This is an extreme year, but based on my experience with non-profits, these problems are nothing new. Non-profits, while very passionate about their missions, can also be dangerously short-sighted, not wanting to think about “what ifs” and prepare contingency plans. This leads many organizations to be caught in a revolving state of emergency. I am also a volunteer for American Red Cross, whose mission in to help people prepare for and prevent emergencies. Most non-profits could stand to learn a lot from this philosophy. The issue here is sustainability. Having foresight, management strategy, and reserves to weather storms like current budget crisis.

There are several components to a sustainable non-profit strategy. The first is obviously building a diversified funding base. We are advised to do this with our own investment portfolios and for good reason. Non-profits need to continually be looking for new and varied funding sources. These could be fee for service ventures, corporate affiliations, updated fundraising campaigns, adding board members with financial clout, or targeting new donor segments. Complaisance with status quo funding, can eventually lead to crisis.