Local Arts Notes

A recap of Arts news from various sources taken from the Alliance For Arts & Culture's great newsletter, Synergy.

Arts purse strings loosened ahead of federal budget
CBC.ca
March 16, 2007

Heritage Minister Bev Oda has made a flurry of arts funding announcements in the past week, ahead of Monday's federal budget. On Friday, she had $389,000 for Toronto's Harbourfront Centre and $316,167 for Vancouver record company Mint Records. Read more...

Arts Notes: UBC scene shop runs out of money
Georgia Straight
March 15, 2007
By Jessica Werb

The head of UBC's department of theatre, film, and creative writing has voiced concern over the possible closure of the Great Northern Way scene shop, which is set to run out of funding by June. Read more...

Arts Notes: North Vancouver streamlines cultural affairs office
Georgia Straight
March 15, 2007
By Jessica Werb

Members of North Vancouver's arts community have expressed cautious approval of the March 5 decision to create a bimunicipal office of cultural affairs that will serve both the District of North Vancouver and the City of North Vancouver. Read more...

All ready on the reno front - except the money
Vancouver Courier
March 9, 2007
By Cheryl Rossi

The city of Vancouver says extensive renovations to the Queen Elizabeth Theatre are scheduled to begin in April. But it doesn't yet have the money to pay for them. Read more...

City of Vancouver is right to opt for a balanced budget
The Vancouver Province
Thursday, March 01, 2007

Deciding on the kind of society we wish to live in involves a delicate balancing act. If we direct the bulk of our resources toward our police, for instance, we might expect to benefit from less crime. But if as a result we have to cut funds for libraries, the arts and cultural festivals, we cannot argue that we have improved our overall quality of life. Read more...

Develop creative neighbourhoods using 'inner artist'
Daily Commercial News and Construction Record
February 21, 2007
By Peter Kenter

Developers need to embrace their inner artist to help build communities where creativity can flourish. That was the message to delegates at the recent Canadian Urban Institute conference, The Path to Culture-led Regeneration: Who's Leading the Way? While new condominium and commercial developments often trade on the creativity of the neighbourhoods in which they're built, they can also destroy the creative character of those communities. Read more...

The proliferation of nonprofits: Is competition an opportunity or a threat?

This is an excerpt from a recent article by Louise Chatterton Luchuk published on www.charityvillage.com which i thought might be of interest.

There are 161,000 nonprofit and voluntary sector organizations in Canada...and counting. To ask the question, “Is the proliferation of nonprofits an opportunity or a threat?” is a little like asking if the glass is half full or half empty. Depending on who you talk to, or what aspect of competition you are discussing, the answer will be different.

There’s no question that when it comes to funding the proliferation of nonprofits poses a real challenge because there are only so many grants to be disbursed or donors to be tapped. Huge amounts of time, energy and resources go into competing for funding. The Calgary Chamber of Voluntary Organizations has studied funding issues in some depth. President and CEO Katherine van Kooy sees a growing awareness among funders in Calgary that their contributions per funded project are not sufficient. That fact undermines the sustainability of funded organizations. “The big dilemma,” she points out, “is that there is a finite pool of money - that’s the issue.” In Calgary, some community-based funders are deliberately supporting organizations at a level that is sustainable but, in turn, they have to make decisions about the number of organizations that they can support.

Then there is the related challenge of competition for fundraisers. In Alberta, says van Kooy, the supply does not meet the demand. Smaller organizations don’t have the same dollars to pay for fundraising professionals and this causes imbalance among nonprofits.

Read the full article here...

Some Great Teasers from Charity Villiage

Cover Story

The old adage, 'you have to spend money to make money' is just as true in the nonprofit sector as it is in the business world. But figuring out how much an organization should spend on fundraising is tricky, especially when there are so many hidden costs to factor in. Find out where those hidden costs lie and how to budget for them in this week's cover story. [Read more...]

Human Resources Q & A

Each month, veteran human resources consultant Tim Rutledge answers your questions about recruitment, employee retention, and all topics related to human resources management. This month, he offers advice on how to determine the appropriate salary for a newly created position. [Read more...]

Newsbytes

Arthur and Sonia Labatt make $30 million donation to SickKids
Study examines business contributions to communities
Federal government invests millions in spinal cord research
Nonprofit employees failing to save for retirement
Salvation Army raises $22 million through 2006 Christmas campaign
New process for registering charitable organizations in Alberta
Winnipeg businessman pledges $1 million to human rights museum
Canadians display more tolerance than other nations
Report helps nonprofits move people from knowledge to action
Scotiabank employees rally to support United Way of Greater Toronto
BC coalition seeks people with disabilities for research initiative
[Read more...]

CharityVillage Campus

Last week for Strategic Planning early-bird rate

You only have until February 15 to register for our new Strategic Planning course and receive the early-bird rate of $97.

Learn more about the course, or register now to save: learn.serebra.com/?s=678&i=CHV0110&p=c&t=o&m=Splan

Sponsor Message

Funding for leadership development programs at The Banff Centre

Funding to assist participants from registered Canadian charities to attend Leadership Development programs at The Banff Centre is available through the generous support of an anonymous donor. This funding does not apply to organizations with a focus on the arts. Programs must be taken by June 30, 2007.

Info at: www.banffcentre.ca/departments/leadership/charity_funding/default.asp

Research and How-to Library

We've added Endowment funds: An overview, in which Sherry Clodman reviews the different types of endowment funds and how they are established within charitable organizations. [Read more...]

We've added Silent, live or online: Which style of auction is best?, in which Judy Allen looks at some of the advantages and disadvantages of hosting an auction. [Read more...]

Canadian Online Resources

We've added PlanetFriendly.net, a site that focuses on bringing people together over ideas that matter. It includes articles, resources and event planning tools, including guides on how to organize and promote a successful event, and how to make the most of events and meetings. [Read more...]

Nonprofit Neighbourhood

Step It Up T.O. (Local: Toronto, ON)
Step It Up T.O. focuses on removing the barriers that have disadvantaged specific groups of youth from participating in physical activity by encouraging them to become proactive advocates of healthy living.

Caribbean Unity Foundation Inc. (International: Toronto, ON)
The foundation was founded in 1994 to help facilitate small scale businesses in the Caribbean community and train young people in the field of business to develop their entrepreneurial skills and supplement their income.

Healing Streams (Local: Kitchener, ON)
Healing Streams professionals and staff provide restoring, refreshing, and resourcing for Christian organizations, their leaders, and family members. This is achieved through conferences, seminars, consulting, professional counselling, and spiritual direction.

Saskatchewan Eco-Network (Regional: Saskatoon, SK)
The Saskatchewan Eco-Network (SEN) is the province's network of environmental NGOs. SEN serves its membership through communication, networking and capacity building opportunities.

CoRe Conflict Resolution Society (Local: Vancouver, BC)
The society directs the CoRe Clinic, a student-run mediation clinic housed at UBC Faculty of Law. The CoRe Clinic provides affordable and pro bono mediation and conflict resolution services. CoRe aims to make consensual conflict resolution accessible to all.

Useful Stuff

We've added LetterExpert. Whether you want to complain, send a thank-you, craft a fundraising letter, request a pay increase, or deliver some news, this site will help you. It includes advice, articles and all sorts of sample letters written by professional journalists and experts. [Read more...]

Book Review

We've added Raising More Money with Newsletters Than You Ever Thought Possible, by Tom Ahern, which focuses on the seven fatal flaws found in most donor newsletters and how you can correct them. [Read more...]

Professional Associations

We've added the Canadian Academic Accounting Association, an organization of accounting educators, professional accountants and others who are involved in, or concerned about, research and education in accounting and related areas. [Read more...]

SpeakOut!

Do you contribute to a retirement savings plan? Participate in our online poll. [Read more...]

The Career Centre

For new jobs, every single business day, visit the Career Centre at Charity Village. We've posted more than 60,000 positions in the sector and you can find all of the current ones here. [Read more...]

We've adjusted our Career Centre ad acceptance policy. [Read more...]

Marketplace at CharityVillage

Thanks to our ongoing advertisers:

ReStructure Non-Profit Consulting in:
HR Policy Development
Human Resources, Labour Relations, Pay Equity Consultants

Advanced Solutions International (iMIS Non-Profit Software) in:
Membership/Meeting Management Software
Donor Management Software
Association Management Software
Fundraising Software
Web Content Management Systems
E-commerce/Online Donations Enabling Services

Find all of your service and supplier needs in the Marketplace at CharityVillage. Browse or search by keyword through dozens of categories.