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Scene Change

Arts are essential. Your nonprofit is not.

Philanthropy and Donors

Why Does Transforming a Country of DōnWänüs Take Just as Much Effort Than Transforming a Nonprofit Arts Industry of DōnWänüs?

November 5, 2024 by Alan Harrison Leave a Comment

Is charitable resistance just another instance of the Peter Principle at play at your nonprofit arts organization? It’s election day in the United States. November 5. If you’re not reading this on November 5, then it is not election day in the United States, but it’s likely there is still no real result as yet. Although…who knows? Maybe the country’s citizens either became … [Read more...] about Why Does Transforming a Country of DōnWänüs Take Just as Much Effort Than Transforming a Nonprofit Arts Industry of DōnWänüs?

Talking To or Talking At? Or Even Talking at All?

October 29, 2024 by Alan Harrison Leave a Comment

Nonprofit Arts Leaders: Don't tell them about your mission, show them how you are fulfilling it. Don't just present, discuss. Do you talk about what’s happening to other folks in your community? Or are you “too busy?” This is an exchange that happened during a recent “Town Hall” with Vice President Kamala Harris taking questions from “undecided” voters in Pennsylvania, … [Read more...] about Talking To or Talking At? Or Even Talking at All?

Why Do Donors Ask for Irrelevant Data?

October 15, 2024 by Alan Harrison Leave a Comment

Could it be that you never talked to them about your nonprofit’s charitable goals and how they mesh with the donor’s? Whose fault is that? A few weeks ago, I participated in a discussion about the arts and measuring impact in the community. As every other author does, I believed that the message that the arts are not a tax-exempt activity had been spread far and wide among … [Read more...] about Why Do Donors Ask for Irrelevant Data?

What’s Next, Fair Harvard? The Alois Hitler Theaterzentrum?

September 10, 2024 by Alan Harrison 1 Comment

Despite everything, Harvard chooses to keep the Sackler name on its museum. Why? Back in 2022, members of the Harvard College Overdose Prevention and Education Students, a campus group dedicated to overdose awareness, petitioned Harvard’s administration to remove Arthur M. Sackler’s name from campus buildings. The petition was not a haphazard one and had teeth because it … [Read more...] about What’s Next, Fair Harvard? The Alois Hitler Theaterzentrum?

Scene Change 2 Now Available for Preorder

September 3, 2024 by Alan Harrison 1 Comment

Assuming that your board has no clear sense of why they’re representing their nonprofit arts organization’s work, there’s a handbook for that. The first essay of the school year is usually some throwaway set of paragraphs entitled, “How I Spent My Summer Vacation.” This is kinda that. I’ve been exceptionally busy over the last month doing podcasts, interviews, and signings … [Read more...] about Scene Change 2 Now Available for Preorder

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About Scene Change

In early 2024, we laid out the problem and gave you a path. The result: SCENE CHANGE: WHY TODAY'S NONPROFIT ARTS ORGANIZATIONS HAVE TO STOP PRODUCING ART AND START PRODUCING IMPACT. In late 2024, we gave you discussion prompts and rules to help you figure out the answers on your own. The result: … [MORE] about About Scene Change

About Alan Harrison

Alan Harrison is a writer, father, performer, consultant, recovering artist, and the author of the industry best-seller "Scene Change: Why Today's Nonprofit Arts Organizations Have to Stop Producing Art and Start Producing Impact" and “Scene Change 2: The Five REAL Responsibilities of Nonprofit Arts … [MORE] about About Alan Harrison

Recent Posts

  • Consequences — If They Cut Funding, You Go Nuclear (or Go Home)
  • A Strategic Plan for Your Flailing Nonprofit Arts Organization Is Just a Waste of Time
  • Arts Organizations: Laughing, Yelling, Insanity, and You
  • For Nonprofit Arts Organizations, It’s August and the Fan Is Clogged with S**t
  • SUMMER RERUN: Advocacy for the Nonprofit Arts Sector is Currently Meaningless

Recent Comments

  1. Michael Chang on Arts Organizations: Laughing, Yelling, Insanity, and You
  2. Rick Stein on For Nonprofit Arts Organizations, It’s August and the Fan Is Clogged with S**t
  3. Benjamin Lemon on SUMMER RERUN: What Would a Post-NEA (Arts) America Look Like?
  4. Tom Tresser on No. Just No.
  5. Alan Harrison on Nonprofit Arts Success in a Changing Environment, Tip 6 — Don’t Talk About It; Do It.

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