There are many organizations that request contributions; why should I contribute to Commonweal Institute?

The Commonweal Institute intends to do something vital and different from what other organizations are doing. Many moderate and progressive organizations are engaged in defending essential issues and institutions. They are constantly embattled and many are losing ground. By contrast, Commonweal Institute intends to use a proactive, long-term approach to changing public attitudes. This will result in broader public support for our vital issues, including greater receptivity to the efforts of issue-specific progressive groups and greater support for progressive officeholders and candidates.

There are a number of reasons that you should make a contribution to Commonweal Institute, as follows:

• Commonweal Institute will strive to protect vital programs, laws, institutions, legal rulings, programs, and policies now under attack. We will do so by being proactive and changing public attitudes, over time.
  
  Other organizations are primarily, and necessarily, focused on defending that which is under attack.  Commonweal Institute agrees that defense is essential when one is under attack.  However, if the only actions being taken are defensive, ultimately that which we are trying to defend will be eviscerated or eliminated. As examples, reproductive choice, public education, separation of church and state, social security, rights of employees to organize, public access to major media, control of weapons proliferation, and a number of environmental programs are under attack and losing ground. Commonweal Institute's proactive long-term approach to changing public attitudes can be expected to result in public support for these and other vital issues.  Where there is public support, there will be political support as well.
   
• Commonweal Institute's programs will enable many local nonprofit organizations to be more effective.
  
  The effectiveness of many local nonprofits is affected by national laws and policies as well as by local laws and attitudes. For example, many organizations that address health and social issues for the less fortunate have to struggle to get meager funds and work within the context of an unsupportive public and legal system. Commonweal Institute would use a strategic approach to change policy and public attitudes regarding fundamental issues of fairness and caring.  . We would work to bring about change so that many of the non-profits that now have to fight "the system" would be supported by the system.
   
• Commonweal Institute is the only progressive or centrist organization, to our knowledge, that has the vision and organizational structure to bring about societal change.  It intends to counter conservative ideology across the board, systematically and effectively.
   
• Commonweal Institute will be the trailblazer for expanding support for other progressive and centrist infrastructure organizations.
  
  By "infrastructure", we mean organizations and processes that are not issue-specific, but rather function in a manner that can be applied to an almost unlimited range of issues or functions. Commonweal Institute is an infrastructure organization itself.  We recognize that other types of infrastructure support will be needed, too, if our society is to be moved back toward a more balanced or progressive position.
  
  Only if we have the progressive and centrist equivalents of the many conservative infrastructure organizations that are now active, will we as a nation be able to move powerfully in a direction that will be for the public good. We have a different vision of society than that of ideological conservatives, greedy businesses with an Enron mentality, and religious fundamentalists. We have a vision that we believe will have broad appeal, if our side has the necessary infrastructure to advance our cause. For this reason, Commonweal Institute will encourage funders at all levels to support the development of progressive and centrist infrastructure.

We acknowledge that there are many organizations in addition to Commonweal Institute that deserve support. A number of local programs have unique qualities and depend upon local support. As stated above, many organizations currently exist primarily to defend existing programs, laws, and policies. Given the threats to many of those issues that are important to each of us, we encourage support of any organization that is doing an effective job of defense. However, as explained above, if our only stance is a defensive one, we cannot be successful over the long run.

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