Every day too many Mississippians go to bed at night, not having their basic needs met, and too many wake up the next morning struggling to find meaningful ways to improve their situation. That said, our great Magnolia State is filled with tens of thousands of allies working as hard as they can to meet the needs of the disadvantaged. Nonprofits are hard at work designing and implementing programs. Philanthropies, foundations, and high-wealth individuals are hard at work investing precious resources in nonprofits to successfully execute their programs, missions, and visions. Volunteers are hard at work delivering supplies, clearing obstacles, finding solutions, and governing.

Our challenges are not unique, but to find sustainable solutions, it takes everybody working together. The Alliance believes in this, so fundamentally, we made it our namesake. It is the name of our monthly publication. It is how we frame engagement, and it is the cornerstone behind this new initiative. Nonprofits and philanthropies must come together, now, in ways defined by their common goals to form meaningful partnerships that solve problems cooperatively. This paradigm must be laid on a foundation of trust and respect and reinforced by some key assurances.

Funders need to know that nonprofits have a record of success and organizational capacity to use their financial resources to reach their greatest possible outcomes. Moreover, their organizations must have highly skilled volunteer boards that understand their profound responsibility and can ensure that they are governed in a way that sets them up for long-term success.

Nonprofits need to know that funders will respect their expertise and essential role in designing and implementing programs. Their philanthropic partners must provide consistent resources, communicate regularly, invest their attention and dollars, and work with them to find creative solutions as partners. The Alliance has designed the Innovations Lab to help deliver these assurances. Through capacity-building, certification, research, consulting, personalized attention, community presentations, facilitated pairings, and allyship, both nonprofits and funders can feel confident that they are coming to the table as two sides of the same coin looking to find solutions as partners. As allies, they will leave the Lab prepared to get to work supporting our communities, helping people wake up every morning able to lead fulfilling lives.

To see the entire November Newsletter click here