Having research to back-up your fundraising efforts and public policy work is essential. Luckily, there are a number of statewide and national resources available on the Web for research on specific topic areas (such as nutrition and the elderly or other direct service statistics) and broader information about philanthropy.

Statewide:

1. Michigan Public Policy Initiative -

A program of the Michigan Nonprofit Association and affiliated with Council of Michigan Foundations, MPPI provides the nonprofit sector with objective information on issues relevant to the sector. The Initiative provides information on specific topic areas and on philanthropy in general. All of these publications, except for Michigan in Brief, can be found on this site.

A. Michigan in Brief, 2002-2003 - MIB is a policy reference handbook and corresponding Web site www.michiganinbrief.org. The reference material provides background information about the state and offers an objective look at 40 public policy topics of interest to Michigan residents and their elected officials.

B. Setting the Record Straight on Michigan's Nonprofit Community - This publication promotes an understanding of the nonprofit sector, demonstrates its role in society and dispels a host of misconceptions. SRS contains statistics about the number of nonprofits in Michigan, who is funding the organizations and the types of work they do.

C. Spotlight on Applied Research Series - These short briefs summarize current research relevant to the sector. Recent issues, prepared by Michigan State University and Wayne State University graduate students, addressed children's residential mobility, prevention of dating violence and challenging behavior in early childhood. The spotlights are prepared for policymakers, the media and nonprofit practitioners and are steered by the Michigan Public Policy Initiative's Researcher and Nonprofit (RaN) Committee. The committee is made up of researchers and nonprofit practitioners working to bridge the communication gap between the two sectors to promote more valuable research for nonprofits.

D. Economic Benefits of Michigan's Nonprofit
Sector - This study of 38,000 nonprofit organizations in Michigan looks at the size, diversity, assets, jobs, wages and other important data on the sector.

E. Giving and Volunteering in Michigan - This first state-wide survey on individual giving and volunteering indicates who is giving and volunteering and why they are doing so.

2. MSU Best Practice Briefs -

For the past two years, Outreach Partnerships at Michigan State University has published Best Practice Briefs to provide usable information on human services concepts, processes, models, and tools for funders, decision makers, board members, planners, managers, and service providers. The briefs are available on the web at www.outreach.msu.edu/bpbriefs

 

National Sources:

1. The Aspen Institute's Nonprofit Sector Research Fund -

Accessible via the web at www.nonprofitresearch.org , the research fund works to expand knowledge of the nonprofit sector and philanthropy and works to improve nonprofit practice. Many of its publications deal with direct service issues and broader nonprofit topics. Of interest, and available on the web, are the Working Papers and Research Snapshots.

2. Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action (ARNOVA) -

Accessible via the web at www.arnova.org, ARNOVA is a community of researchers and nonprofit leaders fostering the creation, application and dissemination of research voluntary action, nonprofit organizations, philanthropy and civil society. You can join ARNOVA and receive the Nonprofit & Voluntary Sector Quarterly and ARNOVA Abstracts that address cutting edge research across the disciplines. You can also subscribe to the ARNOVA List-serve, without joining the association. To subscribe to the List-serve e-mail Roger Lohmann at listserv@wvnvm.wvnet.edu.

3. INDEPENDENT SECTOR -

Accessible via the web at www.independentsector.org , IS works to strengthen nonprofits, philanthropy and citizen action. The research program at IS mainly focuses on broader sector issues, such as giving, volunteerism, and American's views of charities.