It’s no secret that the state of Illinois faces immense fiscal challenges, the shining example being pension reform. For nonprofits in the state, these challenges translate to important opportunities for the sector to strengthen relationships with policymakers and to broaden the understanding and influence of nonprofits and expand their abilities to press for needed reforms.

This is at the heart of the Donors Forum’s public policy strategy for the next year, along with an aggressive outreach strategy to listen to nonprofits and grantmakers all over the state to identify the priority issues within the sector that can be addressed through a more forceful public policy agenda.

In July, Donors Forum held a series of community outreach meetings in the Chicago metropolitan area to hear from nonprofit and philanthropy leaders about the top concerns for their organizations and the sector in the coming years. A summary of the community conversations can be found here.

In September, we’ll be heading to Central Illinois to learn more about the public policy priorities of nonprofit organizations serving the region. To date, we’ve scheduled roundtable discussions in Springfield, Champaign, and Moline, and we are very much looking forward to examining ways Donors Forum can both collaborate with Springfield-area organizations and link efforts across the state to strengthen public policies that benefit the sector. The roundtable conversations are part of Donors Forum’s Building a Stronger Illinois: The Public Nonprofit Policy Initiative, a key component of our larger public policy framework. Read more about Building a Stronger Illinois here, and register for the roundtable in Springfield here.

Our goal with hosting all of the community meetings is to build on the public policy framework that has been developed with the help of Donors Forum’s Policy Committee and confirmed over the past year through our strategic planning process. Goal two of the plan, Engaging for Impact, focuses on advancing sector-wide public policies that promote the ability of Illinois funders and nonprofits to fulfill their missions. We understand that goal is best accomplished through a deep engagement with the sector.

As we continue to hold conversations with grantmakers and nonprofits across the state, our public policy work and the Building a Stronger Illinois Campaign progresses. At the core of the campaign are four key principles:

• Promoting and protecting nonprofits as a vital resource in Illinois
• Providing leadership for much needed state reforms that offer relief to nonprofits that contract with the state for service provision
• Building bridges to solve problems by helping to strengthen the relationships between nonprofits and policymakers
• Being a strong advocate for the sector by monitoring legislation in Springfield and working to protect the sector’s interests

All of Donors Forum’s policy work is driven by the needs and ideas of our constituents. We want to hear from you about your public policy priorities and how Donors Forum can best partner with you to strengthen policies that favor the sector. Drop us a note on our Strategic Plan microsite, on our Facebook wall, or on Twitter We hope to here from you.

— The Donors Forum Team