Textiles have played a huge part in human history. It may not be on the level of agriculture, but they have been truly significant on both a functional and cultural level. That should continue for the foreseeable future, which is why the Textile Society of America exists. They are a Berkeley, CA based non-profit that “provides an international forum for the exchange and dissemination of information about textiles worldwide, from artistic, cultural, economic, historic, political, social, and technical perspectives.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
arts,
California,
curation,
history,
Internships,
member services,
museum,
non-profit
I live to be outdoors. For me it’s mostly about fishing, but I enjoy hunting, hiking, kayaking, and pretty much anything else that gets me out in the wilderness. The tough thing is that I like to get away from civilization, but civilization is constantly encroaching on the wilderness. We need to find a balance, and that means getting more people involved in outdoor activities so that they’ll stand up to protect what needs to be protected. It’s better to share our special places with other enthusiasts then have them get turned into strip malls. The best way to get more people involved is to start them young, and that’s what Bay Area Wilderness Training is all about. They’re an Oakland, CA based non-profit that was “founded with the idea that California’s bountiful wilderness areas are a vast – yet untapped – resource for local youth-serving organizations.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
accounting,
California,
development,
education,
environmental,
Internships,
Logistics,
marketing,
non-profit,
outdoors,
outreach,
sports,
training,
unpaid
Gardening is a lot like life. If you work hard, do things right, and get a little lucky, you’ll be handsomely rewarded. That’s why tending to a garden is great for kids. Not only do they learn about the rewards of hard work, but they also get to watch something as it grows from a pile of dirt into something beautiful or delicious. City Blossoms is a Washington, DC based non-profit that is “dedicated to kid-driven, community engaging, creative green spaces.” While they are cultivators of youth; youth are their main cultivators.
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
community development,
education,
gardening,
green,
Internships,
non-profit,
organic,
program development,
unpaid,
Washington DC
I kind of think of Easter as a spring version of Thanksgiving. Though one holiday is religious and the other isn’t, they both have similar themes and, in my family at least, similar celebrations. Thanksgiving is about celebrating the season past, while Easter is about being hopeful for the coming season. Both have significant agricultural undertones, and that’s why I think we should take a look at Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture today. They are a Pocantico Hills, NY based non-profit that is not only hopeful for the coming growing season but also for the future of agriculture. That’s why they “are working to improve the way America eats and farms.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
agriculture,
education,
food,
gardening,
holiday,
Internships,
marketing,
New York,
non-profit,
organic,
program development,
retail,
sustainability,
unpaid
A lot of thoughts come to mind when the name Hilton comes up. Hotels. Paris. Conrad Hilton’s appearance in Mad Men. Some of these thoughts are more positive than others, but the most positive should probably be for the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. It’s an Agoura Hills, CA based non-profit “family foundation established in 1944 by the man who started Hilton Hotels” that provides “funds to nonprofit organizations working to improve the lives of disadvantaged and vulnerable people throughout the world.” The foundations assets are more than $2.4 billion, so they’ll be doing a lot of good for a long time.
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
analyst,
California,
events,
foundation,
grant making,
Internships,
investment,
non-profit
A while back when I was in Costa Rica on a fishing trip, my Dad and I took part of a day to check out the rainforest. Honestly, it was pretty disappointing. I thought it would be something really worth seeing, but it was just dark gray skies with low-hanging clouds and dull green vegetation everywhere. I didn’t even see any wildlife. While rainforest may not live up to the marketing hype in terms of visual experience (I swear every picture associated with rainforests includes bright colors), they’re still hugely important ecosystems. That’s why Rainforest Trust was “established in 1988 to save rainforests and other threatened tropical habitats that are critical for preventing imminent species extinction.” They’re a Warrenton, VA based non-profit that works “to purchase and protect threatened tropical forests.” It’s hard to think of a better way to save something than to buy it outright.
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
conservation,
environmental,
interactive media,
Internships,
non-profit,
unpaid,
Virginia,
web development
There’s something primally satisfying about cooking over an open fire. Maybe I enjoy it so much because I don’t get to do it very often. For a lot of people across the world, it’s an everyday occurrence–and that’s not a good thing. Did you know that “the most dangerous activity a woman can undertake in the developing world is cooking for her family?” StoveTeam International is a Eugene, OR based non-profit that is trying to make cooking safer by helping to start “self-sustaining businesses [that] produce safe, affordable, fuel-efficient cookstoves to replace dangerous open cooking fires.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
administrative,
culinary,
food,
international development,
Internships,
Manufacturing,
non-profit,
Oregon
This week I saw my first flowers popping out of the dirt. It still looks like winter outside, but you can tell that change is imminent. There will be no better place to be in a few weeks than a botanic garden. Flowers will be blooming, birds will be chirping, and spring will be in the air. I’ll probably visit the Chicago Botanic Garden (my wife and I like it there because it’s where we got married), but those in the New York City area might want to check out the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. It’s a non-profit and “an urban botanic garden that connects people to the world of plants, fostering delight and curiosity while inspiring an appreciation and sense of stewardship of the environment.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
botany,
development,
education,
events,
gardening,
horticulture,
Internships,
New York,
non-profit,
paid,
photography
When I think about real estate, I don’t usually think about art. And when I think about art, I don’t usually think about real estate. However, some of the most interesting companies and organizations that I’ve come across have been born out of seemingly odd combinations. Chashama is a perfect example. They are a New York, NY based non-profit that “nurtures artists by transforming unused property into work and presentation space.” It makes so much sense. Artists get much needed space to work and show their work, while an empty space is brought to life.
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
administrative,
arts,
development,
events,
information technology,
Internships,
marketing,
New York,
non-profit,
online marketing,
operations,
paid,
real estate,
social media
It’s easy to forget how important certain ecosystems have been to the development of human civilization. With agriculture, industry, and transportation, we can make any place on this earth habitable. In many parts of the world there are groups of people who are still living close to the land–they depend on nature for their survival and their ways of life. In fact, there are “nearly 400 distinct indigenous peoples [who] depend on the Amazon rainforest for their physical and cultural survival.” That’s why Amazon Watch was founded in 1996. They are a San Francisco, CA based non-profit that partners “with indigenous and environmental organizations in campaigns for human rights, corporate accountability and the preservation of the Amazon’s ecological systems.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
advocacy,
California,
communications,
conservation,
development,
environmental,
Internships,
media,
non-profit,
Washington DC
I love shows like The Wire, Breaking Bad, and The Sopranos. One common theme in all of those shows is money laundering. When you earn a lot of money illegally, you have to find a way to make it “clean.” While pop culture has made me well aware that money laundering happens on a large scale domestically, I had no idea how big the problem is for developing countries. Not only do these nations have to deal with the initial problem of criminal activity, but they also have to deal with the fact that these activities are sucking money out of their economies. Global Financial Integrity is a non-profit organization that is working to stop this. They are based in Washington, DC, and they promote “national and multilateral policies, safeguards, and agreements aimed at curtailing the cross-border flow of illegal money.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
communications,
finance,
international affairs,
Internships,
media,
non-profit,
policy,
unpaid,
Washington DC
I feel sorry for anyone who has ever had to watch me play soccer. It’s a sport that I was not made to play. I never liked all the running, but it was at least fun for the first few years (because there was still hope that I would eventually score a goal). Hopefully my experience with the sport is an aberration, because Round Star Foundation is a New York, NY based non-profit “dedicated to extending the many benefits soccer can provide to every individual.” They do this by “providing access to high quality soccer activities, training and education” to help people with both physical and social development.
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
business development,
camp,
education,
events,
Internships,
New York,
non-profit,
sports
Back to the Future Part II was on this morning. It’s hard to believe that we’re only a year away from that “future.” The future never looks like what we expect it to, but that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t try shaping it. Institute for the Future is a Palo Alto, CA based “independent, non-profit research organization with a 45-year track record of helping all kinds of organizations make the futures they want.” Their focus is on foresight, but it’s not as much about predicting the future as affecting it.
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
California,
development,
Internships,
non-profit,
research,
software development,
unpaid,
web development
I’m still thinking about the delicious piece of pie that I had last night. It was a good Pi Day, and that’s why we’re going to talk about math again today. Yesterday we focused on elementary education, and today we’ll take a look at MATHCOUNTS, an Alexandria, VA based non-profit that “provides fun and challenging math programs to US middle school students to increase their academic and professional opportunities.” Middle school is the point where math can get really interesting… or frustrating. MATHCOUNTS nurtures the love of mathematics so that students can continue on a path to success.
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
education,
Internships,
math,
non-profit,
program development,
Virginia
I swear that every kid who grows up in Connecticut goes on a field trip to Old Sturbridge Village at some point. For me it wasn’t until 10th grade (and we were on our way back from a longer trip to Boston and Plimoth Plantation), but I think most kids go earlier in their lives. If you weren’t lucky enough to grow up within a couple hour bus ride of Old Sturbridge Village (which is based in Sturbridge, MA), you should know that it’s the “largest outdoor history museum in the Northeast” and it “depicts a rural New England town of the 1830s.” It’s the perfect place for immature children to try to get the staff to fall out of character.
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
agriculture,
botany,
costumes,
curation,
education,
events,
gardening,
history,
horticulture,
Internships,
library,
living history,
marketing,
Massachusetts,
member services,
museum,
non-profit,
organic,
paid,
research,
sustainability,
unpaid
I’ve heard that the way math is taught in schools has completely changed since I learned to add, subtract, multiply, and divide. That seems crazy to me, but I know that there is a ton of room for innovation in the way that we educate children. While there are certainly some great for-profit companies working on this problem, there are also some great non-profits. One is Digital Promise, a Washington, DC based organization that “supports comprehensive research and development to benefit lifelong learners and provide Americans with the knowledge and skills needed to compete in the global economy.” Digital Promise is a bipartisan effort that is authorized by Congress, so it has serious support.
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
communications,
community management,
education,
innovation,
Internships,
marketing,
non-profit,
online marketing,
research,
social media,
Washington DC
One of my cooler life experiences was being picked up by a friend after landing at the airport in El Salvador. Instead of driving to the airport, he flew there. We hopped in his plane and took a tour of the country at a few thousand feet. Then we landed at another airport and drove to his house (it was almost as long a drive as it would have been from the original airport). While most of think of people who “have a plane” as billionaires with private jets, the reality is that a lot of normal people have and fly plaines. That’s why the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association has hundreds of thousands of members. It’s a Frederick, MD based non-profit that “is the largest, most influential general aviation association in the world.” The organization acts as a “beacon for those who cherish the freedom to fly.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
advocacy,
aerospace,
community management,
development,
finance,
flight,
Internships,
Maryland,
member services,
non-profit,
transportation
I grew up about 45 miles outside of New York City. While my parents always worked within five minutes of our house, a lot of my friends’ parents commuted in to the city. Most took the train, but some drove, and one occasionally used a helicopter. It’s hard to move millions of people in and out of the city on a daily basis without cars, but not everybody has helicopters. The Tri-State Transportation Campaign is a New York, NY based “non-profit advocacy organization dedicated to reducing car dependency in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.” They have a tough job, but they’ve already been at for more than 20 years.
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
communications,
environmental,
Internships,
New York,
non-profit,
planning,
sustainability,
transportation
I’ve always been an animal lover, but it’s turned up a few notches since Garçon came into my life. It’s amazing how much happiness a pet can bring to people, and it’s amazing what a good home can do for a pet. Unfortunately, 3-4 million animals are euthanized every year in the U.S. Found Animals is a Los Angeles, CA based nonprofit that is dedicated to changing this. The organization’s goal is to “find the big ideas that advance the safety of animals in our homes, our shelters, and everywhere in between.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
animals,
business development,
California,
e-commerce,
Internships,
legal,
non-profit,
retail,
unpaid
In a few months my typical Saturday mornings will include a trip to the farmers’ market, but right now it’s not happening. They may keep the market going indoors, but it’s just not the same. Farmers’ markets have always been a thing, but they’ve surged in popularity over the past decade–especially in urban centers. As more and more markets pop up, they can all gain by banding together. That’s what Mass Farmers Markets is about. They are a Waltham, MA based non-profit that aims “to partner with farmers, consumers, and communities to foster, enhance and sustain farmers market in Massachusetts in order to improve regional farm viability, consumer nutrition, and community social and economic development.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
all employers,
development,
food,
green,
Internships,
Massachusetts,
non-profit,
organic,
program development,
sustainability
Living in a city can be hard when you love nature and the outdoors, but there’s usually a way to get a fix. Here in Chicago we have Lake Michigan and Forest Preserves. The forest preserves are run by the county government and they exist “to acquire, restore and manage lands for the purpose of protecting and preserving public open space.” In Cook County that amounts to more than 68,000 acres (11% of the county’s land mass) that get about 40 million visits every year. Friends of the Forest Preserves is a Chicago, IL based non-profit that was started when a group of people saw the forest preserves being mismanaged and organized “to rescue these treasured lands, knowing that to maintain their vast rewards and ensure they’re here for all of us to enjoy, we’d have to work just as hard as the visionary citizens who protected them more than a century ago.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
advocacy,
communications,
conservation,
development,
Illinois,
Internships,
member services,
non-profit,
paid
Over the past year I’ve started to get really interested in upland bird hunting. It’s a sport with amazing tradition, but it’s an old man’s sport. It’s hard for a young guy to get started. That’s why I’m heading to Pheasant Fest in Milwaukee today. It’s the national convention of Pheasants Forever, a St. Paul, MN based non-profit that is “dedicated to the conservation of pheasants, quail and other wildlife through habitat improvements, public awareness, education and land management policies and programs.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
advocacy,
biology,
conservation,
education,
Internships,
Minnesota,
non-profit,
outdoors,
sports
I don’t go to the theater very often, but when I do I usually enjoy it. There’s something pretty cool about seeing someone become a completely different character right before your eyes. As we spend more and more time looking at screens of all sizes, it’s important to remember our “theatrical traditions.” That’s what American Conservatory Theater is all about. They are a San Francisco, CA based non-profit that “embraces its responsibility to conserve, renew, and reinvent the rich theatrical traditions that are our collective legacy, while exploring new artistic forms and new communities.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
arts,
California,
copywriting,
design,
development,
fellowship programs,
grant writing,
Internships,
marketing,
non-profit,
paid,
theater,
writing
We can all agree… that we can all agree on some things sometimes–even when it comes to politics. I tend to like when the disagreement between the two parties locks things up because it means that the government won’t be able to break anything else; however, I understand that occasionally we need our government to actually accomplish something. The Bipartisan Policy Center is a Washington, DC based non-profit that encourages the two parties to work together on important issues where ideological differences can be worked through. The organization was “founded in 2007 by former Senate Majority Leaders Howard Baker, Tom Daschle, Bob Dole and George Mitchell,” so it truly is a bipartisan effort.
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
communications,
development,
economics,
energy,
foreign relations,
health care,
international affairs,
Internships,
non-profit,
nutrition,
paid,
policy,
public policy,
security,
transportation,
unpaid,
Washington DC
I’m a bit upset that the Super Bowl is overshadowing Punxsutawney Phil’s big day, but that varmint says we’re having six more weeks of winter, so let’s talk about somebody who actually deserves attention: Peyton Manning. I’m pretty sure that I could be the guy in a foot race, yet he’s dominating one of the most athletic sports leagues in the world. He also gives a lot back through his non-profit, the Peyback Foundation. It’s an Indianapolis, IN based organization that aims “to promote the future success of disadvantaged youth by assisting programs that provide leadership and growth opportunities for children at risk.” The Peyback Foundation doesn’t have a Careers page, but I checked on LinkedIn, and they do have employees and interns. What’s the point? Tons of football players (here’s a list) and other pro athletes have foundations and charities. They may be long shots, but some will have career opportunities. Find the ones that interest you and reach out to see if you might be able to work with them.
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
education,
football,
foundation,
holiday,
Indiana,
Internships,
non-profit
Every company and organization in the world is looking for better talent. The problem is that the quest for talent is typically a zero-sum game for employers. The world’s most talent people are typically employed, so the only way to hire them is to steal them from someone else; however, there are some exceptions. The Center for Talent Innovation is a non-profit think tank that focuses on these exceptions. They’re based in New York, NY and have a two-fold mission: “to drive ground-breaking research that leverages talent across the divides of gender, generation, geography and culture; and to create a community of senior executives united by an understanding that full utilization of the global talent pool is at the heart of competitive success.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
analyst,
data,
human resources,
Internships,
New York,
non-profit,
paid,
recruiting,
research
While it has become increasingly apparent that graduating college isn’t close to enough to get you a job these days, we also know that not having gone to or graduated college makes finding a good job so much harder. If young people are going to succeed in life, they need to start with success in high school and college. Bottom Line is a Boston, MA, Worcester, MA and New York, NY based non-profit (they also are working in Chicago) that “has helped thousands of low-income and first-generation students stay in college and earn their degrees.” The organization was founded in 1997 and now reaches more than 3,000 students every year.
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
education,
Illinois,
Internships,
Massachusetts,
New York,
non-profit,
outreach,
program development
Last year I got married at the Chicago Botanic Garden. I’ve never been much of a plant person, but it was truly a perfect setting. I’m just amazed that they can grow such a diverse array of beautiful plants in this climate–especially with the winter we’re having this year. If I was opening such a garden, I’d want to do so in a more moderate climate like San Francisco’s. John McLaren was the landscape gardener who was Golden Gate Park’s superintendent for 56 years. He picked a place for a future botanical garden that had “a variety of soil and exposure, sloping, dry and sunny hillsides, sheltered spots and rich, low or marshy land.” The San Francisco Botanical Garden finally got the necessary funding in 1926, and in 1954 the Strybing Arboretum Society was founded to support the garden and its programs. Today the organization is known as the San Francisco Botanical Garden Society, and it supports “55 acres of both landscaped gardens and open spaces, showcasing over 8,000 different kinds of plants from around the world.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
botany,
California,
development,
education,
gardening,
horticulture,
Internships,
library,
member services,
non-profit,
paid,
plant science,
retail
Getting a dog is one of the best things that I’ve ever done. Seriously, how could you not love this guy? I’ve been taking his training very seriously, and it has been a really rewarding process. Working with animals often brings out the best in people. That’s why the Prison Pet Partnership is such a good idea. It’s a Gig Harbor, WA based non-profit that “gives inmates the opportunity to learn valuable pet industry-related vocational skills to use in finding employment when they resume their lives outside of prison.” They take dogs from animal rescues and train them to be service dogs. Since most dogs aren’t cut out for the service life, the rest are rehomed as “Paroled Pets.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
animals,
education,
Internships,
non-profit,
training,
Washington
Our federal, state, and local governments do a lot of things that are bad for their constituents, but one of the worst has to be state-run lotteries. They are great at generating income for things like schools, but they are a massive regressive tax that disproportionately harms lower-income individuals. It’s almost as if people see lotteries as a savings account instead of a long shot bet. For a long time I’ve had an idea that state lotteries should be transitioned into an investment vehicle. Imagine how much better off people would be if a one dollar scratch off ticket contributed 50 cents to savings account, 40 cents to prizes, and 10 cents to education or something similar. You could even engineer it so that people win “prizes” out of their own savings accounts. To my surprise I recently learned about a non-profit that is working on similar ideas. It’s called Doorways to Dreams Fund, and they’re based in Allston, MA. They work “with the financial services industry, government agencies, national non-profit groups, grassroots community agencies, and public policy organizations to generate promising ideas, pilot test financial products and services, build awareness of the needs and potential of low-income communities, and advocate inclusive social and economic policies.”
Read the full article →
Tagged as:
community development,
economics,
finance,
innovation,
Internships,
Massachusetts,
non-profit,
personal finance,
strategy
