Pioneering the Disruption of the Non-profit Transactional Model

NEW YORK, Aug. 5, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Our next generation is suffering like never before. The introduction to self-harm, sexual abuse, rape, gun violence and drug use is engrossing our youth. The dollars that are going towards these community social issues are not as impactful as they could be. Why is this happening? As it pertains to our most desolate and hard hit neighborhoods it's the result of a failed model of philanthropy where most grassroots community nonprofits are spending more time fundraising than actually eradicating the problems they were founded to attack. Living hand to mouth, many of these organizations find themselves bound to donors and boards that are clueless and disconnected from community realities. These models are not only failing our next generation, they are perpetuating insidious power dynamics that inhibit progress on root cause and foundational issues like institutional racism.

Who is answering this cry for help? bluePrint offers an alternative to the current non-profit model that is tailored to the next generation by socially disrupting a business model that is outdated, inadequate, and does not address social issues with a genuine intent to make a lasting impact.

Led by two minority women, bluePrint is founded on the philosophy that mobilizing real impact and engaging the next generation in giving back requires a fundamentally different approach. Both bring an important and fresh take on how grassroots nonprofits are struggling to achieve tangible and sustainable results - Hanna - Co-Founder and Executive Managing Director and executive - perspective is that of a former beneficiary of social welfare programs as a child, while Lisa's - the Co-Founder - views are of a discouraged donor and board member to many organizations. 

The bluePrint model:

• Community Philanthropy. At bluePrint, the co-founders believe that the best answers to social challenges exists within the local community. They start by getting to know the nonprofit and understanding the issues they face through their lens and through the lens of their community. In this phase, they work to restate/reframe/reclaim the nonprofit's vision and mission. Once they have a better understanding of the needs, bluePrint puts its money where its mouth is by issuing financial grant and a challenge that begins with the remediation of the non-profit's most distracting obstacles (usually centered around dire facility repairs).
• Digital Storytelling. The team at bluePrint believes that communities are best re-energized by their own hometown heroes, people who are completely authentic and relatable. Therefore the bluePrint process starts with identifying local hometown influencers with a personal passion to impact their communities through an existing grassroots non-profit. Then by leveraging a series of documentaries that are enlivened by social media, bluePrint is able to re-energize engagement and resources from both local and national partners and stakeholders.
• Financial Sustainability: The goal of every project is to make sure there is enough money left after repairs to establish an endowment fund for the non-profit. Although an initial injection is ideal, it's not always guaranteed nor should the injection replace the need for fundraising. During this phase, bluePrint provides resources that aid in grant-writing techniques and extend to tailored marketing & branding methods in a digital world. More than just an account to draw from, the endowment fund gives us a vehicle to teach the non-profit important financial principles that have long been kept away from those at the lower end of the social-economic spectrum. These topics include – but are not limited to – operating budgets, the importance of board governance, reinvesting and harvesting investment returns.

bluePrint is a non-profit's non-profit. They 'walk it like they talk it" and do no fundraising, sustaining themselves on a private foundation endowment that is managed for perpetuity.  By eliminating the dependence on fundraising, they are completely independent and conflict free.

bluePrint will launch their first documentary this coming Fall 2019, featuring a project highlighted by NFL wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles, Braxton Miller and a youth ministry called InsideOut in his hometown of Springfield, Ohio.

See what's to come here

Find them on social media:

Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn

thebluePrint.Org

SOURCE bluePrint.org