Panelists for the Opening Plenary (From left): Jim VandeHei, Judy Woodruff, Henry Cisneros, Jonathan Capehart, and Andrew Kohut.

This year's Annual Conference took place against a backdrop of two of the most significant events of our lifetimes: the groundbreaking 2008 elections and the biggest financial crisis since the 1930s. More than 900 nonprofit leaders came together in Philadelphia November 8-11 as they discovered the best ways to use our powerful voice to secure brighter futures for people everywhere during these rapidly shifting times. The program included nearly 40 sessions.

Learn more about the conference, including IS President and CEO Diana Aviv's keynote on the need to rebuild the social compact.

IS Prepares Center for the Nonprofit Community
IS’s new headquarters, the Center for the Nonprofit Community, are nearing completion. On November 24, IS will move to a new home at 1602 L Street, N.W., just three blocks from our current offices. The new building, which IS purchased last spring, will strengthen our ability to convene the nonprofit community through better conference facilities; it will also improve our financial sustainability, enabling us to serve our members better. We invite staff at our member organizations to stop by our new location, which will include work space for visitors. Please note that our phone numbers and email addresses will remain the same.

IRA Charitable Rollover Restored
Qualifying Americans can once again donate directly to their favorite charities from their individual retirement accounts without counting those contributions as taxable income. The IRA Charitable Rollover giving incentive, now in effect through 2009, enables individuals aged 70½ and older to contribute up to $100,000 tax-free from their Individual Retirement Accounts and Roth IRAs.

Congress Enacts Economic Stabilization Bill
Early this month Congress passed the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, which is intended to stabilize the financial system and restore confidence in the economy. In addition to restoring the IRA rollover, the new law includes several other charitable giving incentives.