Nonprofit Congress sets three top priorities to advance the sector

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Monday, Oct. 17, the nearly 400 delegates to the Nonprofit Congress National Meeting voted and chose the three top priorities for advancing the nonprofit sector. They are:

• Nonprofit organizational effectiveness (focusing on accountability and leadership)
• Advocacy and grassroots community activities
• Public awareness and support of the nonprofit sector.

"The delegates chose their priorities and began to develop the tactics to get us there," said Audrey R. Alvarado, executive director of the National Council of Nonprofit Associations and Nonprofit Congress project director. "We will continue to do our part to support and connect nonprofits at the state and local level." 

Delegates to the national meeting represented 47 states, including six delegates from Hawai‘i, and the District of Columbia.  Each state delegation identified specific actions to address the national priorities. For example:

• New Hampshire will hold a nonprofit forum for presidential candidates in 2008.
• Montana will create principles and practices for charitable organizations in Montana.
• California will create and launch a public relations campaign to reframe the image of nonprofits in the state.
• Michigan will increase advocacy training so that all organizations understand it is the right and responsibility of nonprofits to advocate for their constituents and communities.

"Nonprofits need to insist on a place at the table – in communities, in government, in chambers of commerce, in education – to be able to do more with more, not more with less," said Jeffrey Norman, a New Jersey delegate, and vice president of public affairs for the New Jersey Performing Arts Center.

"I feel like I'm really part of a movement of all nonprofits across the country to come together and have a collective voice for the sector," said Sally Migliore, a delegate from North Carolina and senior associate at the North Carolina Center for Nonprofits.

"Coming to this I was a little skeptical about whether or not it would be possible to bring together four hundred people over two days and really come away with some very clear plans. But we did it and that is the thing that amazed me. And the power in that is incredible. We were inspired, motivated, and left knowing what we need to do to take action in our states," she said.

The national meeting included educational sessions on advocacy, technology, leadership and other key areas. Delegates spent most of their time in working sessions, deliberating on the priorities and creating action plans for the sector. 

The Nonprofit Congress is a national movement to connect nonprofits to each other and help charitable organizations have an impact at the state level. State associations of nonprofits, such as the Hawai‘i Alliance of Nonprofit Organizations, play a critical role in this process, Alvarado said.

The next Nonprofit Congress, to be held in spring 2008, will celebrate successes implementing the sector priorities. Click this link to learn more about the Nonprofit Congress movement and read "Voices from the Field: National Meeting Briefing Book."