Our Strategy

​The Charitable Independence Initiative is a national, nonpartisan effort strengthening the independence and public standing of the nonprofit sector in the United States. We support local nonprofit leaders with the tools to communicate their impact and build direct, constructive relationships with their policymakers and local media.​

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Core Objectives

The strategy of the Charitable Independence Initiative (CII) is built on a "local-relation" model. The initiative focuses on empowering local nonprofit leaders to become the primary advocates for the sector’s independence.

 

The strategy has two key components:

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1. "Local Voice" Relationship Building

We believe local organizations have the most "boots-on-the-ground" credibility to build direct, one-on-one relationships with lawmakers and journalists.

• Local nonprofit leaders make the case for the charitable sector in ways that lawmakers and journalists actually hear — and remember.

• The program is built to last because it is relationship centered as opposed to transactional one-offs.

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2. Narrative and Storytelling Strategy

We help strengthen the way nonprofits communicate, moving away from "deficit-based" reporting (focusing on problems) toward "impact-based" storytelling.

• Organizations must know what to say and it has to be compelling. Relationships open the door. Stories are what get you remembered.

• CII helps organizations connect their work to the headlines lawmakers and journalists are already paying attention to, so the case for the charitable sector lands in a local context and not in a vacuum.