Get the candidates talking about YOU
We’ve heard a lot from the presidential candidates about hope, change and the economy. That’s all important. But there’s another thing we need to hear. Let’s get them to talk about us. Our sector. Our causes. Our concerns. We’re all about hope and change and a better life, right?
Sound impossible? It’s not. All of us nonprofit folks, standing together, are a force to be reckoned with—bigger than any union or corporation or other entity grabbing headlines for its influence. There are 14 million nonprofits employees out there and 60 million volunteers. We generate billions in revenue and put billions more into county and state coffers through payroll taxes. So let’s get the candidates - and the next president - to take our sector—and ourselves and our issue—seriously. We can do it.
How?
Robert Egger, one of the great leaders in our sector and a wonderful friend and colleague, has been at this for quite some time. Robert is Founder and President of the DC Central Kitchen, the Co-Convener of the first Nonprofit Congress and, most recently, the Founder and Director of the Nonprofit Primary Project, which developed presidential candidate forums in New Hampshire. And today, he has created an easy way for this to happen in every election, national or local. V3 is his new website that shows how we can get all of this to happen. Check out V3, which he funded with money from his speaking engagements. It’s great to see such a beautiful piece of marketing for a such a great cause: us. (Full disclosure: In addition to knowing/admiring Robert and weighing in on the V3 site, I know and have in the past hired the creative folks behind the site design - I think their work is excellent.) Finally - an easy way for us to do something tangible to advance our cause and our sector as part of the political process. Robert got me very charged up about this effort when I saw him last week to discuss his message, and I hope he’ll get you charged up, too. (Read this.)
In Robert’s words, here’s what V3 does:
1. The V3 Campaign website – From the site, we will list EVERY election in America (mayor, state legislator, congress, senate, president), and provide links to each of the candidates, allowing any nonprofit employee to send a questionnaire that will ask three things: 1) Describe your personal or professional connection with a nonprofit. 2) How would you partner with nonprofits? 3) How would you strengthen the sector to be a good partner with you?
2. The V3 Site will record all written or recorded responses. If a candidate proposes a staff position, an office to work directly with nonprofits, or a bold new vision for managing community resources…BANG—it’s on V3 and other nonprofits can use it to challenge candidates in their community. If they do not respond, it’s on V3, and all of their constituents who work or volunteer with a nonprofit will know that they do not understand or value their work enough to suggest a detailed plan of action. Then, nonprofits and their supporters can vote according to their own personal convictions. Cause and effect—totally legal—only we drive the car.
I hope you’ll go onto V3 and sign up to ask any candidate what they’re doing to commit to working with nonprofits. In just a few minutes, you can feel you did something substantive to get seen and heard. If you care about your cause and want it to get noticed by your government, this is a great way to get started. Do it, and ask one other person to do it, too.
And here’s proof it’s working already.
This just goes to show the power of the Third Sector, Katya. Since the numbers are so great, our combined voices should ring loud and clear.