American Council on Gift Annuities: National association of charitable organizations that offer charitable gift annuities. Includes an extensive summary of state laws relative to charitable gift annuities.
http://www.acga-web.org/
American Institute of Philanthropy is a nationally prominent charity watchdog service whose purpose is to help donors make informed giving decisions. The Institute rates charities pursuant to a number of criteria, as well as publishes helpful articles about the charitable sector.
http://www.charitywatch.org/
Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) is the primary professional association of fundraisers, offering training, publications and other resources.
http://www.afpnet.org/
Association of Governing Boards. This organization offers excellent publications, seminars, specialized training and other materials to assist the effective management for boards of directors for colleges and universities and their related foundations:
http://www.agb.org/
Association of Small Foundations is committed to building and strengthening small foundation philanthropy by providing quality programs, products and services to foundations with few or no staff.
http://www.smallfoundations.org/
Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance. This nonprofit organization is one the leading "watchdog" services attempting to stay current with best practices in the nonprofit field while providing information on other nonprofit organizations that may violate these standards.
http://www.give.org/index.asp
Boardsource (formerly National Center for Nonprofit Boards). This organization offers excellent publications, seminars, specialized training and other materials to assist the effective management for nonprofit boards of directors:
http://www.boardsource.org/
Charity Navigator. This organization offers an extensive database and research tool that aims to help donors, grantmakers, professional advisors and others in the evaluation of thousands of charitable organizations nationwide by providing detailed financial information and other analysis.
http://www.charitynavigator.org/
The Chronicle of Philanthropy is the leading national publication offering current and accurate information about the charitable sector.
http://philanthropy.com/
Council on Foundations. The Council on Foundations is a membership organization of more than two thousand grantmaking foundations (private foundations, community foundations, etc.) worldwide. COF provides leadership expertise, legal services, publications, seminars and networking opportunities, etc. to its members and to the general public. The COF website offers valuable information at:
http://www.cof.org/
The Foundation Center. This is a leading source of research, statistics and other information about all types of charitable foundations: private, operating, family, corporate and community.
http://foundationcenter.org/
Giving Institute/Giving USA Foundation an association of fundraising consultants, aims to enhance the professionalism of the fundraising field. It developed the Standards of Practice and Professional Code of Ethics, widely accepted as a model for professional ethics in the field. The Giving Institute publishes Giving USA in association with IU Center on Philanthropy, a leading source of charitable giving statistics.
http://www.aafrc.org/
Guide Star: National database for all U.S. nonprofit organizations that may be searched by name of organization. Includes current financial information for each organization, including IRS 990 forms.
http://www.guidestar.org/
Independent Sector is one of the leading coalitions of nonprofit organizations, foundations, and corporate philanthropy programs. Independent Sector conducts research, lobbies Congress, underwrites publications and offers training opportunities to support and enhance the mission of the nonprofit sector.
http://www.independentsector.org/
National Association of Attorneys General. NAAG facilitates interaction among Attorneys General as peers and coordinates state-federal working groups on topics of mutual concern; plans and executes a continuing legal education (CLE) program for state lawyers, including more than 30 seminars, conferences, summits, emerging issue forums, and special events yearly, with attendance in the thousands. NAAG also publishes written reports, monographs, and more than a dozen newsletters on a wide range of substantive topics. These newsletters are available to the public by subscription. Site includes current news and contact information.
http://www.naag.org/
National Association of State Charities Officials (NASCO). NASCO is a forum for the exchange of views and experiences relating to charitable trust and charitable solicitation issues. Membership in NASCO is open only to representatives of US state agencies (e.g., Attorney Generals) with authority over charitable entities and/or charitable solicitations.
http://www.nasconet.org/
National Center for Charitable Statistics (NCCS) is the national repository of data on the nonprofit sector in the United States. Its mission is to develop and disseminate high quality data on nonprofit organizations and their activities for use in research on the relationships between the nonprofit sector, government, the commercial sector, and the broader civil society. The Center is a project of the Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy (CNP)
http://nccsdataweb.urban.org/FAQ/index.php?category=31at the Urban Institute.
National Center for Family Philanthropy. The mission of the National Center for Family Philanthropy is to promote philanthropic values, vision, and excellence across generations of donors and donor families. The Center offers donors and advisors resources, publications, seminars, research and other services to promote effective philanthropic decision-making. See the Center's website at:
http://www.ncfp.org/
National Committee on Planned Giving: National association of attorneys, accountants, financial planners, consultants and fundraisers who specialize in charitable gift and estate planning. Includes links to pending federal legislation and other resources that relate to estate and charitable planning.
http://www.ncpg.org/
National Council of Nonprofit Associations: The National Council of Nonprofit Associations (NCNA) is the network of state and regional nonprofit associations serving over 22,000 members in 46 states and the District of Columbia. NCNA links local organizations to a national audience through state associations and helps small and mid-sized nonprofits: stay currrent with developing laws of importance; manage and lead more effectively; collaborate and exchange solutions; save money through group buying opportunities; engage in critical policy issues affecting the sector; and achieve greater impact in their communities. Learn more at NCNA's website:
http://www.ncna.org/
Network for Good. This nonprofit organization serves as an intermediary for donors to learn about other charitable organizations for the purpose of making wise decisions in the donation of their time, talents and/or wealth. It includes a number of helpful links to other websites.
http://www.networkforgood.org/Default.aspx
The Philanthropy Roundtable is a national association of more than 600 individual donors, corporate giving representatives, foundation staff and trustees, and trust and estate officers. The mission of the Roundtable is to offer opportunities for discussion and collaboration to improve philanthropic initiatives.
http://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/
Society of Corporate Secretaries and Governance Professionals deals with public disclosure under the securities laws and matters affecting corporate governance and while much of the site requires membership to view, they comment regularly on pertinent issues, hold conferences, etc.
http://www.governanceprofessionals.org/society/Default.asp
