As nonprofits, our bread and butter is community engagement. We must effectively engage clients, community partners, donors, elected officials, and other stakeholders to provide essential services. This is one way we make a stronger community. On occasion, an opportunity arises to make our collective voices heard, to advocate to strengthen our organizations, our partner nonprofits, and the community itself. Now is one of those opportunities.
Recently, City Council has begun revising the structure through which it will fund nonprofit entities, known as the Agency Budget Review Team (ABRT). Proposed changes could have serious, long-reaching impacts on many local nonprofits. You can join CNE in making your views heard via the City’s website or even by speaking at the upcoming Council meeting, Tuesday, January 22. If you want to learn more about how you can effectively engage on this issue, reach out to CNE’s Ryan Jacoby.
Another opportunity comes from the UVA-Community Working Group, which has been asked by UVA President Jim Ryan to identify and prioritize community issues that UVA and the community could tackle together. CNE’s Executive Director, Cristine Nardi, is a member of the Working Group which is now seeking feedback via a very short survey. Please take one minute to complete this survey, sharing your views on what issues to prioritize and your knowledge of good work already being done in any of the proposed focus areas. This is an excellent opportunity to help frame UVA/community action on issues that matter to nonprofits, their clients, their employees.
Take courage in the knowledge that your voice is needed and can have an important impact. And that we are stronger together.
CNE is currently working to shape future programming related to nonprofit advocacy. If you have particular needs or concerns in this area, please let us know so we can better serve you.