and left to chance. While they might take increased coordination at first, I would love to see Millennials and Boomers learning from each other - while helping a cause they're passionate about. Are there good models that I’m missing? Why don’t we see more of this?

With video recording and publishing readily accessible through smart phones, flip cams and even the “old-fashioned” digital camera -- nonprofits are finding new and low cost ways to create compelling stories of their good work.  

1. Go to "edit" your video: and fill out the fields in the section marked “Call to Action Overlay”
2. Click “save,” cross your fingers, and the overlay should appear on your video

• Last month the Chronicle of Philanthropy hosted a very rich online chat called Using Video to Spread Your Nonprofit's Message and Mission.
• Nancy Schwartz offers her picks of 6 Nonprofits Who are Putting Great Online Video to Work along with links to the videos.
• Michael Hoffman at See3 Communications offers readers his 11 Tips for Using Online Video to Raise Money
• Need a camera? Flip Cam is giving cameras to eligible nonprofits through their Flip Video Spotlight Program.

Last week as Mark Zuckerberg began to unveil the features of the now highly anticipated Facebook redesign (the second in less than a year), I posed the following question on my Twitter feed: “Interested to see if the new facebook redesign helps or hurts NPOs and their causes. Hope it helps, any ideas?”

The new interface means more sharing and communicating. This will allow donors, activists, volunteers and constituents to engage in real, substantive ongoing conversations. The applications which were such a central part of the Facebook user experience a year ago, will diminish as the authentic voice of the nonprofits and their constituents will have the opportunity to take a more active role.  Gone are the days of being limited to only sharing your message with your immediate fans or supporters. Updates to an organization's Wall or other discussion sat idle and were never broadcast – in other words, if your fans and supporters didn’t return to your page, they would never know a new discussion was happening. Now, they won’t have to go to your page to interact, they will see updates in their newsfeeds and participate as part of your community.

I just finished the new book, Working Across Generations, from the Movement Building Project folks, Frances Kunreuther, Helen Kim and Robby Rodriguez. It's a really terrific read and roadmap of the difficulties of this moment of leadership transition from Boomers to the rest of us.

The Chronicle of Philanthropy recently posted information about the Department of Education’s request for feedback on proposed regulations regarding implementation of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007.

Come again?

Basically, this new law forgives the remaining debt of student loan recipients who have worked as full-time “public service employees” for a period of 10 consecutive years while making their payments. In other words, you graduate, land a solid gig at a nonprofit, government agency, or other still-to-be-defined “public service” employer, and you won’t have to pay any more monthly debt owed after 10 years working there or remaining in the sector.