Canadian Charitable Data Democratization
Along with Nathan Grasse from Carleton University, I have been working to make a comprehensive database of T3010 annual Canadian charity filings available to the public. This also allows exploration of numerous research questions involving the unique context of the Canadian data.
Current Projects
I believe that learning how to assist social economy organizations (nonprofits, charities, social enterprises, etc.) is crucially important to shaping the world into a better place. This means that I always have a lot of research initiatives under way. These are currently the multi-paper initiatives that I am spending the most time and attention on:
Balancing Trust and Accountability: Charities, Government, and Society
Along with Nathan Grasse (Carleton University), Alasdair Rutherford (University of Stirling), and Georg con Schnurbein (Universität Basel), I am studying how operating charities, foundations, regulators, and the public view each other. This multi-year project -- funded by the Trans-Atlantic Platform -- will focus on trust, accountability, and governance in different types of democracy.
How People Give
With Jonathan Oxley of Georgia State University, I study how people weigh information about efficiency versus graphical imagery. This work is supported by a Levis Fundraising Research Grant from the Association of Fundraising Professionals Foundation.
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With Sarah Jacobson of Williams College and Angela de Oliveira of UMass-Amherst, I have an NSF grant to study in-kind giving from both the donor and the nonprofit perspectives.
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With Travis St. Clair of New York University, I study the relationship between nonprofits and the business cycle, especially how economic fluctuations impact donations and their exposure to business cycle risk.
Nonprofit Resiliency and Vulnerability
With Trang Hoang and Craig Maher, I study how nonprofits and local governments in two states (Texas and Nebraska) compare in terms of organizational capacity and pandemic response.
With Kimberly Wiley of the University of Florida and Sarah Young of Kennesaw State University, I explore the ways in which Illinois nonprofit organizations handled the state government shutdown. Some studies provide practical tips for nonprofits, while others suggest improvements to the way that we theorize nonprofit-government relations.
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With Dennis Young, I study how nonprofits can prepare for and react to serious threats such as pandemics, economic recessions, and other events. Several initiatives and books develop a new management paradigm to build healthier and more effective nonprofit organizations.
The Financial Condition of Italian Social Cooperatives
With Simone Poledrini and Alessandro Montrone, I examine the economic and financial health of Italian social cooperatives, including policy options to boost the overall health of the sector.
With Simone Poledrini and Teresina Torre, we look more closely at the role of place and mission in how Italian social cooperatives provided services during the COVID pandemic.