The California AG is reportedly looking into the finances of the Farrah Fawcett Foundation, run by the late actress’s best friend, Alana Stewart. Calling the AG’s investigation  “outrageous” and a “witch hunt” seems to be quite a defensive overreaction by foundation insiders.

Remember the embarrassment of Usher, Mariah Carey, Beyonce, 50 Cent, and Nelly Furtado for their having performed for the Qaddafi clan and earning a cool million per gig? They all more or less pledged to give their fees to charity, but only Canadian Nelly Furtado has done so.

Remember how the Peace Corps started with an impromptu middle-of-the-night challenge from a presidential candidate, fueled by fast-acting student activists, leading to the launch of a groundbreaking new program in months? No? Be inspired or re-inspired by a new report marking the program’s 50^th anniversary.

The New York Times’ Michael Powell lands another expose of Seedco, with former employees charging that they were pressured by superiors to falsify job placement numbers. But this time, Seedco execs and City officials are voicing commitments to root out the problems.

A pair of Girl Scouts is making progress in their effort to get the Scouts to stop using palm oil in their cookies. The girls say that producing the oil destroys rainforest habitat.

Is executive coaching just the latest fad or a core tool for building robust organizations? How have very different kinds of organizations made use of it? …and what does research say about its effectiveness? Ruth McCambridge and Bill Ryan talk about this topic and take your questions as well. 

The  issue has been widely debated  and  there is no doubt that it will emerge again. The Center on Philanthropy recently completed a study that suggests that capping the deduction would, by itself, have arelatively modest negative impact on overall giving, but could further negatively affect charities still struggling with increased demand and effects of the recession. The question that we all need to answer is, is the cap worth fighting about?

There is more political diversity among the Cuban-American population than the national press and some politicians would have us believe. Consider the activities of Roots of Hope (Raices de Esperanza), which is taking a non-political stance toward boosting communication between Cubans in the U.S. and those on the island. It appears to be making a mark in the Cuban-American community.

University of California College Republicans spark controversy with a provocatively priced bake sale to protest affirmative action in public state universities.

The Gates Foundation pitches the idea of a financial transactions tax to the G20 nations to raise revenue and discourage financial speculation, but only two come out in support—and the U.S. is not one of them.

Are conservation efforts undermining the livelihoods of indigenous peoples in Africa and contributing to the drought on the Horn of Africa? First Peoples Worldwide’s Rebecca Adamson says that’s exactly what is happening.

As if serving on committees and attending interminable meetings weren’t enough, a South Carolina nonprofit board trustee has decided to kick off her organization’s expansion fundraising campaign with a cool million-dollar gift.