The Nonprofit Sector and the Will to Change

A greater portion of our nonprofit activities in the future will have to be devoted to policies and actions that can produce constructive change. The extraordinary problems of our society as we enter the twenty-first century - poverty, racism, environmental degradation, lack of health protection, declining trust in governments - can only be tackled by strong policy work, advocacy, and citizen mobilization. The author outlines seven challenges that nonprofits need to address including promoting democracy, strengthening government, assuring public accountability, redefining the nonprofit sector, reforming philanthropy, developing new leadership, and engaging institutions of higher learnings in promoting democracies and communities. Providing services is not enough. We need to develop new nonprofit leadership with the vision, competence, and courage. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]