Network Impact News & Updates
Investing in Networks Grows Impact
Stanford Social Innovation Review (SSIR) recently featured a blog post we wrote about how the Garfield Foundation attracted funding to an issue and leveraged its charitable dollars by taking a network approach to its investment RE-AMP. Read the post on SSIR's blog.
Knowledge sharing
Anne Whatley and Amanda Welsh presented The Network Approach to Social Change at the Center for Nonprofit Management's 501(c)onference in Los Angeles on June 3rd. You can find the presentation here.
Madeleine Taylor led a session at the GEO Learning Conference in Boston on June 10th on network assessment along with Kimberly Haskins from the Barr Foundation. You can find the materials from their presentation here.
Upcoming Webinar: Strengthening Network Practice through Evaluation.
Wednesday, July 15 at 11am Pacific/2pm Eastern
Using real-life cases, this webinar offers an introduction to basic network concepts and approaches with an emphasis on how practitioners can strengthen their network through systematic monitoring and evaluation. Highlights from a recent framing paper and casebook developed by Network Impact and the Center for Evaluation Innovation include examples of leading evaluation frameworks and practical methods/tools. You can sign up to participate in the webinar at the Leadership Learning Community.
Did you catch our guest post on Beth Kanter's blog? Methodologies and Metrics for Civic Tech shares more about what we learned working with the Knight Foundation's Technology for Engagement grantees.
Featured in the summer issue of The Foundation Review "Network Evaluation in Practice: Approaches and Applications" authored in partnership with Julia Coffman, Director or the Center for Evaluation Innovation.
Current project and interests
Leveraging technology
Network Impact is working with Kaiser Permanente Community Benefit Division and the W. K. Kellogg Foundation to conduct a scan of current and emerging technologies that provide access to population health data and collaboration supports for funders and others working to promote healthy, equitable and sustainable communities. We surveyed funders in a range of organizations to identify the best-in-class tools they are using and are conducting interviews with leading innovators and practitioners. The scan will identify gaps, needs and opportunities to advance the field. A summary of our findings will be made available this fall including presentations at the Foundation Center Technology Affinity Group conference and the Community Indicators Consortium Conference – both taking place in November 2015.
Legal Impact Network (LIN)
Since January 2015, Network Impact has been advising the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law on start-up strategy and operational approaches for this network of multi-forum statewide law and policy organizations working to improve the lives and opportunities of people living in poverty in more than 30 U.S. states.
The Funders’ Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities (TFN)
Madeleine Taylor continues to coach TFN staff and consultants on network strategy and development. Recent discussions have focused on the internal structure and governance of a network, including the optimum size and composition of a steering committee and the role of working groups. The network works to expand funding and philanthropic leadership that yields environmentally sustainable, socially equitable and economically prosperous regions and communities.
Networks for Integrating New Americans
Network Impact’s role in Year 3 of this project funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Career, Technical and Adult Education (OCTAE) is to support new and existing forms of collaboration among nonprofit and other organizations who provide ESOL and other critical services to immigrants and refugees in 5 sites around the U.S. A Final Report will be published in 2016.
More attention to rural people and places: Only five to six percent of U.S. charitable grant dollars finds its way to rural as reported in this recent article in the Nonprofit Quarterly. If this is something you are thinking about or working on let us know. We are interested in hearing about and contributing to network-based efforts to address social, economic and environmental challenges in rural areas in the U.S. and Canada.