NPAction Update
Vol 3, Issue 9
5/31/2005

Welcome to the unofficial summer kickoff edition of the NPAction Update! At the Update's home office on the shores of Lake Erie, the sun is out and the snow is finally melted, and we hope that you spent this Memorial Day weekend basking in the sun wherever you are.

You are receiving this newsletter as requested during your registration with NPAction.org. To unsubscribe, send an email to leave-npaction@lyris.ombwatch.org.


In this issue:
*What's New- Foundation Reports*
*Featured Article- Community-Based Research*
*Featured Resource Links- Federal Statistics and Funding Research*
*Hey, You Asked- What's With the New NPAction?*


*What's New*

The Foundation Center, which is already the "go-to" library of foundation and fundraising knowledge, has recently expanded its website to include the "Pub Hub," which is an online repository for foundation-sponsored reports. There are currently well over 700 reports on the site, and more are being added on a regular basis. Topic areas cover everything from the arts, to the environment, to "thought pieces" on the role of philanthropy.

Foundation Center's Pub Hub:
http://www.foundationcenter.org/research/pubhub/



*Featured Article*

One of the most powerful tools that an advocate has to back up his or her position is research. Being able to tell a policymaker: "we would like to see an increase in spending for Head Start programs because research shows that every dollar spent on a child Head Start puts $100 back into the economy when that child becomes an adult" is much more powerful than just asking for more funding because your organization thinks it's a good program. But what if there is no research on your issue? Isn't research something that takes a lot of money and has to be done by professionals? This issue's feature article argues that the answer to both questions is an emphatic "no", and with some simple know-how and a little time, any organization can research its issues.

"Community-Based Research":
http://www.npaction.org/article/articleview/579/1/240



*Featured Resource Links*

The NPAction Resource Links Directory is a human-edited compendium of tools and references, contributed by nonprofits for nonprofits.

If this issue's feature article on research got you all fired up to conduct some research of your own, why not start with one of the largest repositories of facts on the web? Our first featured resource link, FedStats, is a one-stop portal for statistics and data from over 100 federal agencies, searchable by subject, agency, and keyword.

FedStats:
http://www.fedstats.gov/


While the Foundation Center is an excellent resource for foundation research, as mentioned in the "What's New" section, the best library of foundation information in the world isn't terribly helpful if you don't know how to research fundraising opportunities. Our second link, from Resist Inc, is a great primer on researching funding for your organization, especially tailored for organizations with an advocacy role. Already in its fifth edition, this guide is regularly updated with new information.

"Finding Funding: A Beginner's Guide to Foundation Research"
http://www.resistinc.org/resources/finding_funding.html



*Hey, You Asked!*

Several people have asked us "What's up with NPAction? Is the redesign finished?"

The answer is mostly yes, but there are a few issues we're still working on. We're are nearly finished polishing up the content and organization. Beginning this week we are switching providers for our policymaker contact system, so the "Get Out and Lobby" section might be misbehaving a bit as the switch is completed. This may also affect some parts of our State Advocacy Guides.

As always, if you have any comments on the site, please email npaction@npaction.org


*"Steal This Code": Put NPAction on Your Site*

NPAction invites organizations to share our tools on their websites. Just copy the HTML code from our site, and you're ready to go (but when you steal the code, just let us know!).

"Steal the Code" today
http://www.npaction.org/article/articleview/600/1/1988




*NPAction Update Archives*
http://www.npaction.org/article/archive/210/

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NPAction Update is a service for NPAction subscribers. If you received this message from another party, and wish to subscribe, send an email to join-npaction@lyris.ombwatch.org.

NPAction, an online resource hosted by OMB Watch, provides access to tools and information for nonprofit advocacy from a wide range of organizational partners and sources in order to encourage greater participation by nonprofits in the policy arena. Funding for this project was provided by Atlantic Philanthropies, the Ford Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and the Surdna Foundation.

For more information, contact:

NPAction
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