An economic and political climate that calls out for creating community wealth

A recent Chronicle of Philanthropy article (http://philanthropy.com/article/Nonprofits-Seek-Ways-to-Cope/125838/?sid=&utm_source=&utm_medium=en) about the economic peril facing most nonprofits begins as below and essentially makes the case for why nonprofits need CWV in the current economic and political climate.

“The year 2011 is shaping up to be even more difficult than 2010 for many charities. While donations from individuals seem to be rising as the economy improves, foundation giving remains flat, and corporate contributions have yet to rebound. Federal stimulus money will soon come to an end, and many charities have already tapped their rainy-day funds to respond to increased demand for their services and to stave off significant cutbacks.”

Let’s not lose sight of the fact that while our work is always important, it is even more relevant, if not absolutely critical now. An increasingly important part of our job going forward to is to help individual nonprofits as well as foundations and philanthropic institutions to see clearly the short term investments that are necessary to navigate what is surely a painful and long-term disruption to traditional sources of revenue.

Community Wealth Ventures by itself is of course not a panacea for all of the challenges nonprofits face. But our focus on sustainability strategies that range from earned income ventures to talent management has never been more on target.