Futureproofing the nonprofit sector in uncertain times

Stronger Together: Cross sector partnerships for a resilient future (Opening Keynote)

Great challenges lead to creative solutions

The pandemic was an unprecedented challenge for the nonprofit sector, but it also taught NGOs what they can get done with a little elbow grease and creativity, said keynote speaker Sue Toomey, Executive Director, HandsOn Hong Kong. While life may be returning to the pre-pandemic status quo, these lessons of mutual aid should not be forgotten because they show the power of determination.

“What we are really excited to see are the new collaborations that have formed and innovative ways of working together, whether it’s NGO to NGO, funder to funder, or cross collaboration,” Toomey said. “We are excited and encouraged to see an opening of the minds, greater flexibility, and acceptance of just new ways to work together through the pandemic.”

The corporate sector is here to help

The pandemic made many ordinary people volunteer for the first time when they discovered the social and personal benefits of donating their time, Toomey said. The bumper crop of volunteers can be used for basic hands-on tasks, but don’t forget to make use of volunteers’ professional skillsets if they work in spheres like law or accounting. “Skilled volunteers who can bring in a specific expertise are really, really valuable and can be an extension of your team,” Toomey said.

Future proof with your board

Management and the board should think years ahead in the future and collaborate on innovation to test out ideas with pilot projects. Toomey said many valuable lessons were learned during the pandemic, and they should be kept in mind.

“Getting the future ready for our sector means investing. It means investing in our people, investing in our entire organizations. Remember, though, that innovation can look like drafting a new project or simply supporting an existing one that just needs a little help,” Toomey said.

“The reality is there are a lot of funders who want to support the next innovation, the next shiny thing when there are some amazing programs that just need to continue to run, need support, and may have innovation in them just by evolving to meet the needs and adjusting to the situation of the times,” she said. “That’s innovation too.” 

Back to the classroom: Food deserts and the cause of nutritional inequality (Faculty Keynote)

Interpreting a problem with the best data

Data is power, and it should drive policy. Take “food deserts” in the United States where communities lack access to food options –  conventional wisdom has held this inequality which can be closed by opening new grocery stores, but data tells a different story.

Jean-Pierre Dubé, the James M Kilts Distinguished Service Professor of Marketing at Chicago Booth, analyzed data from 150,000 households to find that opening grocery stores in food deserts are not enough to solve nutritional inequality. Dubé found that some 90% of the food gap is associated with food preferences, which skew less healthy as income decreases. Dubé’s research shows that there is no way to shortcut long-term and meaningful nutritional education, a lesson many nonprofits have learned across the industry.  

Solutions may look different than you imagine

Help can come in many forms, said Gabrielle Kirstein, founder of Feeding Hong Kong, and sometimes NGOs do their best work in the background. Kirstein shared that her nonprofit bridges the nutrition gap in Hong Kong by connecting donors and NGOs and acting as a clearinghouse for supplies.

By working together, Feeding Hong Kong each month helps rescue 65 tonnes of “surplus food”, or food that is still edible but not sellable, from some 400 food companies, said Kirstein. The NGO’s success would not be possible without the dedicated work of different actors working together to fill important gaps each step of the way. “It’s all about the power of partnerships. At Feeding Hong Kong, we are really a conduit between a few companies on one side and frontline partners on the other,” she said.

Going forward, Kirstein said more government “carrots and sticks” are needed to nudge corporations towards donations with tax breaks and away from food waste with waste charges.