The latest issue of the Standford Social Innovation Review includes a must-read article by Paul Brest, the outgoing president of the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation reflecting on the growing importance of strategic philanthropy over the last decade and its prospects for the future. “For all of the improved practices and new ideas of the [...]

Sample Size calculators online for sample size estimates

Ambient data is data that is not being produced intentionally in order to conduct research or evaluation anything.  It’s simply data that is being produced in the course of your daily life and the day to day operation of your agency. “Even when individuals do not have direct access to mobile phones or other technologies, [...]

  The Center for Urban Pedagogy is a working example of innovative use of design and data for good.  They’ve got kids and teens and teachers and artists and politicians working together on public policy and civic engagement project.  They will train you to do it too. One of their coolest projects is “Know your [...]

Are you involved in a mandate or cause that is similar but not really the same as a number of other agencies?  For instance, does you organization target obesity in school-aged children while a neighboring agency works to reduce the number of children in your area living in poverty?  The collective impact paradigm would allow [...]

Visualization of data is becoming more and more important to communicate your program’s results.  I am often trying new software and looking for new ways to creatively look at the data from our organizations. Weave (Web-based Analysis and Visualization Environment) is out now in its Beta 1.0 and it seems to have a lot of potential.  [...]

Adam Gopnik has a new book out about, in part, the importance of eating food together.  His premise is essentially that goes on the dining table has never mattered as much to our lives as what goes on around it.  Gopnik’s book is very interesting and mainly aimed at people who can afford to stock [...]

“Comment is free,” wrote Guardian editor CP Scott in 1921, “but facts are sacred”.  This truism kicks off the Guardian’s new e-book on data journalism.  The short book, written by Simon Rogers and available for $3.99 at Amazon and iBooks, is a resource we’ve found extremely helpful in understanding data journalism; why it works and why [...]

A colleague recently told me about a conference call with staffers from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; for them,  infographics were the current “holy grail” in evaluation.  They don’t just talk about it either, as the Foundation’s site includes some very nice examples.  Infographics can be highly effective additions to a non-profit organization’s evaluation [...]

Gross domestic product is what is often used as a default indicator of a nation’s success.  This is a reliable and standard measure of a certain type of proxy for a limited type of health.  But what are the real implications for children in using this proxy?  Lately, economists are working on developing something better. [...]