The Social Sector often uses basic tools, like hammers and nails to change the world. Instead, we need power tools. Our weekly blog, Social TrendSpotter provides you with the latest trends and ideas within the social sector. It merges current thinking with the edge of innovation to inspire, to motivate and to take action so we can all ultimately create a better sector. Social TrendSpotter includes original analysis, but also highlights the latest sector-wide thinking into a user-friendly resource where social sector professionals and students alike can draw inspiration, share ideas and develop new thinking on best practices.
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Is this the Era of the Mayor?
Lyndon B. Johnson was famous for saying “When the burdens of the presidency seem unusually heavy, I always remind myself it could be worse. I could be mayor.” With congressional approval ratings at an all-time low, more attention has been focused on cities...
What is Social Intrapreneurship & How Will It Help Nonprofits and Social Entrepreneurs Create Positive Change?
While social entrepreneurship steals all the headlines, social intrapreneurship is a movement that is building momentum and for good reason. Today, we’re revisiting one of our most popular posts on the benefits of social intrapreneurship AND, in my personal...
Need Census Data for Your Next Grant? Try the Opportunity Index
We have all been here: it is one week before the grant proposal deadline, and your team is scrambling to find or verify the latest statistics on the community you serve and how they compare to the statewide average and similar counties. We need to know household...
Pearls of Wisdom: Advice to Rising Social Entrepreneurs
As social entrepreneurs, we are lucky. We live each day knowing that we are making a difference in the lives of others. It is a blessing, but it isn’t always easy. Now we have a new generation of millennial social entrepreneurs starting out – inspired by...
Hot Topics in the Social Sector, Podcast-style
Podcasts are all the rage. According to an annual survey by Infinite Dial, last year 1 in 4 people listened to them. Now, that number has risen to 1 in 3! A few people have asked me to start a podcast, and I strongly considered doing so. But, I have since realized it...
The Light at the End of the Tunnel: Opportunity Zones
I often encourage my nonprofit clients to think big about the communities they serve and to become a catalyst for new development within these communities (e.g., grocery stores, place-based centers). But, nonprofits are limited in what they alone can do. And,...
The Five C’s of an Effective Policymaker Meeting
Advocacy isn’t something that comes easily to everyone. I come from a long line of unsung heroes who served as teachers and counselors. I lovingly call them “social soldiers.” They put their heads down and got the work done, never seeking the credit. While I always...
More Than Marketing: Storytelling Is the Shot of Adrenaline Your Nonprofit Needs
Spring has sprung, and it is just what many of us in the social sector need to re-energize our efforts. Spring inspires us to think about new possibilities, adventures and dreams and encourages us to take steps toward positive change. One change we have noticed is...
Advancing Equity as a Core Value of the Social Sector
This week, the country honored the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., an American Baptist minister and activist who embodied the Civil Rights movement until his assassination in 1968. In honor of his great legacy advocating for social justice, this is the...
