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56-857: In 1961, the ALA participated as a co-founder of the Joint Baltic American National Committee in cooperation with the Estonian American National Council and the Lithuanian American National Council . The ALA is also a member of the World Federation of Free Latvians (WFFL) and contributes 4 of WFFL's 16 board members. ALA has over 160 member organizations, and some 6,000 individual members, representing over 100,000 people of Latvian descent living in

112-424: A delegate structure to allow for the representation of groups or corporations as members. Alternatively, it may be a non-membership organization and the board of directors may elect its own successors. The two major types of nonprofit organization are membership and board-only. A membership organization elects the board and has regular meetings and the power to amend the bylaws. A board-only organization typically has

168-554: A fiscally viable entity. Nonprofits have the responsibility of focusing on being professional and financially responsible, replacing self-interest and profit motive with mission motive. Though nonprofits are managed differently from for-profit businesses, they have felt pressure to be more businesslike. To combat private and public business growth in the public service industry, nonprofits have modeled their business management and mission, shifting their reason of existing to establish sustainability and growth. Setting effective missions

224-471: A low-stress work environment that the employee can associate him or herself positively with. Other incentives that should be implemented are generous vacation allowances or flexible work hours. When selecting a domain name , NPOs often use one of the following: .org , the country code top-level domain of their respective country, or the .edu top-level domain (TLD), to differentiate themselves from more commercial entities, which typically use .com . In

280-457: A nonprofit entity without having tax-exempt status. Key aspects of nonprofits are accountability, integrity, trustworthiness, honesty, and openness to every person who has invested time, money, and faith into the organisation. Nonprofit organizations are accountable to the donors, founders, volunteers, program recipients, and the public community. Theoretically, for a nonprofit that seeks to finance its operations through donations, public confidence

336-515: A private and voluntary organization with the U.S. Agency for International Development . ALA is organized into 4 key program areas as reported on the annual IRS Form 990 depicting the operations of non-profit organizations. The ALA supports cultural activities and facilitates cooperation within the Latvian American community, for example, organizing annual educational and cultural trips to Latvia. These programs help educate and inform

392-697: A self-selected board and a membership whose powers are limited to those delegated to it by the board. A board-only organization's bylaws may even state that the organization does not have any membership, although the organization's literature may refer to its donors or service recipients as 'members'; examples of such organizations are FairVote and the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws . The Model Nonprofit Corporation Act imposes many complexities and requirements on membership decision-making. Accordingly, many organizations, such as

448-471: A strong vision of how to operate the project, try to retain control of the organization, even as new employees or volunteers want to expand the project's scope or change policy. Resource mismanagement is a particular problem with NPOs because the employees are not accountable to anyone who has a direct stake in the organization. For example, an employee may start a new program without disclosing its complete liabilities. The employee may be rewarded for improving

504-581: A wide diversity of structures and purposes. For legal classification, there are, nevertheless, some elements of importance: Some of the above must be (in most jurisdictions in the US at least) expressed in the organization's charter of establishment or constitution. Others may be provided by the supervising authority at each particular jurisdiction. While affiliations will not affect a legal status, they may be taken into consideration by legal proceedings as an indication of purpose. Most countries have laws that regulate

560-633: Is a non-profit organization that monitors issues affecting Baltic-American communities in the United States and the nations of Estonia , Latvia , and Lithuania . JBANC functions as the public affairs bureau for its three parent organizations, the Estonian American National Council (EANC) , the American Latvian Association, Inc ., and the Lithuanian American Council, Inc. (LAC). The organization

616-399: Is a factor in the amount of money that a nonprofit organization is able to raise. Supposedly, the more a nonprofit focuses on their mission, the more public confidence they will gain. This will result in more money for the organization. The activities a nonprofit is partaking in can help build the public's confidence in nonprofits, as well as how ethical the standards and practices are. There

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672-461: Is a key for the successful management of nonprofit organizations. There are three important conditions for effective mission: opportunity, competence, and commitment. One way of managing the sustainability of nonprofit organizations is to establish strong relations with donor groups. This requires a donor marketing strategy, something many nonprofits lack. Nonprofit organizations provide public goods that are undersupplied by government. NPOs have

728-439: Is an important distinction in the US between non-profit and not-for-profit organizations (NFPOs); while an NFPO does not profit its owners, and money goes into running the organization, it is not required to operate for the public good. An example is a club, whose purpose is its members' enjoyment. Other examples of NFPOs include: credit unions, sports clubs, and advocacy groups. Nonprofit organizations provide services to

784-414: Is an important distinction in the US between non-profit and not-for-profit organizations (NFPOs); while an NFPO does not profit its owners, and money goes into running the organization, it is not required to operate for the public good. An example is a sports club, whose purpose is its members' enjoyment. The names used and precise regulations vary from one jurisdiction to another. According to

840-494: Is concerned. In many countries, nonprofits may apply for tax-exempt status, so that the organization itself may be exempt from income tax and other taxes. In the United States, to be exempt from federal income taxes, the organization must meet the requirements set forth in the Internal Revenue Code (IRC). Granting nonprofit status is done by the state, while granting tax-exempt designation (such as IRC 501(c) )

896-453: Is granted by the federal government via the IRS. This means that not all nonprofits are eligible to be tax-exempt. For example, employees of non-profit organizations pay taxes from their salaries, which they receive according to the laws of the country. NPOs use the model of a double bottom line in that furthering their cause is more important than making a profit, though both are needed to ensure

952-408: Is not classifiable as another category. Currently, no restrictions are enforced on registration of .com or .org, so one can find organizations of all sorts in either of those domains, as well as other top-level domains including newer, more specific ones which may apply to particular sorts of organization including .museum for museums and .coop for cooperatives . Organizations might also register by

1008-605: Is subject to the non-distribution constraint: any revenues that exceed expenses must be committed to the organization's purpose, not taken by private parties. Depending on the local laws, charities are regularly organized as non-profits. A host of organizations may be nonprofit, including some political organizations, schools, hospitals, business associations, churches, foundations, social clubs, and consumer cooperatives. Nonprofit entities may seek approval from governments to be tax-exempt , and some may also qualify to receive tax-deductible contributions, but an entity may incorporate as

1064-411: Is the remuneration package, though many who have been questioned after leaving an NPO have reported that it was stressful work environments and the workload. Public- and private-sector employment have, for the most part, been able to offer more to their employees than most nonprofit agencies throughout history. Either in the form of higher wages, more comprehensive benefit packages, or less tedious work,

1120-476: Is unique in which source of income works best for them. With an increase in NPOs since 2010, organizations have adopted competitive advantages to create revenue for themselves to remain financially stable. Donations from private individuals or organizations can change each year and government grants have diminished. With changes in funding from year to year, many nonprofit organizations have been moving toward increasing

1176-518: The Baltic-American agenda . The group focuses heavily on fostering democratic principles, promoting human rights worldwide, supporting the establishment of peaceful relations among nations, and seeking the restoration and maintenance of security throughout Central and Eastern Europe. During the late twentieth century, JBANC worked to secure admission for the Baltic countries into NATO and

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1232-565: The European Union . When Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania all became full members of both organizations in 2004, JBANC turned its efforts to a host of issues that continue to demand attention today. These include bearing witness to the legacy of communism; defending the Baltic nations against unjust accusations and historical revisionism; promoting democracy beyond the Baltics; strengthening transatlantic integration and American engagement in

1288-729: The National Center for Charitable Statistics (NCCS), there are more than 1.5 million nonprofit organizations registered in the United States , including public charities , private foundations , and other nonprofit organizations. Private charitable contributions increased for the fourth consecutive year in 2017 (since 2014), at an estimated $ 410.02 billion. Out of these contributions, religious organizations received 30.9%, education organizations received 14.3%, and human services organizations received 12.1%. Between September 2010 and September 2014, approximately 25.3% of Americans over

1344-596: The Wikimedia Foundation , have formed board-only structures. The National Association of Parliamentarians has generated concerns about the implications of this trend for the future of openness, accountability, and understanding of public concerns in nonprofit organizations. Specifically, they note that nonprofit organizations, unlike business corporations, are not subject to market discipline for products and shareholder discipline of their capital; therefore, without membership control of major decisions such as

1400-450: The ALA has been compiled in two books. The first book, ALA 35, 1951-1986 by former members Bruno Albats (former ALA General Secretary) and Visvaldis Varnesis Klīve (former President of the ALA) and was published in 1986. The second book, ALA 1986-2000 was written and published in 2000 by Anita Tērauda (former ALA General Secretary) and Irēne Karule . These books provide an overview of

1456-801: The Baltic Sea, and its ceaseless campaigns of disinformation . The organization hosted a conference, in Washington, D.C. on April 16–18, 2015, which focused on the theme: " History Repeated: Baltics and Eastern Europe in Peril? ". Speakers at the event included President of Estonia Toomas Hendrik Ilves , former Lithuanian Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius , European parliamentarian Artis Pabriks , along with Ambassador John Heffern , James Kirchick , Liz Wahl , Paul Goble , Paul Joyal , David Kramer , Luke Coffey, and others. JBANC held its Twelfth Baltic conference in Washington, D.C. on May 19–20, 2017 under

1512-559: The Baltics. The second Baltic Advocacy Day happened on November 8, 2019, in Washington, DC and the third, a Baltic Advocacy Week, took place virtually from March 8–12. The 2021 Baltic Advocacy Week also took place virtually. In 2024 JBANC took part in a Baltic Way commemoration event in Washington D.C , alongside the Baltic embassies and other American organisations. JBANC's board of Directors consist of representatives from each of its parent organisations. The managing director of

1568-559: The Baltics; and expanding relations with other ethnic organizations and NGOs in the U.S. and abroad. After the Russian belligerence against Ukraine demonstrated Russia's strategic threat to the United States and Europe, particularly to Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, the focus of the group shifted back to securing peace in the Baltics. JBANC advocates for the European Reassurance Initiative (ERI) that enables

1624-549: The Latvian American Community about events and people in Latvia. The goals of the ALA are to promote the study of Latvian language, history and culture. The ALA is supplying Latvian schools in the United States with books and teaching materials, while also helping newly arrived Latvian immigrants to adjust to life in the United States and providing humanitarian aid to people in Latvia. The complete history of

1680-455: The NPO's reputation, making other employees happy, and attracting new donors. Liabilities promised on the full faith and credit of the organization but not recorded anywhere constitute accounting fraud . But even indirect liabilities negatively affect the financial sustainability of the NPO, and the NPO will have financial problems unless strict controls are instated. Some commenters have argued that

1736-562: The U.S. and NATO allies to be better prepared for contingencies that may occur during Russia's widening aggression against its neighbors. Also, JBANC draws attention to the hybrid warfare in Ukraine and Russia's continued occupation of Crimea and territories in Georgia , and the continuous provocations against the Baltic countries, including the kidnapping of an Estonian intelligence office r, dangerous aerial and maritime incursions around

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1792-579: The United States. ALA headquarters are located in Rockville, Maryland , a suburb of Washington, D.C. Some of the 160 ALA member organizations include the cultural organization Tilts , the Washington D.C. Latvian Lutheran Church, and the Latvian Welfare Association Daugavas Vanagi New York branch. The ALA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, tax exempt educational and cultural organization registered as

1848-461: The age of 16 volunteered for a nonprofit. In the United States, both nonprofit organizations and not-for-profit organizations are tax-exempt. There are various types of nonprofit exemptions, such as 501(c)(3) organizations that are a religious, charitable, or educational-based organization that does not influence state and federal legislation, and 501(c)(7) organizations that are for pleasure, recreation, or another nonprofit purpose. There

1904-649: The appropriate country code top-level domain for their country. In 2020, nonprofit organizations began using microvlogging (brief videos with short text formats) on TikTok to reach Gen Z, engage with community stakeholders, and overall build community. TikTok allowed for innovative engagement between nonprofit organizations and younger generations. During COVID-19, TikTok was specifically used to connect rather than inform or fundraise, as its fast-paced, tailored For You Page separates itself from other social media apps such as Facebook and Twitter. Some organizations offer new, positive-sounding alternative terminology to describe

1960-601: The association and its founding process. As documented through the personal experiences of the authors, the initiator of the concept of a unified voice for the Latvian American community was the Latvian Ambassador to the United States (1948-1953), Jūlijs Feldmanis . On April 15, 1950, 79 representatives of some of the main centers of the Latvian diaspora in the US, such as New York , Chicago , Boston , Philadelphia , Washington D.C. , Detroit etc., met to address

2016-401: The best of the newly minted workforce. It has been mentioned that most nonprofits will never be able to match the pay of the private sector and therefore should focus their attention on benefits packages, incentives and implementing pleasurable work environments. A good environment is ranked higher than salary and pressure of work. NPOs are encouraged to pay as much as they are able and offer

2072-565: The community; for example aid and development programs, medical research, education, and health services. It is possible for a nonprofit to be both member-serving and community-serving. Nonprofit organizations are not driven by generating profit, but they must bring in enough income to pursue their social goals. Nonprofits are able to raise money in different ways. This includes income from donations from individual donors or foundations; sponsorship from corporations; government funding; programs, services or merchandise sales, and investments. Each NPO

2128-402: The diversity of their funding sources. For example, many nonprofits that have relied on government grants have started fundraising efforts to appeal to individual donors. Most nonprofits have staff that work for the company, possibly using volunteers to perform the nonprofit's services under the direction of the paid staff. Nonprofits must be careful to balance the salaries paid to staff against

2184-432: The election of the board, there are few inherent safeguards against abuse. A rebuttal to this might be that as nonprofit organizations grow and seek larger donations, the degree of scrutiny increases, including expectations of audited financial statements. A further rebuttal might be that NPOs are constrained, by their choice of legal structure, from financial benefit as far as distribution of profit to members and directors

2240-475: The establishment and management of NPOs and that require compliance with corporate governance regimes. Most larger organizations are required to publish their financial reports detailing their income and expenditure publicly. In many aspects, they are similar to corporate business entities though there are often significant differences. Both not-for-profit and for-profit corporate entities must have board members, steering-committee members, or trustees who owe

2296-426: The founding congress. They represented local Latvian organizations and churches in the U.S. with 11,260 members in total. Jūlijs Feldmanis was elected to lead the congress. After his proposal that the founding statutes be accepted without changes, the founding delegates agreed, officially establishing the ALA. Joint Baltic American National Committee The Joint Baltic American National Committee, Inc. (JBANC)

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2352-499: The initiative. The representatives decided: (1) to create a nation-wide Latvian organization; (2) to define the organization's overall goals; and (3) to develop the organization's basic structure. The representatives established an organizing committee to draw up the organization's statutes and to call for a congress of delegates to formally establish the ALA. Following the meeting in April 1950, Ambassador Feldmanis continued to work with

2408-511: The money paid to provide services to the nonprofit's beneficiaries. Organizations whose salary expenses are too high relative to their program expenses may face regulatory scrutiny. A second misconception is that nonprofit organizations may not make a profit. Although the goal of nonprofits is not specifically to maximize profits, they still have to operate as a fiscally responsible business. They must manage their income (both grants and donations and income from services) and expenses so as to remain

2464-445: The nonprofit sector today regarding newly graduated workers, and to some, NPOs have for too long relegated hiring to a secondary priority, which could be why they find themselves in the position many do. While many established NPOs are well-funded and comparative to their public sector competitors, many more are independent and must be creative with which incentives they use to attract and maintain people. The initial interest for many

2520-404: The organisation is Karl Altau. Nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization ( NPO ), also known as a nonbusiness entity , nonprofit institution , or simply a nonprofit , is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, as opposed to an entity that operates as a business aiming to generate a profit for its owners. A nonprofit organization

2576-411: The organization a fiduciary duty of loyalty and trust. A notable exception to this involves churches , which are often not required to disclose finances to anyone, including church members. In the United States, nonprofit organizations are formed by filing bylaws, articles of incorporation , or both in the state in which they expect to operate. The act of incorporation creates a legal entity enabling

2632-452: The organization to be treated as a distinct body (corporation) by law and to enter into business dealings, form contracts, and own property as individuals or for-profit corporations can. Nonprofits can have members, but many do not. The nonprofit may also be a trust or association of members. The organization may be controlled by its members who elect the board of directors , board of governors or board of trustees . A nonprofit may have

2688-511: The organization's sustainability. An advantage of nonprofits registered in the UK is that they benefit from some reliefs and exemptions. Charities and nonprofits are exempt from Corporation Tax as well as the trustees being exempt from Income Tax. There may also be tax relief available for charitable giving, via Gift Aid, monetary donations, and legacies. Founder's syndrome is an issue organizations experience as they expand. Dynamic founders, who have

2744-550: The public and private sectors have enjoyed an advantage over NPOs in attracting employees. Traditionally, the NPO has attracted mission-driven individuals who want to assist their chosen cause. Compounding the issue is that some NPOs do not operate in a manner similar to most businesses, or only seasonally. This leads many young and driven employees to forego NPOs in favor of more stable employment. Today, however, nonprofit organizations are adopting methods used by their competitors and finding new means to retain their employees and attract

2800-483: The receipt of significant funding from large for-profit corporations can ultimately alter the NPO's functions. A frequent measure of an NPO's efficiency is its expense ratio (i.e. expenditures on things other than its programs, divided by its total expenditures). Competition for employees with the public and private sector is another problem that nonprofit organizations inevitably face, particularly for management positions. There are reports of major talent shortages in

2856-552: The representatives of the main Latvian diaspora centers to create a unified Latvian organization. Numerous meetings were held in the various communities (most importantly, May 24, 1950, in Philadelphia and August 5, 1950, in New York) to gain local support and finalise the founding statutes. Mr. Feldmanis repeatedly stated that the main goal of the association will be the fight for Latvia's freedom. 115 delegates participated in

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2912-570: The sector. The term civil society organization (CSO) has been used by a growing number of organizations, including the Center for the Study of Global Governance . The term citizen sector organization (CSO) has also been advocated to describe the sector – as one of citizens, for citizens – by organizations including Ashoka: Innovators for the Public . Advocates argue that these terms describe

2968-633: The topic of "New Realities: The Baltic Region in a Changing World." JBANC held its Thirteenth Baltic Conference in Washington, D.C. on November 9, 2019. Some key speakers included the Prime Minister of Estonia, Jüri Ratas, the U.S. ambassadors to Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, as well as Michael Carpenter, managing director of the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Carpenter

3024-489: The traditional domain noted in RFC   1591 , .org is for "organizations that didn't fit anywhere else" in the naming system, which implies that it is the proper category for non-commercial organizations if they are not governmental, educational, or one of the other types with a specific TLD. It is not designated specifically for charitable organizations or any specific organizational or tax-law status, but encompasses anything that

3080-636: Was founded on April 27, 1961, through a joint proclamation by Estonian National Committee in the U.S.A. Chairman Julius Kangur; American Latvian Association, Inc., in the United States President Peter P. Lejins; and Lithuanian American Council, Inc., President Leonard Simutis. Since its inception, JBANC has worked with members of Congress , the White House , the State Department , and other federal agencies to promote

3136-696: Was later nominated by President Joe Biden to serve as the Permanent Representative of the United States of America to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and was confirmed by the United States Senate on November 3, 2021. In 2018, JBANC hosted the first Baltic Advocacy Day, in which Baltic-American constituents were encouraged to meet with their members of Congress to voice concerns over issues relevant to

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