Effective philanthropy and nonprofits: Now more than ever
By NANCY JAMISON , San Diego Grantmakers
Thursday, October 23, 2008
We are in the epicenter of a "perfect storm" of challenges for San Diego nonprofits and their constituencies. The economic news is dire, and financial and corporate losses make headlines daily, leading to a decreased capacity on the part of foundations, corporations and individuals to provide donations from their shrinking assets. In addition, this year marked the longest delay in an approved budget in California's history. Without a state budget in place, many social service agencies had to find ways to keep serving children and families without the government revenue they rely on to keep their operations running. Therefore, just as demand for many nonprofit services is going up, charitable donations are at risk of going down and government support has been constrained. A perfect storm is raging, particularly for the people who have lost their jobs and homes, or are unable to afford food, health care and other basics.