In the five years since PhilanthroMedia began writing, the world of philanthropy has changed a lot. What has remained the same, however, is the utility of the (735!) posts that our many authors have put together. We're deeply happy with the library of information we've built on the subject of philanthropy, and wish we could keep on going forever. However, due to the economy, we've being forced to shut our e-doors. But don't fear! We probably will post now and then, as we can't help but be a part of this dynamic field. Furthermore, the site will stay up as a resource for gaining tools and strategies which will help anyone working in the philanthropic/non-profit sector.

And PhilanthroMedia isn't going anywhere, either. We're starting a new gig with the Communications Network, and both Susan and Dana will be writing for their blog and article database. It's been a great run, and we appreciate your readership and comments. Keep on giving!

Hollywood and Marvel Comics are missing a bet if they don't pick up where the final season of HBO's The Wire left off by tapping the drama inherent in the decimation of America's newspaper industry.

Consider the cast of characters. An Evil Publisher -- like the Los Angeles Times’ David Hiller, who gutted his award-winning newsroom to save the once-enormous profits it generated. A Valiant Chief Editor -- like James O'Shea who got the boot from Hiller for standing up for his scrappy reporters. A Deluded Entrepreneur -- like real estate tycoon Sam Zell, whose leveraged buyout of both the Chicago Tribune and the LA Times proved he thinks he can hold back the ocean. Add to the mix a motley assortment of Nefarious Punks, including DailyKos founder Markos "Kos" Moulitsas and Dastardly Diva Ariana Huffington, who is old enough to know better but is still ruining everything! Bang! Pow! Ratta-tat-tat!

As reported by the Philanthropy News Digest, the New York Foundation for the Arts has begun a new program that will provide discounted office space for arts organizations in New York City. The one catch? You must be a NYFA-affiliated artist or organization ("This includes past and current NYFA fellows, SOS or BUILD recipients, Immigrant Artist Mentors or Mentees, and/or currently sponsored artists and emerging organizations").

Changing times require creative action. The transition our society is amidst necessitates new ways of looking at problems, new solutions, a new type of change agent. At Harbourton Foundation, we believe that one does not need an MBA to become a social entrepreneur. Your average citizen can become an active agent for community innovation and change. Similarly, there is not a dearth of good ideas, but there are numerous roadblocks that prevent such ideas from taking root and sprouting change.

Herald the news: Congress has authorized a Social Innovation Fund housed at the Corporation for National and Community Service and President Obama’s 2010 budget allots $50 million for the first year. According to the New York Times:

If grantees are chosen wisely, and strictly on their merits, this $50 million investment could jump-start the larger effort and reap benefits worth many times over.

I know everyone who's reading this blog has one thing in common: they're counting the moments until somebody finally invents a pen that they can eat. Well, DBA, a local green design firm to New York, has brought us one step closer with their 98% bio-degradable pen. It may not taste so good, but it sure does compost well, compared to a Bic. I saw these folks give a sales pitch in the final competition levels of Brooklyn Green Space's Green Business Competition a couple weeks back, and they have some pretty keen ideas.

Tip of the hat to James Irvine President James E. Canales (pictured) for writing in an op-ed a recent Chronicle of Philanthropy that foundations should communicate more openly and engage more people in their work as part of an effort to “end bad habits” that limit their effectiveness. Canales says the current economic slump, and how it's forcing foundations to take a close look about how they operate, also offers unprecedented opportunities to "remind ourselves that how we do our work can be just as important as what we choose to do."

Among the habits that foundations need to break, says Canales, are those that give rise to "insularity, complacency, and arrogance." and which ultimately hamper their ability to work with and engage others outside their walls.

Last night, I had the pleasure to see the poorly-reviewed, yet undeniably masterful play, The Philanthropist, starring Matthew Broderick. Don't listen to the reviews, folks- this play was expertly acted, and had so many nuggets of unique thought, and such a proliferation of "ah-ha!" moments, that it is definitely worth the trip. Anyhow, as you might guess, the play got me thinking about philanthropy. About why people choose to be philanthropists, about how people give, and about the effectiveness of that giving.

Philanthropy New York held a panel discussion in New York City last week with the catchy title, Internet to Newspapers: Drop Dead. The panel featured Steve Coll, President of New America Foundation, and a staff writer at The New Yorker magazine; Nicholas Lemann, Dean and Henry R. Luce Professor at the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University; and Victor Pickard, Senior Research Fellow at the media reform organization, Free Press. Vincent Stehle, Program Director, Surdna Foundation, moderated the discussion.

It's always important for donors to be aware of to whom, exactly, they are giving their hard-earned money, and the FTC is finally taking charge of the growing problem of philanthropic scammers. Last week, the Federal Trade Commission announced a new program to pursue and prosecute fundraisers whose schemes have proven to be bogus. Named "Operation False Charity," this program is going after fraudulent solicitors who use persuasive messages to get donations which they funnel into their own coffers.

Recognizing the value of good information for discerning donors, John Sauer submitted his latest blog entry on Huffington Post -- co-written with colleague Andra Tamburro at Water Advocates -- about the overlooked burden that lack of access to safe drinking water and sanitation places on women. (Photo Credit: John Kayser, Water for People.) According to John and Andra's post:

Whether a woman lives in Africa, South America or Asia, one of her primary tasks is to gather water for her family. There is no convenience of indoor plumbing for these women. Compare the trek you make to your bathroom or kitchen for a glass of water to the journey women in the developing world must make -- 3 miles a day on average -- to fetch dirty water from mainly contaminated sources, such as rivers, unprotected springs and shallow wells. All this fetching for water uses up 40 billion hours annually of women's time worldwide. It could be more productively spent on income-generating activities, education and caring for their families.

Learn more.

Recently, I've been working on the campaign of Mark Winston Griffith, who is running for City Council here in New York. One of Mark's areas of expertise has to do with Economic Justice, specifically with Foreclosure prevention. Anyone who was paying attention last fall as the economy headed south heard phrases like "sub-prime mortgages" and "predatory lending", but those were financial problems targeting the folks on the edge of the economy, right? Well, organizations like the Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project (NEDAP), and the Eviction Intervention Service have been seeing a huge uptick in a different type of clientele: the former healthily middle classed suddenly find themselves in trouble.

The PhilanthroMedia team spent Monday filming one of the Drum Major Institute's Marketplace of Ideas series. This event's topic centered around Mayor Daley of Chicago's Green Roof and Cool Roof Project, and how we can work to get something similar adopted in good old New York City. The panel, and crowd, consisted of many politicians and activists who had a lot to say on how we can move forward with efforts to make city-living as environmentally sound as possible. The main conclusion? We need to adjust the average American's knee-jerk negative reaction to the cost that greening new (and old) buildings costs. Thanks to tax breaks and stimulus dollars, the amount it costs to get solar panels or eco-friendly roofs built and retrofitted is only about 10% of the market price in most cities. And, in the long run, these measures are financially worth it, with many alterations eventually leading to income (and a decreased dependency on oil and gas retailers) for the resident and owner of the property. See some video clips from the panel below:

Mayor Richard Daley on the Stimulus Reaching the Communitites


New York City Councilmember David Yassky on Letting the Market Decide

New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn on Chicago Making New York Look Bad

Sustainable South Bronix ED, Miquela Craytor, on Green Roofs

Carter Strickland, advisor to New York City Mayor Bloomberg, on Green Building

Back in the day, before this global economic apocalypse, folks who wanted to move from the for-profit sector to government or nonprofit work were lauded for their altruism. These days, increasing numbers of folks would be happy with any job, much less something that both paid the bills and made it worth getting up in the morning.

Regardless of whether you or someone you know is now open to switching sectors because of idealism or pragmatism, a great new social marketplace is waiting to make it come true. Called Jobs for Change,it was created in partnership with dozens of nonprofits, including Young Nonprofit Professionals Network, AmeriCorps Alums, Echoing Green, Network for Good, and Encore Careers.

The advent of the "green" movement has seen an uprise in the attention paid to small, local farmers and restaurants. Whether people truly believe in eating locally for health and political reasons, or they just want to be a part of the hippest trend, the focus on local food vendors is giving box stores and big brands a bad name. Frito-Lay (owned by PepsiCo.) has decided to fight back, however, and argue that they too are a small-town brand, made and manufactured locally. Wait...what? This seems to be yet another case of "activist beware..."