Independent Sector Conference- Ben Jealous

One of my favorite people, Ben Jealous, the new CEO of the NAACP was the second speaker at the NGen welcome lunch. Ben walked us through a story of the movement to abolish the death penalty that he was a part of right after graduating from college in 1996. Some lessons from that movement included:

• Break big goals, like abolishing the death penalty into smaller goals like ending the juvenile death penalty.
• Engage young people in organizing work because they can engage unusual coalitions like the civil rights community partnering with the conservative pro-life movement.
• Invest in the development of your workforce, regardless of age. The anti-death penalty movement had some key wins, these wins were the result of the organizing work of a recent college grad who had success organizing students in high school and on college campuses.

Ben also gave great professional development advice as a 35 year old CEO of a national civil rights organization:

• Seek out many mentors and give them the opportunity to support your growth. Building those relationships are key in any field.
• He had specific advice for those that care about social justice. Develop the skill sets needed to build institutions, not just the skills to organize individuals. This is the way to create systemic change and strengthen your career.

Expect big things from Ben and the NAACP in the coming months and years.

Independent Sector Conference-Tamara Draut

Today through Tuesday I will be at the Independent Sector Conference in Philly and blogging about the Next Gen track. The conference track began with a great convening of all of the Next Gen leaders for a welcome lunch. The event was moderated by Brian Gallagher, the CEO of the United Way of America.
Tamara Draut author of Strapped: Why Twenty and Thirty-somethings Can't Get Ahead was the first speaker. She very honestly opened the session with her confession that as a Gen Xer she is envious of millenials (aren't we all) because they are leading the next movement of social change. Through their culture of collective action (think Facebook Causes) and belief that change is possible. That envy ends with economics. Millenials will not be as well of financially as their parents because of declining wages, increasing healthcare costs, and the skyrocketing cost of education. She called for the end of our dept for diplomas system (hear, hear!)

This is when the real work begins

Like many of you, I stayed up late last night to watch the election returns. As I watched the race called for Obama, listened to McCain's heartfelt concession speech, and Obama's amazing acceptance speech. I was filled with a sense of pride and accomplishment. Millions and millions of American's came together to elect the first African American president and we did it using new and old organizing tools. Yesterday was a day for celebration but today is the day for the real work to begin. Barak Obama did not nurture and grow this multi-racial, multi-income movement just to elect him as president, he build this movement to make America a better place to live and to raise a family. He built this movement to create a sustainable economy that will provide a living wage to all workers. He built this movement to ensure that we can all afford health care. He build this movement to make sure that the United State of America retains its rightful place as a respected world leader and a good neighbor to the international community. That work was not accomplished on election night and he can't accomplish that work alone.

So now your work begins to create real change in your community. Join the PTA, start a campaign to clean up your local park, fight for living wages in the stores you shop in, write a letter to the editor, become a volunteer at the Headwaters Foundation for Justice, find a little corner of the world that you can make more just and fair.

Desparate Times..., pt. 2

As a follow-up to my post last week, I wanted to alert folks to an upcoming webinar that I just learned about. The Taprood Foundation is hosting "When Hand-Wringing Isn't Enough: Proactive Approaches Funders Can Use When the Economy is Upside-Down". The webinar will be held on Wednesaday, Nov. 19 at 1-2:30pm EST (10-11:30am PST). And best of all, it's FREE!
Here's the description:

Join us for a web-based roundtable discussion as leaders from the philanthropic community share approaches funders can use to ensure their grantees continue to provide critical services while weathering the impact of the current economic crisis. You will hear the findings of recent research identifying the trends and issues facing nonprofits, as well as how foundations are planning to respond. Speakers include:
Patrick Corvington, Program Officer, Leadership Development, Annie E. Casey Foundation
Kathleen Enright, Executive Director, Grantmakers for Effective Organizations
Jeanne Bell, Executive Director, CompassPoint
Moderated by Matt O'Grady, Vice President, the Taproot Foundation
This seminar will provide valuable and actionable insight into: the critical needs of nonprofits during the economic recession; approaches to funding that stretch the impact of each dollar; the promotion of effective and responsible nonprofit responses to the crisis. Space is limited. Register now to reserve your place at the seminar.

You can register at https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/837605351%20