International Development Work Experience: Deshpande Foundation 2009 Sandbox Fellows Program
December 31, 2008
At least once a week, people write me asking how they can get into international development work, or extend their development work after a tour of duty with Peace Corps or VSO and such. Here is an excellent opportunity for entry level development workers to get some more in-the-field international development experience:
Deshpande Foundation 2009 Sandbox Fellows Program
Deadline to apply: January 4th, 2009.
Deshpande Foundation is accepting applications for our Sandbox Fellowship program. This is a year-long program for dynamic professionals or post-graduate school candidates who have experience working in on- the-ground development and/or social entrepreneurship and are seeking an extended experience working on these issues. Fellows are matched according to the skills and project needs defined by each specific NGO in order to ensure a mutually beneficial experience for both parties. More information about the Fellowship program can be found here: http://www.deshpandefoundation.org/GEP.html.
The Deshpande Foundation welcomes motivated individuals to apply to our 2009 Fellows Program. The Deshpande Foundation is the family foundation of Gururaj (“Desh”) and Jaishree Deshpande. Founded in 1996, it is a leading philanthropic foundation in Massachusetts and India in the areas of innovation, entrepreneurship and international development. We develop partnerships with innovative leaders with a new idea, product or service that can potentially benefit millions of people and change entire industries.
The Global Exchange Program was launched in January 2008 to put into practice The Deshpande Foundation’s vision for global exchange specific to development and innovation. The concept allows for exchange – in both directions- improving and addressing the solutions that solve the developing world’s most intractable challenges. The Global Exchange Program was designed to help fuel the change of innovation and improve the outcomes of development. The Fellows work to address challenges at NGOs working the in the fields of Agriculture, Livelihood, Education and Health. Ideal candidates have experience in these areas but also add value by bringing skills from the IT sector, business (marketing and management), finance (accounting) and other globally applicable skills. Current fellows are dynamic and interested in making a long term impact through innovation in the sector. In June 2008, The Deshpande Foundations welcomed the first team of 10 Fellows to the Sandbox, with Fellows from both the US and the UK.
The next Sandbox Fellowship class runs from June 2009-June 2010 and Innovator applications are accepted quarterly. The deadline for all applications is January 4th, 2009. Please send your most resent resume and completed application to info@deshpandefoundation.org.
Attention Cyclists: Riding to Break the Cycle 2009
December 23, 2008
Vancouver, B.C. to Tijuana, Mexico OR Amsterdam, Netherlands to Istanbul, Turkey bike ride to raise funds and awareness about how microcredit can help developing world entrepreneurs lift THEMSELVES out of poverty. Deadline for applications is Friday, January 23, 2009.
Want to make a positive impact on the world? Interested in cycling the Pacific Coast or Europe?
Join one of the two 2009 tours where teams of 25 young people pedal from either Vancouver, B.C. to Tijuana, Mexico OR Amsterdam, Netherlands to Istanbul, Turkey to raise funds and awareness about how microcredit can help developing world entrepreneurs lift THEMSELVES out of poverty.
“An intensely powerful experience, a sharp reminder of what this was all about, the perfect wrap-up to a challenging journey of personal growth, and something none of us will soon forget.”
– Shawn Smith on the ride and visit to ADMIC, a microcredit organization in Hermosillo, Mexico
Two 2009 tours:
• Pacific Coast: cycle 3000km in seven weeks this summer, beginning May 31, 2009 from Vancouver, BC to Tijuana, Mexico
• Europe: cycle 4000km in eight weeks, beginning July 1, 2009 from Amsterdam, Netherlands to Istanbul, Turkey
Why join one of the two 2009 bike tours?
• Interact and educate communities along the way about microcredit and its power to help alleviate global poverty
• Join a mobile community of youth leaders while building enduring friendships
• Check out last year’s successful Pacific Coast bike tour at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bx9cxUthhCM
The 2009 Rider Application Form is available at www.globalafc.org
Deadline for applications is Friday, January 23, 2009.
If you have any questions regarding Riding to Break the Cycle 2009, email info@globalafc.org or please visit: www.globalafc.org
Global Agents for Change is a BC based, youth-run, non-profit dedicated to youth engagement and creating sustainable solutions to global poverty. Global Agents for Change empower youth leaders and social entrepreneurs through education, projects, outreach and fundraising events.
For Youth ages 18-30
American Express Building Leadership Award: For Nonprofits
December 23, 2008
Deadline for nominations is February 16, 2009.
The American Express Building Leadership Award recognizes a nonprofit that develops a culture of investing in the people of the independent sector. The honoree will have demonstrated its commitment to preparing tomorrow’s leaders of the nonprofit community by:
- implementing strategies that hold principles of leadership development central to the way the organization functions
- incorporating innovative strategies and systems that encourage staff, board, and volunteer leadership development in the organization and the community it serves;
- embodying and promoting an inclusive and diverse community; and
- measuring the impact the organization has on its community.
Nomination Process for the American Express Building Leadership Award
Nominations are accepted from anyone affiliated with the organization, including staff and board members, volunteers, or other supporters. Organizations located outside the United States can also be nominated provided they meet 501(c)(3) equivalency standards.
To be considered for the award, an organization must be nominated using the online nomination form. Nominators are encouraged to keep the nomination letters to no more than two pages in length. Please include information about how the organization meets the criteria of the award.
The deadline for nominations is February 16, 2009.
Once the nomination has been received, IS will contact the nominated organization to request additional information about programs and leadership activities. Both this application process and the nomination letter will be used to evaluate nominated organizations for the award.
A final decision will be made in late summer. The award will be presented at the IS Annual Conference in Detroit, Michigan, November 4-6, 2009. Independent Sector presents the award at the Annual Conference each year.
CFED Innovators-in-Residence: Economic Opportunity for Americans
December 23, 2008
Online application due: April 3, 2009. Seeking innovations that expand economic opportunity at scale/create impact for significant numbers of low-and moderate-income Americans.
CFED, a national nonprofit, inaugurated innovation@cfed to accelerate the next generation of strategies to expand economic opportunity for Americans. We believe that building wealth for those without wealth will bring greater social equity, alleviate poverty and lead to a more sustainable economy. innovation@cfed will harvest new ideas for policy, practice and programs that help Americans build assets and put them on surer financial footing.
We believe it is possible and profitable — within a generation — to provide every American the resources to pursue higher education, start a business, buy a home and save for the future. We’ve been proving this is possible for three decades in communities across the nation. Now is the time to take our ideas — and yours — to the next level. Sign Up today at http://innovation.cfed.org.
INNOVATORS-IN-RESIDENCE
Receive a $50,000 stipend and the full support of CFED, sharing our staff, resources, expertise and connections.
Innovators-in-Residence will be selected from a pool of innovators with good, solid, promising and tested innovations, those who would benefit from support and resources to refine and expand the application of those innovations to reach thousands, if not millions of Americans. Innovators-in-Residence will receive financial and technical support and a virtual or onsite CFED residency to refine and grow their innovations to marketable scale or to advance them through expanded real-world application.
Innovators-in-Residence will receive:
- $50,000 cash stipend or equivalent
- Office and meeting space at CFED’s Washington, DC, headquarters
- Connection to CFED’s technology platform and online resources
- Support from, and opportunities to collaborate with, CFED’s expertise in areas such as applied research, communications, field development, information technology, policy, resource development and web development
- Pairing with a CFED staff partner as an in-house concept champion
- Access to CFED networks, resources and relationships; invitations to CFED events, meetings and trainings.
Step One: Online Application
The application form should be completed and submitted online at http://innovation.cfed.org/apps/innovators/.
Step Two: Invitation to Submit More Detailed Proposal
Individuals who submit promising applications will be invited, via e-mail on April 17, 2009, to submit a more detailed proposal and supporting documentation. The deadline for receiving this additional information from invited applicants is May 1, 2009. CFED staff will be available to provide input and guidance to applicants at this stage.
Selection Criteria includes: Could the innovation expand economic opportunity at scale/create impact for significant numbers of low-and moderate-income Americans?
Free NPO/NGO Tools/Manuals from Networklearning
December 18, 2008
This is an e-mail from ‘networklearning’
Message:
We have a few materials here at networklearning that would be more useful in the field than they are on our desks. There is only one copy of each thing, so “first come, first served”!
A. The OXFAM Gender Training manual (this is a big fat book)
B. Stepping Stones training package on HIV/AIDS (manual plus CD)
C. A set of flannelgraphs. The accompanying leaflets are in French but Health Educators can use the flannelgraphs to illustrate talks in any language. Subjects: Le cycle feminin/Woman & her Cycle – La Femme Enceinte/ Woman & Pregnancy – la developpement du foetus/ the Development of the foetus – Le petit enfant/ the small Child – The three food groups/ les trois groupes alimentaire – Bilharzia/ schistosomiasis – Topics from ‘Donner la vie‘ (‘the Giving of Life’) intestinal worms, diarrhoea, food hygiene etc.
If you think your NGO could make good use of one of these, please email me to say briefly why it would be useful (and please indicate which item A, B or C). If you have a good story, I will pay for the package to be posted out to you free of charge!
Please contact: moynihan@networklearning.org
Yours sincerely,
Maeve Moynihan
Chairperson/Initiator Stichting Networklearning
The Tech Awards: Global Call for Nominations
December 17, 2008
2009 Nomination Deadline: March 27, 2009. $250,000 in Cash Prizes to be Awarded to Innovators Using Technology to Benefit Humanity
Nominations for The Tech Awards are now being accepted.
The Tech Awards is an international awards program that honors innovators from around the world who are applying technology to benefit humanity.
The Tech Awards program inspires global engagement in applying technology to humanity’s most pressing problems by recognizing the best of those who are utilizing innovative technology solutions to address the most urgent critical issues facing our planet. People all over the world are profoundly improving the human condition in the areas of education, equality, environment, health, and economic development through the use of technology. It is the goal of The Tech Awards to showcase their compelling stories and reward their brilliant accomplishments.
Each year, candidates are nominated and then invited to submit applications. Individuals, for-profit companies, and not-for-profit organizations are eligible. International panels of judges review the applications and annually select 25 Laureates. Awards are presented in five categories: Health, Education, Environment, Economic Development, and Equality. Five Laureates in each category are honored and one Laureate per category receives $50,000. Laureates are honored at an annual Gala event and inducted into The Tech Awards Network (TAN). The TAN extends the award program from an annual event to a year round program. The goal of the TAN is to create opportunities for learning, networking, and exposure to assist the Laureates in furthering their work.
The Tech Awards accepts nominations year-round. Nominations received after March 27, 2009 will be considered for The Tech Awards 2010.
Criteria: Ensure the candidate is eligible
Categories: Decide which category best fits the project
Nomination Form: Submit your nomination
Deadline January 21, 2009 for media and technology ventures for social good. Competition will award up to $25,000 in seed funding to one nonprofit venture and will provide $25,000 in seed capital to the best new commercial idea.
What happens when everyone has the power to tell the story?
Join We Media and Ashoka’s Changemakers in the search to find the best new ideas for inspiring a better world through media and technology. We are looking for business and non-profit venture ideas and will award $50,000 in seed funding to the innovators who can bring the best ideas to life.
Submit your entries by January 21, 2009 6:00 pm EST (21:00 GMT)
We Media and Ashoka have teamed up to present the We Media Changemakers $50,000 Challenge, “The Power of Us,” which aims to find and help launch the best new ideas for inspiring a better world through media and technology. We’re looking for groundbreaking and impactful ideas from people who can bring those ideas to life. The winning ideas should incite action, encourage collaboration and lead society to knowledge.
We invite entries from all fields. We will have two categories, one for business ventures and one for non-profit ventures, and will award up to $50,000 in seed funding. Thanks to a generous grant from the Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation, we will provide $25,000 in seed capital to help launch the best new non-profit idea. Similarly, for the best new commercial idea, we will award $25,000 in seed capital.
The search is hosted at http://changemakers.net/. Entrants will find resources, including collaborative partners and potential investors, while the global online community will discuss, debate and improve upon the most creative solutions.
All entrants are invited to join We Media and Changemakers at the fifth annual We Media Conference in Miami, February 24-26, 2009. Entrants will have the opportunity to present their ideas to potential funders and partners as part of an innovation showcase.
The Global Health Council
Deadline
Region / Country
Summary of RFP
The Global Health Council is calling for nominations for the Jonathon Mann Award for Global Health and Human Rights. This award was established in 1999 to honor Dr. Jonathan Mann and highlight the vital link between health and human rights. Sponsored by four organizations, Association François-Xavier, Doctors of the World, John Snow, Inc. and the Global Health Council, the award is bestowed annually to a leading practitioner in health and human rights and comes with a substantial financial reward to allow its recipients a measure of freedom to pursue their work in the important area of global health and human rights.
Award Background and Criteria
In reviewing the nominees for the Jonathan Mann Award for Global Health and Human Rights, the following criteria will be considered and evaluated:
- Practical work in the field and in difficult circumstances.
- Actual relevance to the linkage of health with human rights.
- Predominant activities in developing countries and with marginalized people.
- Evidence of serious and long-term commitment.
- Potential for award strengthening nominees work.
- Potential for receipt of this award raising the profile of the Mann Award itself.
- Funding will enhance visibility and public awareness of issue or project person/organization is addressing.
- Potential for attracting additional resources towards resolution of the issue.
The jury bases their decisions solely on what you write on the nomination form. Please feel free to write as much as you like, keeping the total nomination limited to three (3) typed pages.
Submission Instructions
Click here for further information about this award including submission instructions.
Contact
Questions?
Contact Dawn Carey at dcarey@globalhealth.org or
(802)649-1340, ext. 2144
Going Once, Twice, Thrice….Online Auctions
December 15, 2008
One of the most effective online fundraising tools is the online auction. Nonprofits know that auctions are time consuming and difficult to manage, but also very lucrative. In 2006 alone, more than 16 billion dollars was raised through charitable auctions in the U.S. (National Auctioneers Association). The use of an online auction will reduce the amount of resources required to host the auction while maximizing the potential profits.
The Fundraising Team can solicit auction-able items from local businesses (gifts-in-kind of products or services), parents, staff, and even the students themselves.
Options Available for Online Auctions
Three viable options are available, each of which has been analyzed below.
On Website – Some organizations have taken the path of hosting an online auction on their own website. The advantage to this method is that the organization does not have to pay any commission on items sold, and they have control over the auction at all times. Disadvantages are significant however, as it requires considerable computer savvy and time to create a successful auction. Furthermore, payment arrangements and credit card security must be addressed.
Or you can outsource:
Mission Fish – Mission Fish allows nonprofits to sell and buy auction items on eBay’s Giving Works. To list your auction on Giving Works, you will first need to set up a free Mission Fish nonprofit account, then an eBay account.
Advantages of Mission Fish:
1. Huge number of potential buyers.
2. Relatively inexpensive. Mission Fish is free, but eBay generally charges between 4-6% of auction selling price.
3. Easy to set up and little continued involvement.
4. Any seller can donate between 10%-100% to your nonprofit. Your nonprofit is listed on Mission Fish so sellers can select and decide how much they wish to contribute.
Disadvantages of Mission Fish:
1. Ebay shoppers are looking for the best deal. Nonprofits would ideally like people to pay equal or more than the market value of the item to contribute to their cause.
2. Difficult to create community. Anyone and everyone can bid for an auction item so it is much harder to build a sense of community and get supporters personally involved.
cMarket – cMarket is another online auction tool that is specifically designed for nonprofits. This is a more hands off approach to online auctions because after the sign up process is complete cMarket manages the entire process.
Advantages to cMarket:
1. Simplest way to have an online auction. cMarket has hosted more than 2,000 online auctions for nonprofits and the auction is handled by professionals.
2. Vacations, cruises, and many other prizes can be acquired risk free. Many of the prizes are available through cMarket and are free of charge if the auction is not a success. If the auction is successful however, the items selling price to the nonprofit is still well below market value.
3. Bidders are supporters. cMarket is smaller in scale and most of the bidders will be people notified about the auction through emails, phone calls, or personal requests.
Disadvantages of cMarket:
1. Expensive. The additional services come at a price of $295 per year and 9% commission.
Recommendation – For the first time, use Mission Fish because it is lower risk (you will probably get near market value) and inexpensive. However, cMarket is a promising tool for many nonprofits in the future.
Conclusion: e-Philanthropy is a very new concept in general (keep in mind the internet is not that old itself!); however, it happens to be the current fundraising trend and I expect it will evolve/develop even more. This means “we” (fundraisers) still have a lot to learn about quality e-philanthropic fundraising methods.
RFP: JustDoOne.org Invites Sustainable Living Ideas
December 13, 2008
Deadline: March 1, 2009
JustDoOne.org ( http://www.justdoone.org/ ), an online community
for sustainable living, has issued a global call for personal
green solutions. The Just Do One organization invites ideas for
more sustainable living summarized in short YouTube-style videos.
The organization will share the entries online, and the best
video entry, as judged by an expert panel, will win $5,000.
Video entries may be up to three minutes in length. Entries will
be accepted from January 1 to March 1, 2009. Winners will be
announced April 1, 2009, in time for media coverage leading up
to Earth Day.
RFP Link:
http://fconline.foundationcenter.org/pnd/15016128/videocontest
For additional RFPs in Environment, visit:
http://foundationcenter.org/pnd/rfp/cat_environment.jhtml
Introducing the Nonprofit Guru: Kelly N Patterson 