• “The first wealth is health.” American philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson stated this in 1860, and it continues to ring true today. But what exactly is the link between wealth and wellbeing? Health is considered one of the most critical pillars of everyday life, and finances are often regarded as equally essential. Traditionally, discussions around health primarily revolve around physical and mental wellbeing, often overlooking the profound impact of financial wellness on overall
  • View the Resource By NNSI Editorial Team In this episode, we focus on mergers, an underutilized tool for social impact in the nonprofit sector. This episode features an interview with Aina Gutierrez, Executive Director of the Rebuilding Exchange, and Lauri Alpern, President of Open Door Advisors. They talk about the process and results of the merger they led between the Chicago Rebuilding Exchange and the Evanston Rebuilding Warehouse. The merger was supported
  • Collaboration can be a powerful tool for effecting meaningful change in nonprofit organizations. However, social impact leaders have become fatigued with mandates and incentives to collaborate without a clear purpose. After all, many joint ventures are unsuccessful, posing risks of resource waste and inefficiency while potentially eroding stakeholder trust and commitment.In hopes of changing this negative perception, the Sustained Collaboration Network (SCN) was launched in 2017 by nonprofit funders and
  • View the Resource By Katherine R. Cooper, Rong Wang, Jack L. Harris, Joshua Paul Miles, Michelle Shumate Background: Conveners are crucial in coordinating interorganizational partnerships, particularly purpose-oriented networks. However, their roles may shift from initially recruiting organizational partners to overseeing and sustaining a network through periods of change. Extensive research has focused extensively on these early stages of the interorganizational venture, but less scholarship has focused on how conveners respond to
  • View the Resource By NNSI Editorial Team In this podcast episode, host Michelle Shumate talks to four initiative managers from the Sustained Collaboration Network:Nora Hannah – Arizona Together for ImpactKate Piatt-Eckert – Mission Sustainability InitiativeKaren LaShelle – Austin TogetherOlivia Benson – Forbes FundThey talk about how Sustained Collaboration can be a tool for greater social impact and share stories of successful initiatives supported by each of their funds. To download
  • In the ongoing pursuit of improving public health outcomes, tackling Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) has emerged as a top concern for regulatory agencies and community-based organizations (CBOs) across the United States. This prioritization stems from recognizing that individuals’ well-being is not solely determined by access to healthcare services but is profoundly influenced by social and economic factors such as housing, nutrition, and education. Failure to resolve these health-related social