Non-Governmental Organizations →

What Can the World’s Largest Refugee Camp Teach Us About the Meaning of Work?

Almost 1 million Rohingya refugees are sinking deeper into despair while sitting idle in a camp they can’t easily leave. But the opportunity to work might provide a resource more scarce than cash: hope. Research by Reshmaan N. Hussam.

After the Carnival: Key Factors to Enhance Olympic Legacy and Prevent Olympic Sites from Becoming White Elephants

After the Games end, Olympic venues must be used effectively and earn enough revenue to cover large ongoing costs or their owners—local governments and taxpayers—will face deficits. This fieldwork-based research and analysis of stadium use at 10 of the last 12 Summer Olympics sites highlights eight factors for better sustainability.

Entrepreneurs and the Co-Creation of Ecotourism in Costa Rica

Costa Rica has grown as a mecca for ecotourism from the late twentieth century. Although biologists and other students of ecosystems and biodiversity were vital at the start of the process, as were conservation NGOs and the national government, this paper argues that entrepreneurs were also pivotal. While showing the benefits of ecotourism, it is also shown that as the industry scaled, there were increasing challenges of greenwashing.

The Many Faces of Nonprofit Accountability

Nonprofit leaders face multiple, and sometimes competing, accountability demands: from numerous actors (upward, downward, internal), for varying purposes (financial, governance, performance, mission), and requiring differing levels of organizational response (compliance and strategic). Yet is it feasible, or even desirable, for nonprofit organizations to be accountable to everyone for everything? The challenge for leadership and management is to prioritize among competing accountability demands. This involves deciding both to whom and for what they owe accountability. HBS professor Alnoor Ebrahim provides an overview of the current debates on nonprofit accountability, while also examining the tradeoffs inherent in a range of accountability mechanisms. Key concepts include: Accountability is not simply about compliance with laws or industry standards, but is more deeply connected to organizational purpose and public trust. Nonprofits will continue to face multiple and competing accountability demands, so they must be deliberate in prioritizing among these demands. A critical challenge is to find a balance between upward accountability to their patrons and remaining true to their missions. Few nonprofits have paid serious attention to how they might be more accountable to the communities they seek to serve. Juggling the many expectations of accountability—for finances, governance, performance, and mission—requires integration and alignment throughout the organization. Numerous mechanisms of accountability are available to nonprofits, such as greater transparency and disclosure, performance assessment, industry self-regulation, and adaptive learning. But leaders must adapt any such mechanisms to suit their organization. The greatest payoffs rest with strategy-driven forms of accountability that can help nonprofits to achieve their missions. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.