Nonprofits and Government:
Partnerships and Policy in a Time of Retrenchment 

2008 MCN Annual Conference

Submit a Breakout Session Proposal Today!

Deadline: Wednesday, May 14, 5 p.m.

The Minnesota Council of Nonprofits (MCN) is seeking your ideas for breakout sessions at our fall Annual Conference, "Nonprofits and Government: Partnerships and Policy in a Time of Retrenchment" to be held on October 2-3, 2008, at the Saint Paul RiverCentre.

Conference Description
Breakout Session Tracks
Theme Related Topics
Submitting Your Proposal

Conference Description

The relationships between nonprofits and government continue to grow in scope and complexity. This dynamic is heightened as we operate in a time of increasing economic retrenchment and political gridlock. Nonprofit and government relationships take many forms, are sometimes complimentary and sometimes adversarial – these relationships include funder/recipient, enforcer/implementer, contractor/vendor, policy maker/advocate, and partner. No matter what the relationship, both nonprofits and government have a common purpose and charge - to enhance public good.

Join the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits’ 22nd Annual Conference – Nonprofits and Government - where you will benefit from better understanding your nonprofit or government counterpart, including your respective abilities to leverage and utilize resources. In addition, explore and build stronger relationships that will result in our collective ability to more efficiently and effectively serve the public.

Nonprofits and Government is intended for the following: nonprofit organization staff, board members and volunteers; government staff and leaders – including people whose role intersects with nonprofits; professionals who work with nonprofits; foundation staff members and trustees; corporate and community leaders; and job seekers and career changers.

Session Tracks

We are looking for proposals for breakout sessions that fit into these areas: Executive Leadership, Governance, Finance and Management, Marketing and Communications, Human Resources, Public Policy, Fundraising, and Theme-related.
If there is a topic that you would like to present at this year’s Annual Conference, please complete the quick online survey (link below) that we have created before Wednesday, May 14, 2008 at 5 p.m.

If you simply have a good idea for a session that you would like to see at the conference but do not want to present yourself, please email your idea to stephanie@mncn.org.

Theme Related Topics

Among others, the conference planning committee is seeking proposals for these theme related topics:

*Leadership in difficult times
*Federal budget decision-making process
*Retrenchment issues from a legal perspective– layoffs, unemployment, shrinking workplace issues
*How to access public resources
*How to respond to government RFPs
*Nonprofit/county relationships; nonprofit/public schools relationships
*Cultivating public sector relationships
*Role of public policy and advocacy in nonprofit work
*Developing effective relationships with public administrators
*Nurturing meaningful relationships with nonprofits
*What are the differences between the two sectors that will be really important for each to know – what are the misperceptions or real differences; myth busting
*Government information; government as a resource; back and forth resource sharing
*Bonding
*Intergenerational shifts in leadership
*Succession planning
*Travel budgets and professional development budget challenges with economy
*And more!

Submitting a Breakout Session Proposal

Before you complete the survey, please note that we will ask you these questions:

• What is the title of the session you are envisioning?

• Which track (or area) would it fit into? Executive Leadership, Governance, Finance and Management, Marketing and Communications, Human Resources, Fundraising, Public Policy and Advocacy, Theme-Related
• Which type of session are you envisioning? Interactive Workshop (in depth 3.5 hour session), Formal Presentation (75 minute lecture-style session), Group Discussion (75 minute facilitated discussion), or Panel Discussion (75 minute panel of 3-4 knowledgable panelists).
• Write a description of your session as it could appear in the conference program (250 words or less).
• How will the session address the needs of nonprofit leaders, staff members, and/or board members?
• What are the three learning objectives for this session?
• Information about you, including brief biography (100 words or less).
• Informatoin about your co-presenters (if applicable).

When you are ready to enter the survey and submit the answers to the above questions, submit your proposal online and you will be taken directly to the first page of the survey. Again, note the deadline for submitting breakout session proposals is Wednesday, May 14, at 5 p.m.

If you would like to submit another proposal, simply return to the front page of this online survey. However, please note that if you leave the survey incomplete (that is, without getting to the last of its six pages) and then return to this site, you will be taken to the point in the survey where you left off.

If you have any questions about the MCN Annual Conference or this call for breakout session proposal, please contact Stephanie Haddad, MCN's Program Director, at 651-642-1904, ext. 227, or stephanie@mncn.org.