The Midwestern philanthropist J. Irwin Miller asked his foundation’s staff members to guide their work by a simple motto. He said, “Ten years from now, what will you wish you had done today?” It is this vision for the future that inspires us to celebrate the common purpose of philanthropy and the benefits of gathering not as separate institutions, but as a noble movement. Calling it the most significant meeting of philanthropists in recent memory, the Council of Foundations opened their Leadership Summit yesterday in Washington, D.C. Convening leaders in philanthropy from the US, Europe, Latin America, Asia, Africa and Australia, the Summit hopes to pursue ...

The Spring issue of Non-Profit Quarterly is out; titled "Leadership Without a Safety Net". Their focus in this issue is "to draw readers away from the emphasis on strategic career development and towards a focus on leading for impact and effectiveness." Two articles you may find of particular interest are Gap or Pap: Generational Differences at Work and The Evolution of Nonprofit Management Programs (registration / subscription required).

Gap or Pap: Generational Differences at Work by Jennifer J. Deal

Conventional wisdom about the dynamics of the nonprofit workplace would have us believe that a great generational shift is under way and that the up-and-coming have a fundamentally ...

I first met Matt Barr last summer at the opening night event for the inaugural season of the cutting edge Creative Zionism incubator. I admit it; I just could not get my head around his concept of using rap to teach Bible stories. Was I wrong! Almost a year later, Matt has a CD in production, studies at Pardes, works with visiting Birthright Israel groups, is preparing for a tour this summer of Jewish summer camps and produced the Haman's Song video. And now, just in time for Pesach, Matt, together with 12Tribe Films Foundation, introduces a new video titled "Moses Rap". [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qzg9yoaW2XY[/youtube] You can find the words here. Creative Zionism II, premiers in about nine weeks. ...

Most of our readers — and possibly you reading this — don’t have children, let alone grandchildren…and that means we have time, and obligation, to build the world we’d like them to live in. As such, PresenTense ran an amazing event last night in Jerusalem, focused on the future of education in the Jewish State. And you didn’t have to be in Jerusalem to participate (I’m in New York at the moment): all you had to have is a connection to the internet. Here’s one example of a remote-participant, Gabby Schoenfeld: (Gaby is an an informal Jewish educator who is trying to enable young Jews to have life-changing experiences through service and social justice programs ...

Herzl famously wrote, "If you will it, it is no fable." This quote, made into a cliche over the long century since it was uttered, succinctly expresses the fundamental credo of a pioneer:

pioneers will the future into reality.

The first course: Last night, the PresenTense organization sponsored an evening in Jerusalem with three special pioneers, visionaries, as they hosted a conversation around the future of Israeli Education. All three (Sarah Kass, Beverly Gribetz and David Moatty) have already led the way in willing dreams to become tangible facts on the ground. The visionaries have been asked:

• What is your vision; why is it transformative?
• Why this path rather than others?
• What will change if your vision becomes reality?
• What will it take ...
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  Tags: connect, creativezionism, educate, innovate, Jewish Incubators, web 2.0

Last week was the Inaugural Conference hosted by The Center for the Study of Philanthropy in Israel at Hebrew University. Dr. Leslie Lenkowsky, Director of Graduate Programs at The Center on Philanthropy (Indiana University) spoke eloquently to the (mostly) academic attendees, focusing largely on who gives, why they give and how they give. You can read about it here and here. In today's Jerusalem Post is a follow-up interview, "The Gain of Give and Take", between Professor Lenkowsky and Ruthie Blum. In response to her question, what constitutes good fundraising, Professor Lenkowsky replies: "A good fundraiser understands that his or her job is not only raising money for his own organization, but enhancing the culture of philanthropy in a community ...

"Ideas are scarcer than money; talent is scarcer than ideas"

With these words, Professor Leslie Lenkowsky ended his presentation earlier today at the inaugural conference hosted by The Center for the Study of Philanthropy in Israel at Hebrew University. Dr. Lenkowsky, Director of Graduate Programs at The Center on Philanthropy (Indiana University) spoke eloquently to the (mostly) academic attendees, focusing largely on who gives, why they give and how they give. And the most important reason for giving: "people are asked". Sounds simple; but we tend to forget this all to often. Dr. Lenkowsky continued, "Done properly, philanthropy creates a bond between the giver and receiver". Many were also surprised to ...

"The nonprofit sector is at a major crossroads. After years of humming along at a familiar pace of ongoing programs, stable leadership, and status quo fundraising, a new wave of change is happening right before our very eyes. The thousands of idealistic baby boomers that started nonprofit organizations 20 years ago are calling it quits and retiring from their leadership positions in the coming years. You’ve no doubt heard about it, but I’ll just confirm it for you here: there is indeed a leadership crisis looming ahead for the nonprofit sector. At least three out of four executive directors plan to leave their jobs within the next five years and about ...

The Jewish Funders Network and Partnership for Excellence in Jewish Education announced they have awarded 199 grants – totaling over $15 million – to Jewish day schools across North America through its 2007-2008 MATCH donor incentive program. This year’s program attracted 76 first-time donors and 123 previous donors. MATCH funds support Jewish day schools across all denominations, including Conservative, Reform, Orthodox, as well as non-denominational community schools. “Supporting Jewish day schools that provide an outstanding general and religious education has proven to be a good return on investment for philanthropists,” said Rabbi Josh Elkin, executive director of PEJE. “The MATCH program offers a unique way to identify and motivate new donors, whose contributions assure ...

In light of the security situation in Sderot and the Gaza perimeter, the Jewish Agency is giving $1.7 in scholarships to the Sapir College in Sderot. The scholarships of $1000 each will be given to 1,700 students studying at the college. The funds were raised by the UJC. This significant assistance for the college will help Sapir continue to function and grow. The scholarships will be available in the coming weeks to students currently enrolled. Hundreds of students receiving scholarships are also involved with volunteer work in the local community, particularly assisting children and young people. According to JAFI Chairperson Zeev Bielski "the best answer to the murderous attacks on the college is to support the college by providing an incentive ...