Summer. A slower time of year. The long days unfold as the bluest skies turn into beautiful sunsets over the horizon. The season allows us to pause, appreciate beauty and focus on the present. It allows us to lean into human “being” versus human “doing.” As we officially enter the summer months, we hope you have time to catch up on your reading and reflections. To that end, we want to share our Social TrendSpotters’ favorite posts on hot nonprofit trends.
Hottest Topic:
Advocacy
Earlier this year, everyone was watching Washington D.C. for hints on priorities at the start of the Biden Administration. We addressed these priorities in two posts – what nonprofits can do to support economic recovery and an appeal to President Biden and Republican leadership about what is needed to support efforts at the grassroots level. Read them to find out what we thought was missing then and what is still missing from the first five months of policy.
Most Popular Blog:
Theory of Change: Mapping Your Own North Star
Don’t miss out on our all-time favorite way to teach theories of change and logic models! Read this blog if you are having trouble identifying the secret to your success.
Most Popular Guest Blog Post:
How to Build an Inclusive Board – Carole Rylander, Rachel Branaman & Barbara Shelton
EDI – Equity, Diversity and Inclusion – is the hot topic in board rooms across the country this year. In the most popular guest blog of 2021, nonprofit experts share how boards can dig deep to build more equitable and inclusive organizations.
Best Blog for Your Summer Beach Reading/Listening List:
The Great Nonprofit RESET: Nonprofit Trends & Actions for 2021
Written after our popular webinar, this post by Social Impact Architects and other nonprofit experts examines the results of a survey we conducted in late 2020 of nonprofits about their hopes and fears coming out of the pandemic. We covered everything from Google changes to how to plan for the coming year. If you want a checklist to check your progress, this is the blog for you.
Most Likely to Succeed – #WayBackWeekend Blog:
7 Actions Nonprofits Can Take to Be Anti-Racist Organizations
Favorite TrendSpotter:
We got a chance to work with the amazing David Claps – he brought skill, humor and innovative thinking to his work. We are excited that he is joining FSG, a national nonprofit consulting firm. David, you are a TrendSpotter for life!
Favorite Quote:
“When a flower doesn’t bloom, you fix the environment in which it grows, not the flower.”
~ A. Den Heijer
Favorite Quote Pic:
We have been preaching the gospel of “upstream” work for the past decade – find out why it is a strategy you should consider in your organization, coalitions and policy work.
Top Tweet:
Have you heard of The 5 Love Languages? For #ValentinesDay, we applied it to #nonprofit #socent #donors & #volunteers. Discover a variety of creative ways to show them just how much they mean to you! Tawnia Wise, Wise Resource Development and Aimee Sheahan, Sheahan Communications #socialtrendspot #socialtrendspotter
One of my favorite Beatles songs is “With a Little Help from my Friends” from the 1967 album, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.” Without fellow consulting partners, life would not be as fun. HUGE thanks to Aimee Sheahan and Tawnia Wise for always being game to our crazy ideas – including a webinar and blog on The 5 Love Languages for Valentine’s Day!
Most Talked About Video:
Zoom is the new training medium, and we have “Zoomed” a lot this year. Our favorite training series was for the Truckee Tahoe Community Foundation. Along with our friends, we presented a full series on Project ACT (Achieving Capacity Together). Our CEO, Suzanne Smith, led sessions on her specialties – strategy, impact and governance – which were highly rated. They are available online for anyone to watch. We were thrilled with this feedback from a nonprofit CEO: “Suzanne … has so much knowledge and is great at talking about things in ways that make the next steps obvious.”
Favorite Reader Comment:
From @Toni_Blumeris
“What was a murky water of definitions is getting clearer! This is a worthy read.”
What is the Difference between Social Innovation, Social Enterprise & Social Entrepreneurship?
If you missed it or want to see the video version, check it out on our new and improved Vimeo and YouTube sites.
It is our privilege to come to your inbox every Thursday with new and engaging content that helps you think deeper about the hottest topics in the social sector. If you enjoy our work, please help us spread the word by forwarding this newsletter to your colleagues and follow us on social media. We curate trends just for you every day on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram. This 4th of July we hope you take advantage of the holiday to be a human “being.”
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