UNICEF

New York, July 21, 2009 — Here’s a real sunshine story! Started June 1, 2009, for every SUNNAN solar-powered lamp sold in IKEA stores worldwide, one lamp will be given to UNICEF to light up the life of a child.

Every fundraiser has his or her tried-and-true bag of tricks. But in this day of donors seeking to be more actively involved with the charities they support, it might be time to bury those bags and try a fresh approach.

The Oscar-winning film “Slumdog Millionaire” — depicting the often dire circumstances faced by children in poverty in India – has sparked interest in charities that target the problem, according to CAFAmerica, which promotes borderless charitable giving as part of the CAF International Network that spans six continents and has over $4 billion of charitable funds under management.

You’ve almost certainly had the meeting. You know, the one about how to survive the crunch, the crisis, the catastrophe — or whatever you want to call it. The meeting where you probably were uncertain about what to do and even about what the impact might be on your organization. Maybe the only thing everyone agreed on was that it’s a difficult situation in fundraising at the moment with few clear answers on how to survive.

In lean economic times, the message at yesterday’s UN Economic and Social Council’s special event on philanthropy focused on the power of partnerships in advancing the global public health agenda.