“Why would he be talking about economic governance in the AFP Blog?”
It’s a fair question. I went to the Asia Foundation’s launch of a new book discussing the measurement of economic governance at the local level in Asia yesterday.
It’s looking at the impact of the Asia Foundation’s Economic Governance Index. It’s relevant to us because key constituents in this debate are the financially active nonprofits and social enterprises—our shops, in short. The value to them of hard data, detailing the economic environment in which they sit, is a critical tool allowing them to pack a punch in their debate with government. Without hard, demonstrable facts to share they would not have achieved changes to regulation, changes to the operating environment or changes to public opinion.
Look in our own back yard. How often do we still find ourselves in that boat? Threats to the charitable tax deduction, scrutiny on investment in “overhead”—without the data to back up our arguments we’ll continue to look and sound self-interested.
Initiatives like the Fundraising Effectiveness Project or the National Research Collaborative are critical tools for us to use in dialogue with our own Boards and in public debates. We need to engage with them now, or, in their absence in Canada, develop them soonest. If we don’t, we’ll be in the same boat, lacking the same paddle, in five years’ time.
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I absolutely agree with you, Andrew. Too many times we rely on anecdotal information to prove the impact of our vital programs. We need to find a way to tell our compelling stories backed by data that shows the economic impact our services have on the communities we serve. By doing so we can garner more continuous community support that would help prevent the massive cuts so many social service organizations are experiencing around the country.
ReplyDeleteIt's all about impact - and how we communicate it. All stakeholders need the clearest, most graphic, picture we can paint for them. Factual evidence supporting the story gives is always compelling. We have a long way to go before we get it right. I'd love to have some examples of best practice that we could all point to.
ReplyDeleteHello,
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