State of Nonprofits 2026:
What Funders Need to Know
CEP’s fourth annual State of Nonprofits report offers vital insight into how nonprofits are faring amidst unprecedented challenges.
Resources for Grantmakers
Access helpful information, like data-backed reports based on rigorous research.
Resources for Individuals
Get insights and information around what it takes to be an effective giver.
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CEP seeks to influence foundations and major donors to be more effective. We offer assessments that gather essential feedback from key stakeholders, data-driven research, customized advisory services, thought-provoking events, and incisive commentary on the CEP Blog.
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CEP’s assessments provide unique insights into your effectiveness by gathering candid and actionable feedback from grantees, donors, and funder staff and benchmarking results with other grantmakers.
Featured Resources
A Sector in Crisis: How U.S. Nonprofits and Foundations Are Responding to Threats
As nonprofits face historic challenges, new data from the Center for Effective Philanthropy reveals how nonprofits are faring and how foundations are responding.
Board Book Insert – State of Nonprofits 2026: What Funders Need to Know
Foundation Governance Today: How Boards and CEOs Are Navigating Risk, Accountability, and a Shifting Landscape
Breaking the Mold: The Transformative Effect of MacKenzie Scott's Big Gifts
AI With Purpose: How Foundations and Nonprofits Are Thinking About and Using Artificial Intelligence
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Lauren Chan
Senior Coordinator, People and Culture
From the Blog
When Is AI in the Public’s Interest? Four Questions Philanthropy Should Ask First
When it comes to artificial intelligence (AI), these are not merely interesting times. They are disorienting ones. The technology is evolving quickly, the claims around it are louder than the evidence, and much of the public conversation is driven by people with...
The Case for Funding Courage: Why Donors Who Embrace Risk Should Embrace Strategic Litigation
In 2016, my Freedom Fund colleagues and I met with lawyers preparing to represent three Eritrean refugees in a case against Nevsun, a Canadian mining company. The men alleged they had been conscripted through Eritrea’s military service and forced to construct a gold,...
On Not Knowing What I Am Doing: Leadership Lessons From a Tumultuous Time
A few years into my tenure as CEP’s president, when I was in my mid-30s, I made a confession to our board of directors in executive session. It was a big one. “I don’t really know what I am doing,” I said, explaining that the organization was growing quickly and that...