Programs
Community Collaboration Initiative (CCI)
The goal of this project is to bring together Muslim American nonprofit organizations that are working within the same sector so that they can collaborate to solve a common problem. Research suggests that due to heightened scrutiny, Muslim American nonprofits have been very effective in interfaith collaboration. However, meaningful intrafaith collaboration can strengthen missions, develop specialization, create economies of scale, and build a more effective nonprofit organization.
Collaboration is the focus of much scholarly research. Since the Great Recession, we have seen an increased emphasis on nonprofit collaboration for a number of reasons. Resource dependence theory and transaction cost theory. The former proposes that a collaborative strategy is the result of organizational efforts to manage external dependencies and uncertainties in their resource environment, whereas the latter emphasizes collaboration as a mechanism to reduce transaction costs and thereby maximize economic or psychological benefits.
Despite their explanatory power, these theoretical perspectives have been criticized for their insufficient attention to those constraints on strategic choice that are embedded in an organization’s institutional environment, its structural context, as well as other contextual and organizational process factors.
This project will bring together Muslim American nonprofit organizations from Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Indiana, California, and Washington DC that are working within the same sector so that they can collaborate on one shared project to solve a common problem.
This project is funded by the Waraich Family Fund and is being organized in partnership with the Pillars Fund and the Center on Muslim Philanthropy.
Symposium
MPI hosts an annual symposium on Muslim philanthropy and civil society at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy on the IUPUI campus in the fall semester. The symposium brings together scholars to share research related to Muslim philanthropy and civil society from across the world.
Research from the symposium undergoes double blind peer review before it is published in scholarly outlets like the Journal on Muslim Philanthropy and Civil Society published by Indiana University Press.
Journal of Muslim Philanthropy & Civil Society
The Journal of Muslim Philanthropy & Civil Society (JMPCS), is a bi-annual, peer reviewed, open access journal published by the Center on Muslim Philanthropy in partnership with Indiana University Press, Lake Institute on Faith & Giving, World Congress of Muslim Philanthropists, International Institute of Islamic Thought, and the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University.
JMPCS seeks original academic research examining the broad scope of Muslim philanthropy and civil society.
This peer reviewed online academic journal will publish research related to Muslim nonprofit, philanthropic and voluntary action. The terms “Muslim” and “philanthropy” are defined broadly to be inclusive of cutting-edge research from across the world and disciplines. JMPCS is intended to shed light on the dynamic practice and understanding of Muslim Philanthropy.
Training
MPI provides professional development programs through Lake Institute on Faith and Giving and The Fund Raising School in partnership with the Center on Muslim Philanthropy, an independent nonprofit organization.
Lake Institute on Faith & Giving
Through Lake Institute on Faith & Giving, the Executive Certificate in Religious Fundraising (ECRF), a four-day intensive program with a practical application project, provides the research, tools, and customized training to meet the growing needs of leaders in religious communities and fundraisers of faith-based organizations.
The focus of the ECRF is on the cultural, organizational, and philanthropic practices unique to religious institutions that in turn enable donors motivated by spiritual and religious values to experience the joy of generous giving. This training has been customized for a Muslim audience.
The Fund Raising School
The Fund Raising School has been dedicated to the advancement of ethical fundraising for more than 40 years. The school offers 22 courses that will be offered to Muslim nonprofits through specially trained faculty who understand the Muslim nonprofit context and the course materials.
Customized trainings
In partnership with the other units at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy (including the Women’s Philanthropy Institute, Lake Institute on Faith & Giving, and The Fund Raising School) the Muslim Philanthropy Initiative will develop customized trainings for Muslim nonprofit and philanthropic institutions based upon need. The Initiative will also develop trainings that will assist non-Muslim nonprofit and philanthropic institutions to better understand the Muslim context.
Muslim American Women Convening
The Muslim Philanthropy Initiative will be convening small groups of Muslim American women philanthropists and nonprofit professionals to have a facilitated dialogue that will result in white papers to guide future research, practice, and policy related to Muslim women and philanthropy.
The first convening will take place on March 30, 2020 in Chicago, IL. This convening will focus on Muslim American women philanthropists. This event includes invited guests only.
The convening will take place a day before the Women Philanthropy Institute's symposium, Philanthropy Plugged In: Creating Community in the Digital Age.
Book series
The Muslim Philanthropy and Civil Society book series has been launched in partnership with nationally recognized Indiana University Press. The book series will publish books in this field with the aim of developing a framework and broader understanding of the Muslim philanthropic, nonprofit, and voluntary sector.
The Muslim Philanthropy and Civil Society book series presents critical research on how Muslims practice philanthropy as an important aspect of their faith. The series emphasizes engagement with Muslim practice by relating to, as well as challenging, conventional understandings of philanthropic and civic activity.
This series aims to encourage the growth of scholarly interest in the emerging field of Muslim philanthropic, nonprofit, and civil society studies. Created under the auspices of the Muslim Philanthropy Initiative at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University and the independent Center on Muslim Philanthropy, the series seeks diverse work written by scholars and practitioners to serve a growing readership of academics, nonprofit executives, trustees, and volunteer leaders.
Muslim Philanthropy, Nonprofit, and Civic Archives
The Muslim Philanthropy, Nonprofit, and Civic Archives will be established at the IUPUI University Library in Indianapolis Special Collections. The Special Collections are home to the archives of the Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action (ARNOVA), the Foundation Center, and other important collections.
Five Muslim organizations have committed to house their archives in the collections, including the Islamic Society of North America and World Congress of Muslim Philanthropists. The archives will become a focal point for research of the important contributions Muslims are making through philanthropy, nonprofit and voluntary action.
