"Communities are built from the assets and gifts of their citizens, not from the citizens' needs or deficiencies. Organized, professionalized systems are capable of delivering services, but only associational life is capable of delivering care. Sustainable transformation is constructed in those places where citizens choose to come together to produce a desired future."

A recently-released monograph funded by the Fieldstone Alliance and the James Irvine Foundation explores ways in which five key trends will converge to shape the nonprofit sector of the future.

Trends include:

1. Generational and other demographic shifts
2. The rise and impact of social media
3. The growing importance of networks
4. The role of volunteerism and civic engagement in society, and
5. The blurring of sector boundaries.

According to the report, "While each dynamic has profound implications for how nonprofits will do business in the future, it is their interplay that will transform the sector."

View or download the full report.