Software Partnership

[report from the Philanthropy Journal]

B2P, Microsoft developing tools for nonprofit accounting, donor-management.

11.22.2004 -

By Todd Cohen

Chicago-based B2P Commerce has teamed up with Microsoft to develop a nonprofit application for new small-business-management solutions Microsoft is developing for its Microsoft Office software.

B2P also will integrate its software designed to let nonprofits manage contacts with donors into new contact-management software Microsoft is developing for small businesses.

The new applications will be available in fall 2005, targeted to small and mid-sized nonprofits and priced at about $1,500, said Jay Stocki, vice president of business development at B2P.

B2P, which previously teamed up with Intuit to develop a nonprofit application for its QuickBooks accounting software used by small businesses, will develop a similar application for Microsoft's new small-business accounting software that will be geared to the fund-accounting rules nonprofits must use, Stocki said.

The application will be designed to let nonprofits meet reporting requirements set by the Federal Accounting Standards Board, and also track grants, allocate expenses, handle budgeting and spending for programs, and manage general finances, he said.

B2P also will develop a nonprofit contact-management application for Microsoft's new small-business Outlook software that will be geared to nonprofits' needs to track and communicate with donors based on their donation history and charitable interests.

Another Form of Public-Private Mix?

「非政府組織」NED代替中情局秘密行事

【明報專訊】水門案後對美國中情局活動的調查，揭露了中情局為伸張美國外交目標而在他國暗地從事 的政治活動詳情，包括秘密資助一些符合美國利益的個人、政黨和非政府組織，以及捐輸金錢去對抗一些被理解為反美的活動，卡特總統後來下令禁止中情局這類活 動。但列根上台後情又有變化。列根為加強海外情報活動能力而任命的顧問小組，建議重振在海外的秘密政治活動﹔由於國會和民意可能反對再重用中情局執行這 類任務，小組提出可交由與中情局沒表面關係的「非政府組織」負責，最後促成了全國民主基金會(NED)在1983年的誕生。

資助亞洲20組織一半針對華

據 國會通過的法案，NED是個「非牟利、非政府、提供捐助的組織，以加強全球民主建制」，但它其實是個半官方機構，在94年前基本上全靠國會撥款﹔94年 後，它同時接受私人捐助作為國會撥款以外的「幫補」。NED的財政預算中，有三成是直接用於撥給外國組織，有關工夫主要透過4個「核心組織」執行，包括國 際共和黨機構(IRI)、全國民主黨國際事務機構(NDI)、國際私人企業中心(CIPE)和自由工會機構(FTUI)。

NED提供財力 和顧問支援，以多種方式支持外國政黨、競選團、工會、學生團體、媒體等，另NED也給美國FreedomHouse撥款「推動世界自由」。在亞洲，獲 NED資助的組織有20多個，約一半是針對中國。NED目前在中國的活動可分為兩類﹕一是獲中方接受的，如協助訓練村官員搞農村選舉等﹔一是被美國視為恰 當但被中方視為干涉內政的，包括支持異見人士和西藏流亡人士。首類活動主要靠跟NED有關甚至獲其資助的組織的員工進行，第二類則是藉NED離岸辦公室 從事。97年前NED在港設有這樣的辦公室，97後遷到澳洲。

助樹親美政權有效外交工具

90年代中有人質疑東歐變天後是 否還需要NED，保守智囊傳統基金會曾發表報告力撐﹕「NED是思想戰爭的一個重要武器，共產政權仍控制中國、北韓、越南、古巴，另一些前共產黨人也以民 族主義者的姿態繼續主宰前蘇聯成員國。NED可幫這些國家邁向民主。這些地方的政治活躍分子通常都較寧願從（美國）非政府組織接受援助，因來自美國政府機 構的援助，可能會削弱他們在國民面前的公信力。NED透過在世界重要戰略地區，協助與美國親善的民主政權發展起來，伸張了美國國家利益。美國不可放棄這一 有效的外交政策工具。」

被指借私人地位影響外國選舉

但華盛頓外交政策專家孔里和前中情局官員麥吉都質疑NED的作為。孔 里曾說﹕「NED在外國常被視為美國干涉內政的工具而招來憎恨，特別是NED企圖欺騙外國人以為它所提供的『私人協助』。NED曾多次利用其所謂的私人機 構地位，去影響外國的選舉，美國其他能執行這種任務的，恐怕就只有中情局的秘密行動。」

曾協助草擬法案成立NED的溫斯坦91年時更曾坦認﹕「我們現在所幹的，基本上正是25年前中情局秘密地幹的。」

以上為印度政府內閣秘書處前高官，時事專題研究所總監B.Raman的文章節錄。

中國性病艾滋病防治協會

This Chinese AIDS NGO was featured in the previous news item extracted from MingPao Instant News (see this post). HIV/AIDS and environmental protection are the two areas of work where NGO activities are most active and visible in China.

中国性病艾滋病防治协会
CHINESE ASSOCIATION OF STD & AIDS PREVENTION AND CONTROL

　　中国性病艾滋病防治协会(简称协会)是依法成立的全国性行业协会。是由性病艾滋病防治工作者和热心于性病艾滋病防治事业的各界人士组成的群众性社会团 体。中国性病艾滋病防治协会的英文译名是：CHINESE ASSOCIATION OF STD & AIDS PREVENTION AND CONTROL。 　　
　　协会成立于1993年11月30日。宗旨是团结、组织和动员广大卫生工作者和社会各界人士,在国家有关法律规范的范围内，积极参与全社会的性病艾滋病防治工作,为保障我国人民身体健康和加强社会主义物质文明和精神文明建设服务。
　
　　协会主要任务： 　　
　　一.组织、动员和协调广大卫生工作者和社会各界人士共同参与性病艾滋病防治工作；
　　二.大力宣传和普及性病艾滋病的防治知识,开展广泛的健康教育活动和咨询服务,提高民众的自我保护意识； 　　
　　三.接受政府委托开展的调查研究工作,为政府部门制定性病艾滋病防治对策和政策法规提供咨询和依据； 　　
　　四.开展性病艾滋病防治技术培训活动,组织研究和科学考察活动,并广泛开展国际交流和合作,积极发展与国际机构和民间组织的联系,建立国际间协作； 　　
　　五.开发、推广有关性病艾滋病防治的新技术、新成果,提供技术咨询和技术服务；
　　六.编辑出版有关性病艾滋病防治专业性期刊、科普刊物、宣传品、书籍及音像信息资料　
　　七.积极鼓励扶持从事性病艾滋病防治工作的骨干分子,评审并奖励优秀科技成果和论文；
　　八.为性病病人和HIV感染者/艾滋病人提供帮助，呼吁全社会关心和维护性病艾滋病病人及其亲属的合法权益,使其免受社会的歧视； 　　
　　九.向政府反映性病艾滋病防治工作者的意见和要求,为会员服务,维护他们的合法权益； 　
　　十.建立、发展符合本会宗旨的产业和服务,增强自身发展能力。 　　

　　协会有常务理事67人，理事126人。主要领导人员如下：

　　会 长： 王克安 中国预防医学科学院院长
　　副会长： 戴志澄 原卫生部疾病控制司司长
　　　　　　 张孔来 中国协和医科大学教授
　　　　　　 康来仪 上海市疾病预防控制中心主任医师
　　　　　　 郑锡文 卫生部艾滋病预防与控制中心副主任
　　秘书长: 董永坤 中国预防医学科学院副院长
　　副秘书长： 沈 洁 卫生部疾病控制司传染病控制二处处长
　　　　　　吴明山 公安部治安管理局副局长
　　　　　　陈宝珍 中国预防医学科学院研究员 　　　　

地址：北京市宣武区南纬路27号 　　
邮政编码：100050 　
电话：010-63034521 010-63178284 010-63186655转2703，2920，2428 　　
传真：010-63034521

中國九成愛滋病患未有登記

明報即時新聞網

中國九成愛滋病患未有登記 [20:15]
2004/11/28

中國性病愛滋病防治協會會長戴志澄說，九成愛滋病感染者仍潛伏在「冰山」下﹐這是一個潛在的危機。

戴志澄在北京舉行的關注婦女、共抗愛滋大型社會公益活動上指出，目前中國登記確認的愛滋病感染者只佔一成。據官方已公佈的數字，中國目前估計有愛滋病病毒感染者八十四萬，居全球第十四位、亞洲第二位。

戴志澄指出﹐目前最令人擔憂的是，登記確認的愛滋病感染者到去年年底只有六萬多，到今年九月份也只有九萬多﹐實際報告數約為官方預測數的百分之十，這表明仍有百分之九十的感染者潛伏在「冰山」下而未浮出水面﹐這將是一個巨大的潛在危機。

由於潛伏期關係，感染者可以在沒有任何明顯症狀的情況下攜帶愛滋病病毒七至十年之久﹐在不知情中感染他人的事例屢屢發生﹐其中包括把病毒傳給自己的孩子。而過去二十年﹐在全世界十個國家累積的數據表明﹐一個已知自己感染了愛滋病的人，高危行為將減少百分之七十。

無障礙網頁設計研討會

News from the Council's ITRC (Information Technology Resource Centre) newsletter:

為了推動無障礙網頁設計，由政府資訊科技總監辦公室及香港社會服務聯會資訊科技資源中心聯合舉辦之“網頁設計無障礙，成功關鍵之所在”研討會將於二００四年十二月廿日（星期一）在香港會議及展覽中心四０一室舉行。

此研討會主要向與會者提供設計無障礙網站一些主要概念及技術，令殘障人士，特別是令失明人士可以方便瀏覽網站。

是次研討會邀請有關團體及專業人士出席分享設計無障礙網頁的寶貴經驗，大會並安排小型展覽，展示多種供殘障人士使用的電腦輔助器材。

社署冀削支不減福利服務

明報即時新聞網[12:12]

2004/11/27

社會福利署助理署長馮伯欣表示，希望來年社會福利開支的1％減幅，不會帶來太大影響，服務也不會減少。

馮伯欣今早出席電台節目時強調，每個界別均須承擔滅赤的責任，也應靈活運用和調配有限的資源。

他指出，雖然下年度的社會福利開支會輕微下調，但透過重組和調配服務，加上其他的資源如社區投資共享基金，相信調整的影響不會太大。

他舉例說，社署正重組轄下的家庭服務，以免資源重疊，令服務更為專注和直接；預計重組需時1年完成。

談到天水圍家庭服務檢討小組的建議時，馮伯欣指出，社署一直三管齊下，即預防教育、支援和補救工作，避免家庭悲劇的發生。

他表示，社署明年4月將成立第6隊保護家庭及兒童服務課，並調撥更多資源予寄養家庭服務方面。

此外，社署也將在家庭暴力問題較嚴重的地區，如天水圍和將軍澳投放多些資源，加強支援。

元朗區福利專員周廖鳳儀表示，每年均舉辦大型福利策劃研討會。出席的非政府機構、政府部門、地區人士、學校和醫療界代表，以及服務用者，會就區內的最新發展和獨特需要，擬訂來年的地區福利服務計劃。

她指出，已因應天水圍區對家庭服務的需求，先後設立共3間綜合家庭服務中心，為居民提供預防、支援和補救服務。

周廖鳳儀指出，綜合家庭服務中心開放時間具彈性，並備有不少資源，也舉辦親子和教育活動，以及小組分享等；因此，中心的工作並非純粹屬補救性質。

她說，天水圍居民對地區社福支援的認識較為薄弱；社署因此跟區內的志願機構合辦外展服務，主動探訪家庭，介紹中心的服務，以及了解他們的需要和問題。

須為社福服務把脈

明報社評 2004年11月27日

政府宣布來年度削減社會福利機構資源1％，即6200萬元，三大社福組織昨日召開聯合記者會，指連同過去數年的削資，社福機構的服務資源總共減少了12％，金額達8億元，社福機構和前線員工已經到達崩潰邊緣。可是，日前財政司長唐英年會見社福界人士時卻表示，過去10年社福撥款大幅增加近兩倍，遠高於同期政府開支升幅，單是過去5年，非政府機構的資源便從64億元增加至74億元。如果唐司長說的數字不假，而社福界訴說的苦也是真的，那麼錢去了哪裏﹖

我們建議社署和社福組織邀請獨立的專家和學者，聯手為社會服務把脈，看到底是資源不夠，還是資源未能善用，從而對症下藥。

政府官員列舉數字來說明社福資源已大幅增加，社福組織則不斷批評政府削資。事實是﹕過去數年既有削資，也有新增資源﹔問題是﹕受削資影響的與受惠於新增資源的，未必是同一批人。有加有減之後，整體社福服務是否足以應付社會需求，或是真的已到達崩潰邊緣，不是簡單看表面數字可以判斷，必須深入評估。

事實的真相可能是資源不足，也可能是社會服務分裂割離。像天水圍家庭慘劇引發的調查報告所指出，區內有377名社工，論數字並不少﹔但因缺乏統籌和協調，令到珍貴的資源，用不得其所，無法有效為問題家庭服務。社福機構如果願意接受「身體檢查」，應有助公眾了解真相，尋求適切的對策。

社署削資大會業界噤若寒蟬

2004年11月27日　星期六　港聞

【明報專訊】社會福利署昨午向志願機構代表簡介「削資大計」，百多名機構負責人出席，多名與會者指出，社署署長鄧國威交代削資安排後，除了一名社聯及工會代表提問，全場噤若寒蟬。有機構代表指，當時大家心情太壞才相對無言，亦有人指，社署是資助來源，沒有機構敢明目張膽反抗。

業界憂影響服務質素

每年接受社署資助逾1億元的聖雅各福群會，其總幹事賴錦璋指出，因一筆過撥款承諾了員工不能裁員減薪，但那邊廂社署的工作合約又有服務承諾，機構省錢唯有靠自然流失，面對削資，同工壓力增加，服務質素難免受影響，他舉例，在復康院舍中，使用者近年多了意外發生。他表示，聽罷削資講座後與會者相對無言，因為有感經濟環境改善，政府仍然開刀，感到甚為無奈。

資助300萬以下「免疫」

每年獲社署資助290餘萬的和諧之家總幹事王鳳儀則表示，她們剛好避過削資的刀鋒（300萬為分水嶺），但她指，社會問題愈多愈嚴重，其實社福界不止不能削資，還要增加資源，但她對社署體恤小機構，感到有點安慰。社聯行政總裁方敏生表示，下周她已約見衛福局長周一嶽，表達對削資不滿。

志願機構削資1%

2004年11月27日　星期六　港聞

【明報專訊】社會福利署繼續推行削資計劃，於2005/06年向百多志願機構削資6200萬，即1％，被社福界強烈批評「不必要」及「不近人情」，社福界批評近年承受累積削幅已達業界開支10％。但政府反駁，相比社署內部及衛生食物界別，志願機構「被咬那一口已較小」。

社福界轟不近人情

社署署長鄧國威昨日會見傳媒，解釋削資方案。他指，和衛生福利及食物局磋商下，決定社福界在來年承擔2.1%削資，目標省下2.2億。其中社署內部會承擔5100萬，佔社署全年30餘億營運開支1.6%。志願機構則要削6200萬，佔百多機構60多億津貼總額1％。
考慮到小型機構的困難，每年資助額300萬以下的機構可豁免1％削減，估計「免疫機構」共70間，佔182間受資助機構近四成。

社署稱被咬得更大

政府強調已盡力做到減少對服務的影響，其中衛福局首席助理秘書長鄭琪說，「過去幾年社福界的減幅比其他政策範疇如衛生、醫療、食物環境來得小。」鄧國威亦稱﹕「站在政府立場我們要看闊點，在幾個範疇下，社會福利界2.1%減得最少。」社署發言人補充﹕「若拿志願機構和社署比較，社署『咬得大口』一點。」

反駁真正削幅2.5%

不過，代表140多間資助志願機構的社會服務聯會和兩大社工工會反駁，實質削幅遠超社署所指的1％。他們解釋，社署所指的「服務重整」和「老人宿舍轉型」合共削去1億餘，大部分都由志願機構承擔，故「真正削幅」是2.5%，社聯總裁方敏生形容，「我們的信封比別人更大」。
社會工作人員協會會長蔡海偉狠批，「對政府來說6000萬是什麼錢﹖維港匯、紅灣半島浪費不是更多嗎﹖1％也要減有必要嗎﹖政府是不近人情。」

代表社福界的立法會議員張超雄批評，政府「玩算數字遊戲」，「1％一刀切以外，『理順』及『轉型』搞一大餐，其實是削了2.5%，那不是小削幅，財爺剛不是說香港有7％經濟增長﹖那是數十億元，社會愈來愈有錢，但基層市民卻分享不到成果。」

$$ 社會福利 資源削減 $$

So exactly what's the accumulated government cutbacks on welfare subvention since the year 2000/01? The Council of Social Service produced the following figures:

• 2000 / 03 資源增值 $ 2.85 億元 5% (over 3 years)
• 2003 / 04 節約措施 $ 1.30億元 1.8%
• 2004 / 05 資源削減 $ 1.63億元 2.5%
• 2004 / 05 服務重整 $ 0.41億元 0.6%
• 2005 / 06 資源削減 $ 0.62億元 1%
• 2005 / 06 服務重整 $1.08億元 1.5%
• 00/01-05/06 總數 接近8億元 (即12%)

政府於2004年11月26日公布一刀切再削減社會福利資源... 政府提出削資1%，但計及業界通過服務理順及轉型而節省的一億一千萬元，實際非政府機構要承擔的削資幅度是2.5％，超過一億七千萬元。由於過去幾年，社 福機構已承受削資六億元，連同今次建議的削幅，金額達八億元，即12%。

Sadly many people may still think that an accumulated cutback of 12% over 5 years is not a big deal... Can someone from the sector offer a convincing case on why a 12% cutback is totally unacceptable, and that the sector is trying to safeguard the interests of the disadvantaged and not the welfare agencies themselves?

社署削開支機構憂影響服務

明報即時新聞網 [ 2004/11/26, 19:28 ]

社署在下個財政年度將要減2.1%的開支，而受資助機構須減1%開支，多個福利機構感到失望及遺憾。

社署表示，已接到下個財政年度開支信封，將要減2.1%的開支，約2.2億元，受資助機構將要減1%開支，較原訂的2%為少，其中182間非政府機構的撥款減少6000萬元，但70間資助額低於300萬的非政府機構資助就不受影響。

社署本身將要削減5000萬元，將在老人院買位、重整幼兒服務及資源增值等方面節省支出。社署強調，來年仍會有新服務，包括殘障人士社會支援、安老院轉型、家庭暴力等。

社聯、社會工作人員協會和社會工作者總工會就不滿社署繼續削資，早上拒絕與署方開會。其中社聯行政總裁方敏生表示，社署聲稱透過重組服務節省的一億一千萬，實際上亦涉及由志願機構提供的服務，所以他們實際再被削減一億七千萬元。

她表示，連早前削減近一成的撥款額，明年再削，不單令服務質素大受影響，更會將業界推向崩潰邊緣。

社工總工會擔心會影響服務質素；立法會社福界議員張超雄認為經濟增長理想，政府稅收亦增加，無必要削減福利撥款。

零點研究集團 - 中國愛滋病調查

明報即時新聞網 [ 2004/11/26, 18:04 ]

中國居民對愛滋病存誤解

一項調查顯示，中國居民對愛滋病傳播途徑存在很多誤解，對與愛滋病者正常接觸或共用公共設施心存恐懼。

這項名為《２００４年中國居民愛滋病常識及態度和行為狀況研究報告》顯示，在接受調查的城鄉居民中，只有４８．８％能夠正確認識到與愛滋病患者握手、擁抱、禮節性接吻等接觸行為不會感染愛滋病﹔２９．８％能夠正確認識到與愛滋病患者共用馬桶、浴室、游泳池等公共設施不會感染艾滋病﹔對蚊虫叮咬是否會傳播愛滋病，中國居民的認識也不很清晰，僅有２９.８％回答不會。

衛生專家指出，對愛滋病缺乏了解會加劇恐懼和歧視心理。愛滋病雖然是一種病死率極高的傳染病，但愛滋病病毒並非輕易、隨便就能感染和傳播。愛滋病主要通過性、血液和母嬰三種途徑傳播。愛滋病病毒主要存在於愛滋病病毒感染者和患者的血液、精液、陰道分泌物、乳汁、傷口滲出液等體液之中。在唾液、淚液、汗液和糞便等體液和排泄物中不含或含量極少，不會引起傳播。

此項調查由衛生部委托零點研究集團完成，共調查了中國部分城鎮、鄉村３２４７名１８至６０歲的常住居民。

睿哲文化學會－哲學夜話

A book talk organised by the Philosophia Cultural Society 睿哲文化學會; our buddy Roger will facilitate the discussion...

哲學夜話 – 現代人的輓歌－讀黃碧雲的【七宗罪】

人置身其中、承受無盡的苦痛煎熬的場所，稱之為「地獄」；而「罪」則是導致人下地獄的原因。在西方基督教傳統中，人因為犯罪而下地獄。從最基本的意義來說，罪源於人對上帝的背離。罪使人沉溺於世俗欲求而棄絕神，因而人要為此贖罪，在地獄永恆之火中輾轉呻吟。

但， 假設上帝不存在，罪是否還有意義？地獄又會否存在？這正是黃碧雲在其作品【七宗罪】中所要探討的問題。作者透過七個獨立的故事，為人的「罪」和「地獄」賦 予一個現代意義。她從新詮釋了中古時期基督教的七宗罪 －「饕餮」、「懶惰」、「忿怒」、「妒忌」、「貪婪」、「好欲」和「驕傲」，描繪出它們在香港這個現代社會中如何呈現。她的結論是：現代社會的人，根本就 是活在地獄之中，而且完全沒有出路。

Restricted Donations Rise

The New York Times reports that the new generation of philanthropists, who acquired their wealth over the last decade, increasingly are tying their large gifts to demands about the use of the money, both as a way to assert their will and to enforce accountability in the groups they fund (Nov. 15).

Big but Not Easy: As Donors Set Terms, Some Charities Resist
By STEPHANIE STROM

MORE than ever before, donors are tying strings to their gifts and pulling them hard to ensure that their dollars do exactly what they want them to do.

Thanks to the immense wealth created in the last decade, the country has a new generation of philanthropic lions, and, like their predecessors, these donors seek to invest not just their money but their ideas into the causes that are their passion.

Eli Broad's recent gift to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, for example, gained him virtually exclusive control over the construction of a new building and strong influence over the art that will go into it. Michael and Susan Dell structure their contributions so they can measure the effects.

Like Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller, the founders of America's peculiar brand of capitalist compassion, this new breed of donors has an understanding of the power of money to produce results. The difference is that the earlier philanthropists built new institutions while many of today's donors are working through established groups — at a time when public confidence in charities is low. (Read "Big but Not Easy: As Donors Set Terms, Some Charities Resist")

Hong Kong Committee on Children's Rights

A good friend of mine, Tom Mulvey, passed me information about the Hong Kong Committee on Children's Rights, which holds its AGM today. The organisation has close ties with other NGOs working on children's rights such as Against Child Abuse, Save the Children (HK) and Save the Children (UK), etc. Useful information can be found in the section on Recent Concerns:

1. Age of Criminal Responsibility in HK
2. Guardianship and Custody
3. Adopiton Ordinance
4. Children's Charter in Hospital
5. Prevention of Child Pornography

生命拼圖

Just received the photos from the earlier trip with Adventure Ship (see earlier post here). A bit disappointed 'coz there ain't any photo of me and Ho Nam (my buddy) that can clearly show both of our faces...


Ho Nam, Captain Ming, and me...

Recently the RTHK TV program 鏗鏘集 has produced an episode called 生命拼圖 featuring Adventure Ship's buddy program. The activities described in the program are those we've undertaken during our trip. The episode can be watched online through this hyperlink.

非牟利組織「乘風航」為弱能人仕提供海上活動訓練，通過「伙伴計劃」安排弱能同學與健全義工以平等關係結成伙伴，在訓練船上完成各種活動，藉此拉近彼此距 離。 節目紀錄了他們的旅程，不單是一段為弱能同學安排「遊船河」的歡樂經驗，而是兩個生命的接觸，旅程當中，伙伴們看到另一個與自己有別的個體，對照自己的生命，究竟那一個的生命力更強？先入為主的印象是否真像？每多一次接觸，彼此認識多一點，就像慢慢完成一幅拼圖。

all together...

Firefox「還網於民」快閃行動

Would really like to join this party as I'm a Firefox user and an advocate for opensource applications. It's also great to learn about this organisation - Opensource Application Knowledge Association 開放系統研用協會 - promoting the development and use of opensource applications in Hong Kong.

Firefox「還網於民」慶祝會
- Mozilla Firefox 推出 1.0 版本全球慶祝派對


還網於民 Take Back the Web大行動

日期：	2004年11月21日(星期日)
活動 1：慶祝派對
時間：	下午2:00
地點：	新華 Linux 培訓中心 (地圖) 灣仔軒尼詩道396-416號 智德中心三樓
活動 2：快閃行動
時間：	下午4:30
地點：	灣仔電腦城 灣仔軒尼詩道130號地下

活動簡介
為加入 Mozilla Firefox 1.0 版本推出的全球慶祝派對，一向熱心推廣開放源碼軟件的OAKA協會，將於 2004 年 11 月 21 日在香港舉行 Firefox「還網於民」大行動。同類型的非牟利開放源碼軟件活動，在香港還是首次舉行。該活動目前全球已經有超過七十個國家宣佈會同時舉行，可謂IT 界的全球性盛事。大家可以到這網址看到全球參予這次盛事的用家名錄。

Mozilla Firefox 為開放源碼的瀏覽器，其安全性以及支援開放標準的優良品質，最近已經越來越為人熟悉，早前推出 1.0 預覽版在短短 3 天內已經錄得超過790,000人下載。美國國安部早前更為了保護國民免受病毒及惡意軟件影響，更建議用家放棄使用微軟公司的 Internet Explorer，改用支援開放標準的 Mozilla Firefox 以處理網上理財服務。(詳見 CNET的報導)

為了讓市民可以認識到開放源碼軟件的優秀，破除只有付錢的軟件才是最好的迷信，當日Party除了有一般的慶祝活動外，還會有專人介紹 Firefox 的獨特之處，使用心得等等，另外亦會有網站開發專家，講解為何支援公開標準的瀏覽器，對一般電腦用家使用網頁非常重要。慶祝會後我們還會有一個獨特的快閃 推廣活動！有心的參與者將會帶同自製的 Firefox 1.0 CD，聯群結隊到灣仔電腦城門口大派 Firefox CD，大叫 ”還網於民、Take Back the Web” 的口號！熱鬧高興之餘，亦能貫切開放源碼的分享無私精神。

“Firefox 還網於民” 慶祝會將會於2004年11月21日下午2:00假座於灣仔 eTech 中心3樓的新華理大培訓及研發中心舉行，歡迎大家到這網址報名，名額有限，先到先得。

快閃推廣活動則會於下午 4:30 由新華理大培訓及研發中心出發，到灣仔電腦城門口開始派發 Firefox 1.0 CD。

「網絡政治研究計劃」

This is a "Junior Research Project" organized by Roundtable (Hong Kong Avant-garde Policy Research Institute 香港青年政策研究所) :

由「特區選舉研究計劃」轉型的Roundtable香港青年政策研究所，希望透過讓新生代學生參與實習研究，培養出一群關注社會事務的政治人才，並且建立渠道使學生能立體切身參與，以取締平面的論政。

本會成立後首個初階研究題目是「網絡政治 (E-politics)」。網絡的興起徹底改變了人類文化，到底互聯網會為政治帶來多少動力？網絡政治新世代的來臨，又對傳統政治架構有何衝擊？由香港 青年政策研究所舉辦維期三個月之「網絡政治研究計劃」將給予學員就個別研究題目統籌、設計及進行研究工作，包括問卷設計、訪問等和就數據進行分析等。學員 將有機會接受一連串之預備工作坊和講座，確保對研究題目有一定的認識後才進行研究工作。而計劃末期將要求每小組撰寫一分約12,500字的研究報告，研究 結果將會集結成書出版。

We need to learn more about new forms of social movements, and the underlying logic of collective action of Hong Kong's civil society, in order to make sense of our society's collective response towards events like SARS, July 1, etc. The Project's proposed research topics are indeed quite interesting.

建議研究題目：
1.E-politics，選舉與政治宣傳
2.E-politics與社會運動
3.黑客行為
4.與政治有關之多媒體創作與傳播
5.E-Government
6.網上廣播趨勢
7.E-politics與民主化
8.網絡政治之濫用及監管

PlayStreet ∞ 2004

I'm a big fan of Playright's services and just learnt from the HKICPA newsletter that Playright will team up with HKICPA in the PlayStreet ∞ 2004 event.

The Chater Road Pedestrian Precinct will be turned into a colourful and fun-filled playground for cross-generation play activities on Sunday, 12 December this year when the Hong Kong Institute of CPAs and the Playright Children's Play Association (Playright) co-organise the PlayStreet ∞ 2004.

PlayStreet ∞ 2004 is a large scale charitable event open to members and affiliates of the Institute and Playright as well as the public. With the theme "Transmitted Play Ideas Across Generations", the event aims to promote the value and importance of play across generations to foster family relations and enrich the family lives of Hong Kong people. The event promises to be a jovial carnival with lots of creative play ideas, game booths, live performances and entertainment for the enjoyment of the whole family.

Please join this exciting and meaningful programme and support us with your donations or corporate sponsorships to raise fund for the HKICPA Charitable Fund and Playright. Please click the following links for details:

- Event brochure
- Sponsorship package

Lamma-zine Blog

The Lamma-zine Blog is a good vehicle for nonprofit organisations working in Lamma Island to keep in touch with not only the Lamma community but other Hongkongers and tourists interested to learn more about Lamma and their activities. For example, I found the hyperlink to Lamma Animal Welfare Centre which is a nonprofit I'm not aware of previously...

This Lamma-zine Blog started on Sep 1, 2004, and will be updated frequently with anything related to Lamma Island or its residents, be it news, events or photos.

Contact Lamma-Gung with anything relevant to Lamma that you'd like to see published on this home page!

Posts from all former months are stored in the Blog Archives, see below.

All photos, text & graphics by Lamma-Gung, if not otherwise credited.

At the end of each month, the best of this Lamma News Blog will be collected and published in the Lamma-zine, together with many other additional original contributions. Free subscriptions!

We always say development begins at home. However here in Hong Kong we don't have a lot of communities like Lamma that have a rich community life...

Developments Magazine

Did you read the Rough Guide to a Better World? Like it? Want to know more?

Department for International Development (DFID) produces a free quarterly magazine packed with compelling news and views about how development really works.

Over fifty thousand people already read Developments magazine. Are you next?

The latest issue asks whether cheap flights and bargain breaks are good for the poor. Subscribe to Developments magazine.

The Rough Guide to a Better World

The Rough Guide to a Better World has just been released online, and will be released in print at the end of this month.

THE ROUGH GUIDE TO A BETTER WORLD is the essential guide to how the world can be a better place for everyone. Poverty in the developing world is well known, but less publicised are the efforts of those who combat hunger, disease and illiteracy. This guide shows how you can get involved.

"The book, which will be available free to the public, is an attempt to end British ignorance of the developing world at a time when the creeping globalisation of trade is bringing its four corners ever closer." Also, "as well as providing travel advice, it informs Britons at home how they can help the fight against world poverty: by buying fairtrade goods, doing voluntary work overseas and by becoming activists with British-based aid organisations."

Two million free copies of this book will be available at UK Post Offices from 29 November, 2004.

Call for Papers - Public & Nonprofit Division of the Academy of Management

CALL FOR PAPERS
Submissions are now being accepted for the Public and Nonprofit Division (PNP) portion of the program at the Academy of Management annual meeting, to be held 5-10 August 2005 in HONOLULU, HAWAII. The conference theme this year is A New Vision of Management In The 21st Century.

The deadline for submissions this year is 10 January, 2005.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES TO THE PNP DIVISION:
The PNP Division focuses on the application of management research to government agencies, the military, social services, cultural and educational institutions, membership and professional associations, advocacy organizations, and religious and other charitable organizations which have generated, and continue to shape, a large share of modern management thought. The Public and Nonprofit Division of the Academy of Management brings together scholars, managers, and students who continue this tradition by studying the public and nonprofit sectors, and the relationships among public, nonprofit, and private sector organizations. Our division pays special attention to how distinctive qualities of the public and nonprofit sectors influence management and organizational processes.

In applying the conference theme-A New Vision of Management for the 21st Century-we are especially interested in how our knowledge addresses the world of "stark contrasts" and "difficult tensions" that public and nonprofit organizations face in their efforts to be ethical, responsible, while also meeting complex goals and multiple bottom lines.

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS:
Submitters should FOLLOW the Academy's GENERAL GUIDELINES for all Submissions, which can be found on the Academy's web site (http://meetings.aomonline.org/2005/). AFTER submitting to the Academy submission web site, you should submit a SECOND COPY of your paper directly to the division at pnp@indiana.edu. Please make sure that you follow the Academy's FORMAT for your submission.

In addition, in your submission e-mail to the division please indicate your PREFERENCE FOR PRESENTATION FORMAT. Four formats are available (Interactive Paper, Shared Interest Track, Paper Presentation, and Visual Presentation); please indicate your preference for all four with a 0 (no interest), 1 (willing to present in this format), or 2 (prefer this format). If you need further information regarding submissions to the PNP division, please check our division web site for the conference.

Call for Papers - Corporate Philanthropy

Call for papers: Special Issue on Corporate Philanthropy

The International Journal of Nonprofit & Voluntary Sector Marketing is issuing a call for papers for a special issue on corporate philanthropy.

We are interested in all dimensions of this topic. Submissions on corporate donating practices; cause marketing; business sponsorship of charity events; corporate foundation support of charities, nonprofit organizations, and NGO's are welcome. Perspectives from the business manager's point of view as well as the charity's point of view are encouraged.

Book reviews of approximately 600 words on related topics are also encouraged.

Deadline for submissions is May 1, 2005

Submissions are to be delivered electronically. Submitted articles will undergo a blind review. The journal's style requirements must be followed. Information is available online at http://www.henrystewart.com/journals/nvsm/

Each email submission should attach two versions: one with author
information and the other without author information (for blind review).

**************************************************
NOTE:
Do NOT reply to me but to Walter Wymer, North American Editor IJNPVSM wwymer@cnu.edu

**************************************************

Business Case for Employee Volunteering

Community Business is a home-grown nonprofit organization promoting CSR in Hong Kong. Shalini Mahtani is the founder of the organization, and under her leadership CB is doing a good job in raising CSR awareness in Hong Kong. Shalini puts a lot of emphasis on research, and this upcoming event - Proving the Business Case for Employee Volunteering - is just another example of her effort to build up local research findings for making the case that CSR (employee volunteering in this particular project) actually creates values to all.

Community Business has measured the business benefits arising as a result of one specific employee volunteering programme - Race for Mentors. This programme has brought together the government sector, the private sector and the non-profit sector over a 6 month programme where corporate volunteers have mentored youth from a government school. The impact on all 3 parties has been measured and the case study proves that if undertaken strategically, there is a strong business case for employee volunteering.

CIVICUS Civil Society Toolkits

CIVICUS aims to help civil society organisations to build their capacity and achieve their goals. Based on requests from it organisation members, CIVICUS has produced several toolkits to enable organisations to improve their capacity in a number of areas. From communications and planning skills to writing funding proposals, the resources are meant to help civil society organisations to get many useful tips, tools, and ideas to help strengthen organisational capacities. Comments or feedback on these toolkits can be sent to communications@civicus.org

# English Writing Effectively & Powerfully (PDF)
# Writings Within Your Organisation (PDF)
# Producing Your Own Media (PDF)
# Handling the Media (PDF)
# Promoting Your Organisation (PDF)
# Planning Overview (PDF)
# Action planning (PDF)
# Monitoring and Evaluation (PDF)
# Strategic Planning (PDF)
# Developing a Financing Strategy (PDF)
# Financial Controls and Accountability (PDF)
# Writing a Funding Proposal (PDF)
# Budgeting (in two parts): Part 1 (PDF) and Part 2 (PDF)

中國紅十字會打贏首宗慈善官司

【明報專訊】據中新社引述北京市第一中級法院披露，中國紅十字會成立百年來首次遭遇的慈善官司已經宣判，曾承諾為「中華骨髓庫」捐款2000萬元人民幣善款、在獲得「慈善大使」稱號後神秘蒸發的北京通康集團董事長董佔義被判令賠償支付中國紅十字會總會捐贈款500萬元。

北京通康集團於2001年8月與中國紅十字會總會簽署捐贈協議，但董佔義獲「慈善大使」後無任何回音，紅十字會於是將該公司告上法庭。

News Items From Philanthropy Journal

The following news items from the latest issue of Philanthropy Journal should be of interest to many of our NGO colleagues, but it doesn't seem like we could have the luxury to develop any of those...

Targeting burnout: Sabbatical program aims to give nonprofit leaders a break from stress

The program provides US$15,000 each to five or six nonprofit executives a year to take breaks of three to six months to pursue activities "totally unrelated" to work.

Succession planning: Nonprofits should prepare in advance for departure of chief executive

Nonprofits often experience serious disruptions in services, staff morale, fundraising efforts and other vital functions when the CEO or executive director of a nonprofit leaves the organization.

E-philanthropy consolidation: Network for Good acquires Direct Help

Network for Good is acquiring Direct Help, a nonprofit in Norwalk, Conn., that provide e-philanthropy tools nonprofits can use for managing data, relationships with donors and clients, email campaigns and websites.

Debating Social Entrepreneurship

Extract from Stanford Social Innovation Review online forum on social entrepreneurship...

Social entrepreneurs need to focus primarily on their social mission which is at the heart of their actions. All what is being done has to be measured against the advancement to realize a social goal. Business is only a tool to fuel, or to simplify, the accomplishment of a far-reaching social innovation. Yet when we are committed to a social mission we need to know how far and how well we are treading on this path. the degree to which a social goal has been fulifilled depends on the capacity to effectively allocate the scarce resources being available to the vast target population. In this matter, we are facing complex business-like problems such as logistics and organizational problems. That is why Social entrepreneurs need to be equipped with business skills. Nevertheless the vision to change the patterns of society stems from a global understanding of political and international relations, at least. This understanding should be confronted to the constraints and opportunities of the local reality. I think social entrepreneurs are visionary people, that's why a wide set of skills, not only business ones, are mandatory. (Posted by: Nayim Khemaies at September 2, 2004)

公共政策研究與政府施政研討會

Another half-day conference... What's the point? The Government should make reference to the development of overseas nonprofit think tanks like the Urban Institute, the Brookings Institution, etc. which are independent research institutes funded by public funding.

Message from Faculty of Social Sciences
The Central Policy Unit of the Government of Hong Kong, Faculty of Social Sciences of The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies of The Chinese University of Hong Kong and Radio Television Hong Kong are pleased to invite you to attend 'Seminar on Public Policy Research' to be held on November 20, 2004 (Saturday). The speakers will consider the challenges and opportunities of the public policy of Hong Kong SAR Government. The Seminar will be conducted in Cantonese, please refer to the Chinese description for details.

此研討會是本港首次集合多方面的資源和專家，全面探討公共政策研究與施政的關及面對的各種挑戰及契機，以求集思廣益，促進香港公共政策的研究和協助政府改善施政。

Speaking of the Urban Institute, it has also developed the Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy under its establishment which has an extensive research agenda to support NGOs and civil society development. Lots of downloadable research reports are also available for reference by policymakers and nonprofit practitioners alike, many of them relevant to Hong Kong also...

Strengthening Political Parties in Hong Kong

A conference sponsored by National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (an NGO from US [established by the Democratic Party??] - Christine Chung is its resident program manager in Hong Kong).

Message from Social Sciences Faculty
You are cordially invited to join a conference on “Strengthening Political Parties in Hong Kong”, the 5th part of “Constitutional Review and Democratic Development: The Way Forward” conference series on November 27, 2004 (Saturday) 9:00 am – 5:00 pm which will be held at the Council Chamber, 8/F, Meng Wah Complex, HKU. The local and international speakers will provide a comparative view of the law of political parties in Hong Kong and elsewhere, and examine how other jurisdictions have responded to the issues that Hong Kong political parties and groups contend with.

While usually not being regarded as typical NGOs, political parties also face similar problems like NGO does - e.g. the lack of a facilitative legal environment (law of political parties?) and difficulties to achieve financial independence and self-sufficiency (fundraising, accountability and monitoring?) - those are the two main themes of the conference...

Blogs and Nonprofits

Some of my friends from the nonprofit field said they were not familiar with the "blog" format. Thus I copy below an earlier news item from our Centre's e-newsletter which talks about blogs and nonprofits...

What is a Blog?

A blog is basically a journal that is available on the web. The activity of updating a blog is "blogging" and someone who keeps a blog is a "blogger." Blogs are typically updated daily using software that allows people with little or no technical background to update and maintain the blog. Postings on a blog are almost always arranged in cronological order with the most recent additions featured most prominantly.

Blogs and Nonprofits:

For potential use of weblogs (i.e. blogs) for nonprofits, check out the following articles - "An Introduction to Weblogs," "Weblogs: The Promise for Nonprofit Organizations," and "Weblogs and the Nonprofit Sector".

(Sources: CCSG e-newsletter September 2004; links of articles from Techsoup.org)

Ho Sum (好心) New System Launched

Ho-Sum is a web-based volunteer matching web portal dedicated to involve people in volunteering and increase awareness of charities in Hong Kong. Charities and volunteers (individuals or corporate) can seperately register with the website and the system can help match volunteers with the available volunteering opportunities. Ho Sum today annouced the launch of its new interface and system:

Highlights of the new functions and features:-

1. Join Projects with Friends /Family Members/ Colleagues - You may register a Volunteer Group Account, and become the contact person of the volunteer group and sign up projects. A volunteer group can be just 2 of you, a family of 2 adults, 2 kids and 1 senior, or a team of staffs in the company. Please come and view the projects for your Corporate & Group.

2. Speak out corner - if you would like to share your thoughts and experience on volunteering, and your suggestions to Ho-Sum, please feel free to speak out in our bulletin board Volunteers Forum. This forum is implemented with content filtering feature which can filter indecent wordings.

3. Donate unwanted items - Give n Take is the section for items exchange. If you want to donate an unwanted item, simply post the information on 'Give Items' board. The charity who is interested to take will contact you directly. To protect your privacy, only registered Charity Members can view your contact information.

4. Do Good - Ho-Sum always promotes volunteerism through our campaigns. Please check out our Campaigns section to support us!!!

Subscription to Alliance Bulletin

Alliance Bulletin, a subscriber-only electronic publication, is published eight times a year. If you would like to read the full copy of Alliance Bulletin, you can subscribe at http://www.allavida.org/cgi-bin/click/click.cgi?id=53

This is the main source of many of the international NGO news posted here...

新《基金會管理條例》介紹研討會

『推動民間公益事業發展： 新《基金會管理條例》之介紹』

日期: 2004年11月24日
時間: 下午3時正

《登記表格》

2004 年3月18日，中央人民政府頒佈了新的《基金會管理條例》，這是有關基金會的第一部行政法規，對促進基金 會的健康發展起到了重要作用。該條例反映中央政府對基金會發展的重視及致力改革其管理體制，同時也為國內基金會、乃至整個民間社會和公益慈善事業面臨帶來 新的發展機遇。

基金會得以完善發展，還需要各方將新條例落到實處，並付諸行動，更要採取一系列配套的措施。新的《基金會管理條例》不僅影響國內公益團體及民間社會的發展空間，對本港社會福利服務機構與內地合作及發展空間也有重要意義。

為了讓本地社會福利界同業對新的《基金會管理條例》有更深認識，香港社會服務聯會與社會服務發展研究中心特別舉辦上述研討會，並邀請了中央人民政府民政部 主管有關條例之副部長姜力發表演講。姜力副部長是國家民政部主管民辦非企業單位事務之領導，對推動國家社會福利社會化及民間公益事業發展一向都非常關心。

Lusina from the Faculty of Law at HKU (our expert on trust law in Hong Kong and China) will participate in this event...

GuideStar International formed

Can Hong Kong join this collaborative network someday?

GuideStar, the US-based national database of information about non-profits, has announced the creation of GuideStar International, which will make such information more accessible by setting up charitable databases and websites in countries outside the US. New activities will be launched in Germany and, in partnership with the Nelson Mandela Foundation, in South Africa. This initiative follows the recent development of GuideStar UK. During its first year of operations, in addition to its activities in Germany and South Africa, GuideStar International will work with leaders in other countries to assess the feasibility of creating comprehensive non-profit sector information systems. The new organization’s chief offices will be in Williamsburg, Virginia, and London. Ultimately, the aim is that the new GuideStar agencies will form a collaborative network.

(Source: Alliance Bulletin Novermber 2004)

JHU International Fellows in Philanthropy Program

The Johns Hopkins fellowship program, under the leadership of Professor Lester Salamon, has been one of the highly praised programs for nonprofit researchers, especially famous on its academic vigour. The CUNY's international fellows program, on the other hand, should be more appropriate for the practitioners, and it being organized in NYC makes it even more attractive...

The International Fellows in Philanthropy Program at the Johns Hopkins Institute for Policy Studies, Center for Civil Society Studies, will host up to eight fellows each year. Programme participants should be involved in studying or managing private, non-profit or philanthropic organizations outside the US, or serve as government or corporate liaisons to the non-profit sector. The programme also sponsors a fellows’ conference in a country overseas to encourage continuing interchange among fellows and to help broaden understanding of this sector at the international level. The deadline for applications is 25 February 2005.

When I last checked the list of past fellows of the JHU program I remembered there was at least one past participant coming from Hong Kong; however I have no idea who that person is...

(Source: Alliance Bulletin November 2004)

Online Resources on Foundation Building from Synergos

Once met the Synergos staff during the New York fellowship two years ago, and again at the last APPC conference in Manila; they are supporting civil society development in South America, South Africa, some parts of Asia, among other places...

Synergos makes Three Ring Binder generally available

The Synergos Three Ring Binder is a compendium of knowledge on philanthropy, foundations, and social change. The three 'rings' are nuts and bolts (tools for building foundation capacity), hot topics (trends in philanthropy and foundation building) and innovations (ideas and perspectives that inform Synergos's work). The Binder was put together by Synergos Senior Fellows and was until recently password protected.

(Source: Alliance Bulletin October 2004)

Community Foundations Supported US Citizen Deliberations

Estabalishing a community foundation in Hong Kong and running deliberative opinion poll are two areas of work our Centre wishes to pursue. It's good to see such things happening in other parts of the world...

Eight community foundations in the US supported Citizen Deliberations that took place on 16 October, three weeks before the US elections . The Deliberations brought together a random sample of citizens in 17 communities in the US in discussions on national security and American jobs in a global economy. The community foundations involved were those of Kansas City, Seattle, Miami, Charlottesville, Greater New Haven, Rochester, Cleveland and Detroit. They were providing funding and/or assistance in connecting with other organizations. For more information, see www.by-the-people.org.

(Source: Alliance Bulletin October 2004)

US community foundation sector gains in 2003

The Columbus Foundation survey is another important survey on community giving in the US apart from the annual Giving USA survey. The number of community foundations in the US remained at the region of 600 to 650, thus not much development in the past few years...

According to the annual Columbus Foundation survey issued in October, gifts, grants and assets of the community foundation field increased in 2003 in an improving economic climate. The 645 US community foundations surveyed received $3.8 billion in gifts last year, 17 per cent up on the previous year. They made grants totalling $2.6 billion, $47 million more than the previous year, while net assets also increased 17 per cent over the preceding year to $34.9 billion.

(Source: Alliance Bulletin November 2004)

United Way remodels itself (HK Community Chest to Learn?)

When will the HK Community Chest fundamentally revitalize its missions and operations?

United Way is transforming in an effort to remain vibrant and relevant in communities where other non-profits have multiplied, and where many businesses have opted out of United Way planned giving programmes. A spokesman for the organization estimated that 80 per cent of the country’s 1,400 United Way groups are increasingly targeting funds to effect long-term change rather than short-term ‘fixes’. This means that United Way is now more likely to fund groups that expand access to affordable housing than a homeless shelter. The national agency is also stressing United Way’s role as a community leader, collaborating with other organizations to prioritize a community's needs. In 2003, United Way of America approved tighter standards for transparency and accountability, now being adopted by member organizations. The changes are in part a response to a national decline in United Way campaign earnings of 6.1 per cent between 2001 and 2002.

(Source: Alliance Bulletin October 2004)

Public confidence in US foundations and other non-profits remains low

I think most will agree that we shall run similar public survey on nonprofit confidence on a regular basis...

According to a new survey by the Brookings Institute, public confidence in charitable organizations stands 10 to 15 per cent lower today than it was in the summer of 2001. Reasons include: questions surrounding the disbursement of September 11 relief funds and conflict-of-interest and compensation controversies involving the Nature Conservancy and several private foundations. Only 11 per cent of respondents believe that charitable organizations do a very good job spending money wisely and only 31 per cent believe charities do a good job helping people.

Download the report here.

(Source: Alliance Bulletin October 2004)

Three New Publications on Nonprofit Legal Matters

The Tax Treatment of NGOs: Legal, ethical and fiscal frameworks for promoting NGOs and their activities
Paul Bater, Frits Hondius and Penina Kessler Lieber (eds) Kluwer Law International

The 16 articles in this book seek to provide an overview of the diverse practical and theoretical issues concerning the tax environment of NGOs worldwide. The first section covers a wide range of geographic areas, including Scotland, the Caribbean, Spain, Russia, Germany, Austria, Nordic Region (Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland), the USA and South Africa. The second section presents international and comparative perspectives, examining themes such as theories of federal income tax exemption, a survey of available NGO tax preferences, perspectives on public benefit, and the role of NGOs in creating social capital.

Guidelines for Laws Affecting Civic Organizations
Leon Irish et al, Open Society Institute

Intended for all third sector organizations, this book provides a guide to framing laws for the protection of civil society, and covers areas such as fundraising, tax preferences, foreign partnerships and volunteerism. It also gives examples of such laws from several countries. (PDF document available)

Charity Financial Products: A new approach to giving
The Giving Campaign

A summary report on new techniques for encouraging philanthropy, produced by the Giving Campaign, an initiative supported by the voluntary sector and the UK government to increase the amount of money given to UK charities. The report concludes that there is great scope for charity financial products, where the financial services sector provides guidance to those who are willing to donate to charities but lack the knowledge of the fiscal regime to be able to do cost-effectively.
(PDF summary report) (PDF full report)

Lusina probably will be interested in these new publications...

Study of Tri-partite Partnerships in Hong Kong

Received an invitation from Civic Exchange for an interview regarding the state of tri-partite partnerships in Hong Kong. It is an area that I'm less familiar with; will just meet with the researcher for a chat but probably won't join the subsequent focus groups...

Civic Exchange is currently undertaking a study of Tri-partite Partnerships in HK (i.e. partnerships between government, business and the Third Sector). The study has been comissioned by the Central Policy Unit of the Government. I realise you have done much research on the Third Sector in HK and was hoping to meet up with you to discuss your research especially areas which are relevant to this study.

The study involves different parts, including: (a) a survey of government departments to find out what sort of TPPs they are involved in and what their positive and negative experiences have been; (b) selection of a number of case studies of TPPs, particularly those that have clear lessons to learn; and (c) focus groups with the various sectors.

兩地社會福利發展交流會議

會議主題為「推動新形勢下以人為本社會工作和社會福利事業改革與發展」，會議將圍繞主題為中心，並就一連串的雙方同意的分題作討論，其中包括：

1. 社會發展策略、指標與社會福利的角色

2. 全球化經濟下社會福利的哲學及價值觀

3. 新社會經濟形勢下兩地社會福利從業人員隊伍的建設

• 社會工作專業化
• 社會工作職業化
• 社會工作機構和人員的問責
• 社會工作機構和人員的能力提升

4. 社會矛盾與社會融和

5. 社會服務社會化：社會團體與第三部門的發展

6. 企業責任與社會發展

7. 地區經濟融合對社會福利服務發展和合作的挑戰／機遇

Anthony of HKCSS passed me information on this upcoming conference to be held in Guangzhou in December.

Themes on Nonprofit Organizational Effectiveness

Extracts from an article from David O. Renz and Robert D. Herman of Midwest Center for Nonprofit Leadership, University of Missouri—Kansas City...

5. Effective nonprofits are more likely to use good management practices.
Several studies support this thesis, including some that show a link between strategic planning and organization effectiveness, but it is a mixed situation. We recently found that only board members’ assessment of organizational effectiveness was related to increased use of good management practices; neither funders’ nor senior managers’ assessments were related to increased use of good management practices. This leads us to be suspicious of the recent trend to identify “best practices” for NPOs.

6. The promise of “best practices” should be viewed with skepticism.
The concept of “best practices” has become something of a holy grail for those seeking to enhance NPO effectiveness, yet our work has found no legitimate basis to claim that particular practices are automatically best or even good. We prefer to talk in terms of “promising practices” to describe approaches that warrant consideration because, at best, one may claim only that they are worth consideration and must be judged in the context of the specific organization.

7. The concept of responsiveness may offer a solution to the problem of differing judgments of effectiveness by different stakeholder groups.
In spite of the fact that different stakeholder groups differed in their ratings of effectiveness for an organization, we have found, for all stakeholder groups, that the factor of responsiveness was positively linked to judgments of NPO effectiveness.

8. Since many NPOs operate as part of a network of service delivery, we need to start thinking more in terms of network effectiveness.
When an NPO operates as part of a larger network to deliver services, it is less relevant to assess individual NPO effectiveness than that of the entire set of organizations working together. Emphasis on the effectiveness of such NPOs as though separate and distinct can lead an observer to invalid conclusions.

Online Volunteering

List of Research On Online Volunteering...

While there is a plethora of articles and information about online volunteering, there has been very little research done on the subject. The UN Volunteers programme, which hosts and manages the Online Volunteering service, hopes to engage in research activities regarding OV in 2005. In addition to making plans for this research, UNV staff have also compiled a list of all research relating to OV that we know about. We hope these links to OV research will help those of you interested in learning about OV in depth.

The OV service staff is also interested in connecting with university-based researchers interested in including the OV service in their studies of any aspect of online volunteering. Our new OV research page also includes a list of suggestions for research about online volunteering that we hope researchers will undertake. Please contact us with complete details about your proposal (confirmation from the university of your studies will be requested if we approve your proposal). Send details to info@onlinevolunteering.org

Fundraising for CCSG?

These are some of the themes proposed for our fundraising campaign:

• Development of a Nonprofit Management School (a future Harvard Business School Social Enterprise Program?)
  
• The Social Togetherness Program of HKSAR (research on social cohesion, embeddedness, recognition, trust and institutional trust, etc.; student internship programs in nonprofits and commercial entities)
• Baseline research on everything about civil society - its nature, constituents, and roles, and, in particular, the contribution that civil society can make towards good governance (the CPU third sector landscape study identified over than 9,000 civil society organizations scattered over 16 activity sub-fields in Hong Kong; programs shall be created to develop a nonprofit database and keep track of their developments)
• Research on governance mechanisms in specific policy domains involving nonprofit activities (e.g. arts and culture, environmental protection, social welfare, sports, AIDS services, anti-narcotics, human rights and equal opportunities, home owners associations, area committees, etc.)
• Philanthropy consultancy services (consulting on foundation establishment, estate planning, due diligence on individual nonprofits, and grantmaking)
  

Are they really attractive to the donors?

First Meeting of Social Auditing Working Group

The first meeting of the Social Auditing Working Group set up by our Centre was held today. The discussion was quite insightful with perspectives from various nonprofit groups and academics and donors. Some of the key observations:

• Social auditing does not necessarily contribute to improved fundraising of a particular charity 'cos there are many different ways a nonprofit can solicit donation and a average donor might base on other factors to make their giving choice (e.g. event fundraising)
  
• However it is useful for assisting new nonprofits and small nonprofits without popular brand name to entre the fundraising marketplace
  
• Two perspectives - inability (capacity building) or unwillingness (politics); need to have incentives for charities to participate
  
• Conformance verses performance - social auditing not a quality seal in most circumstances, except for initiatives like the elderly residential services which could improve institutional trust
• Contribution to internal board governance? Recognition on administration or service? Social auditing or donor education (or both)?
• Best practice and voluntary participation likely the best way to move forward

Good discussion but difficult to move forward. Both funding bodies and nonprofits are simply not interested.

Sowers Action 苗圃行動

The work of Sowers Action drew a lot of my attention lately.

Had lunch with Tom (Osgood) today, and he mentioned about a proposed trip to Guilin 桂林 to visit a school in December which has been rebuilt recently (5 hours drive from the city). This will be (at least) his third trip to the rural areas of China to visit the schools. After returning from his last trip to Yunnan 雲南, he passed me some great photos taken during the trip, and I knew he enjoyed those trips very much. He even brought back a local newspaper clipping (featuring his visit) and asked Juliana to help translate it into English. The news piece called him Uncle Tom (of course in Chinese translation) and the photo in the newspaper looked exactly like a kind senior coming over to try to offer help and with a lot of joy...

While taking bus with Juliana later the day, RoadShow also showed a clip on Taiwanese artist 任賢齊 visiting school children in a poor area of China on a Sowers Action trip - and of course with some very touching scenes.

Lately, there are also publicity materials everywhere in town publicizing the "Long March" charity program 「助學長征」organized by Sowers which is an amazing fundraising walk that would follow the route of the Communists Party's long march during the civil war. Eva (introduced to me by Tom during the time at CIF) must be very happy with all the good work she is doing.