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Visionary Voices

Visionary Voices is philanthropy.org’s editorial forum for serious ideas, hard-earned lessons, and informed perspectives shaping the future of philanthropy. It is a place for practitioners, leaders, and thinkers to examine what works, what doesn’t, and why.

Contributions explore strategy, governance, donor engagement, ethics, and the structural forces influencing philanthropy today. Articles are grounded in experience, analysis, and reflection—not promotion.

If you’ve developed insight through practice, research, or leadership, we welcome thoughtful submissions that advance credible dialogue and long-term thinking in the field.

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The Nonprofit Revenue Problem Nobody Wants to Talk About

Sherry Quam Taylor July 31, 2026

Our mindset is often our biggest obstacle—even with fundraisers. Decades of broken fundraising norms have created invisible scripts and unchecked thought patterns that masquerade as wisdom but in fact act as a ceiling. Catastrophizing, overthinking, victimhood, and self-sabotage quietly cap revenue year after year. But, when teams pressure-test their assumptions and shift from fear-based instincts to genuine curiosity, something changes: donors respond, asks land, and goals that once felt out of reach become achievable. The breakthrough most organizations need isn’t a new tactic. It’s a new internal narrative (and the skills to back it up).

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Close-up of a person's hand signing a formal tax document with a fountain pen, the form's text blurred, warm directional lighting.

What Trustees Don’t Know About Form 990 Can Hurt the Organization

Robert C. Clothier July 4, 2026

Most nonprofit trustees approve the annual Form 990 without realizing it is far more than a tax filing. It is a public governance report scrutinized by donors, journalists, regulators, and watchdogs. Learn the sections every board member should review, the risks of overlooking them, and how the Form 990 can strengthen both accountability and public trust.

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White and black chess kings on an antique world map, symbolizing global strategy, diplomacy, and the shifting balance of international influence.

Philanthropic Community Is Positioned to Wield Soft Power Diplomacy Amid U.S. Government Retreat

Allison Yezril June 28, 2026

As the United States retreats from foreign aid, China and the Gulf states are stepping into the vacuum, winning the loyalty of the world’s fastest-growing populations. Former intelligence officer Allison Yezril argues that America’s private foundations—Gates, Rockefeller, Mott—are now the last credible voice of American ideals abroad. The question is whether American donors will rise to wield it.

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Digital Antisemitism Is Infrastructure, Not Awareness

Josh Steele June 27, 2026

The natural instinct when online antisemitism spikes is to fund awareness. But fighting digital hate is infrastructure work, not awareness work — and the gap between an online post and a physical attack has shrunk to zero. Removing 67% of antisemitic content takes analysts and software, not outrage. Funders who skip the back-end are wiping down the counters while the pipe keeps bursting.

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Money flowing into the government

Transfer of Wealth? Or Transfer of Power.

Viken Mikaelian June 26, 2026

Charitable giving hit a record $617 billion — and almost everyone read it wrong. Bequests, barely a tenth of all giving, drove a third of the growth, powered by a handful of estates and a market that inflated them. This isn’t generosity spreading. It’s wealth concentrating. The money is moving into a few institutions that keep getting stronger, while the corner nonprofit gets crowded out. A wealth transfer, yes — but mostly a power transfer.

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Yellow "Tax Form 990" sticky note on a keyboard, illustrating how nonprofits can use Form 990 as a marketing tool

Good News: The IRS Joined Your Marketing Team

Andrew J. Gray, CPA June 18, 2026

The IRS made your Form 990 public — and donors, advisors, and watchdogs are reading it. So why settle for a dull tax form? CPA Andrew Gray lays out three ways nonprofits can turn the 990 into a marketing asset: know your audience, treat the first pages like a brochure, and file a clean, accurate return that builds trust.

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Thoughtful donor at home considering whether to leave a bequest to a charity

Is Your Charity Actually Ready for Your Bequest?

Viken Mikaelian June 13, 2026

You’ve given to this cause for years. Now you’re weighing something far larger — a bequest from your estate. But a planned gift isn’t simply a bigger check, and a charity that can ask for one isn’t always built to receive it. Before you sign, learn the questions that reveal whether your charity is genuinely ready for your legacy — or merely ready to request it.

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