(This post is from Kari Mirkin, program assistant, Foundation Center-Cleveland, who recently attended the YNPN conference.)
Last weekend, young nonprofit professionals from across the country (myself included) took a short break from their day jobs to represent their respective cities at the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network(YNPN) annual leaders’ conference in Washington, DC. YNPN is a volunteer-driven, grassroots network of young people involved in the nonprofit sector. Its main objectives include keeping talented professionals in the sector and giving them the tools to build sustainable, well-rounded careers.
In a city crawling with lobbyists, it was no surprise that one of the main themes of the conference was the importance of advocating for the interests of the nonprofit sector and its young leaders through the media and in political arenas. The YNPN national board used this conference as an opportunity to unveil its own plan for rolling out advocacy efforts at both the national and local levels.
You might be asking yourself what these young nonprofit professionals have to offer as advocates for the sector, and the answer goes way beyond a mastery of web-based communications tools. Twitter is just part of the story. YNPN’s greatest asset by far is its members, all 15,000+ of them. Some may happen to publish blogs and listen to or produce podcasts (many may not), but all understand the challenges that nonprofits face when it comes to the current economic climate, the prospect of significantly reduced charitable giving, and the opportunities presented by the current administration’s policies towards volunteerism and philanthropy.
I returned from the conference with many valuable lessons and practical tools for growing and strengthening the Cleveland chapter, and as a member of YNPN Cleveland’s steering committee, I know I can play a critical role in voicing the concerns of young nonprofit professionals in our region while providing them with the resources they need to build long-lasting and effective careers in Cleveland’s nonprofit community.
--Kari Mirkin
See our other YNPN post here.
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