Change-making in challenging times

[David Collin]

The gloomy news about the global economy suggests hard financial times are ahead. We will no doubt feel that impact on the organizations and people trying to make the world a better place--like changebloggers. This gets me to thinking about how nonprofits are going to be effective in the face of even more limited budgets. So I ask: What web 2.0 tools and techniques can enable operational dollars to be stretched? How can nonprofits do more with less? Are whole new models of how to operate imaginable? Is a tight fiscal environment an opportunity to produce change?

[David Collin]

Kudos again to Alex Steed for posting on NetSquared "Survival of the Resonant."

I started this discussion thread out of anxieties about how the economic upheaval will affect nonprofits and non-staff workers. I think one way to contribute value is to show how enterprises can have impact at less expense. Doesn't web 2.0 offer that opportunity? There's nothing like a budget crisis to open organization managers up to ideas and innovation.

[David Collin]

If you see entrepreneurship (either nonprofit or social enterprise) as a thing to do, even with so much economic foreboding around, you might be interested in this survey.

[David Collin]

I'm keeping a list of articles and sites that are focusing on how the Obama campaign used the internet and social web to organize for their win. Seems to me can all learn a lot about how to gin up our own influence campaigns from this year's political campaigns.

The links below are what I've gotten so far. If you have some goodies, please post them in replies.

http://www.techpresident.com/
http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/editors/22171/
http://www.physorg.com/news145096800.html
http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/11/propelled-by-in.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/04/us/politics/04memo.html?partner=r...
http://www.youtube.com/user/citizentube
http://www.hks.harvard.edu/news-events/news/articles/you-tube-steve...
http://www.hks.harvard.edu/presspol/index.htm
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/02/AR2...

[David Collin]

Article from the Philanthropy Journal about how virtual volunteering is extending resources in the downturn. Not a revolutionary idea but one that needs more attention.

Also an article about the role of boards in tough times.

[David Collin]

A project along the lines of this discussion topic--dealing with bad economic times--has started a wiki. It's called Plans for the Economic Crisis. It's all about how nonprofits and cause-driven organizations need to make plans and changes to come through the next few years that don't look very good.

It's a wiki and it's a place for like-minded people to put their heads together for concrete ideas about how to adjust. Come on and join!

[David Collin]

My tendency is to focus on opportunities to stretch the dollar by taking advantage of Web2.0 techniques and services that allow nonprofits to extend their communication capabilities at low or no cost.

Here's a link to a bit I did for the We Are Media Toolbox showing how to get more mileage from programs, presentations, and training by using podcasting tools and techniques to capture and re-purpose what you've done.

I' workin' on a video that shows all the equipment and software I've used to do video on the cheap.