Research Guide

Nonprofit Sector - Research Guide

Selected Books

How-To Guide for Non-Profits.

Social Media for Social Good by Heather Mansfield
ISBN: 9780071770811
Publication Date: 2011-08-17

Websites/Organizations

Public Relations Society of America
World’s largest and foremost organization of public relations professionals.
Spin Academy
The SPIN Academy strengthens non-profit organizations working for social change by teaching them to communicate effectively for themselves. The SPIN Academy provides accessible and affordable strategic communications training, individual coaching, networking opportunities, and other concrete communications tools. Drawing on a dedicated network of nonprofit communications professionals, we build the communications skills of social change advocates and build the capacity of grassroots organizations to accomplish their missions.
Grassroots International
Institute for Global Communications (IGC)
Beginning in 1987, IGC played a formative role in bringing advanced communications technologies to grassroots organisations worldwide working for peace, human rights, environmental sustainability, women’s rights, conflict resolution and worker rights. Its flagship global computer networks — PeaceNet, EcoNet, WomensNet, ConflictNet, LaborNet and AntiRacismNet — became trademark names in the struggle for democratic use of the media and the world’s communications infrastructure.
GuideStar
Provides a lot of free (as well as subscription) data about charitable organizations, including a blog, Philanthropedia, that uses crowd sourcing methodology to identify high-impact charities.

Databases

Nonprofit Organization Reference Center
World's most comprehensive full-text database specifically designed to support the ongoing functional and information needs of the nonprofit sector, encompassing nonprofit and not-for-profit organizations, unincorporated nonprofit associations, and other related entities.
Catalog of Nonprofit Literature
Bibliographic citations with abstracts for materials on philanthropy, the foundation world, the nonprofit sector, and charitable giving collected by the Foundation Center libraries and other sources. Topics covered include theory, philosophy, and workings of domestic and international philanthropy; composition, administration, management, and revenue generation in the nonprofit sector; the impact of government policies and funding including legal and tax implications of local, state, and federal regulation and legislation; voluntarism and company-sponsored foundations and corporate giving; and histories of individual foundations.

Article Feature

The Permanent Disruption of Social Media by Julie Dixon and Denise Keyes Stanford Social Innovation Review (Winter 2013)

Social media has chipped away at the foundation of traditional donor-engagement models. A new study highlights the realities of donor behavior and how organizations can redesign their outreach strategies to be more effective.