Choose first with your heart…

I believe that many people who want to make a difference just don’t know where to start – that’s actually a big part of why Philanthropegie exists.  We want to make it easier for people to connect with something or someone that can help them find their way in the world of philanthropy and social good.

One Philanthropegie category that can be of help to someone looking for a good place to start is Program Reviews.  Here you can find dozens of resources that do the heavy lifting associated with review and evaluation of nonprofit organizations.  There is one resource in particular that caught my attention in this category – Philanthropedia.

And it isn’t just because their name is as hard to pronounce as ours.

Philanthropedia’s motto is, “Pick a cause with your heart and then an organization with your mind.”  I love this.  The stronger our heart’s connection with a cause the more likely we are to make it a priority in our lives.  But even a strong connection can be broken by a bad experience with the wrong organization.  I’ve seen it happen too many times.  You can make a much more informed decision about the organization supporting your chosen cause by leveraging a resource like Philanthropedia.

Philanthropedia is a division of GuideStar USA, Inc.  Their mission is “to improve nonprofit effectiveness by directing money to and facilitating discussion about expert recommended high-impact nonprofits.”  They support this mission with a unique approach referred to as “crowd sourcing expert opinion.”  I also enjoyed the guidelines and best practices shared in their “Guide to Better Giving.”

If all of that isn’t enough, GuideStar members can now take advantage of Philanthropedia’s new “Expertise on Demand” –  “a new service that acts as a trusted intermediary connecting major donors, philanthropy advisors, and foundations with experts who can help fill knowledge gaps quickly and efficiently and channel more money to high-impact nonprofits and projects.

Now a privilege of  GuideStar Membership Programs, members can send in the question they would like to ask an expert. GuideStar will then search their database of thousands of experts to find a good match, ultimately connecting the donor with the expert via a phone call.

There are currently 17 resources in the Program Reviews category.  I would love to hear about other great resources we should add to our site.  And, I would love to hear your stories about good (and bad) connections with nonprofit organizations.

Ric Leutwyler