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Australia’s housing crisis has been perpetuated by conceptualisation of housing policy in the era of neoliberalism. Opposing powerful private sector lobbyists, progressive housing policy advocacy is vital for steering policy making toward equitable housing outcomes. In this article, we explore how advocates seek to influence policy making through the analysis of interviews conducted with five longstanding community sector advocates operating in Victoria. Advocates described the importance of cultivating relationships with policymakers and conveying consistent ideas to government. Barriers to political campaigning depicted by interviewees included resource limitations and individualistic perceptions of homelessness. The overarching perception was that a fundamental shift from ingrained neoliberalism would be required to restore equity within the housing system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article, written by Mark Lyons, examines corporate support for Australian nonprofits. The research note discusses the author's efforts to establish the legitimacy of nonprofit sector research and promote policy recognition of its importance in civil society. The note estimates that in 1998, corporate support for the nonprofit sector amounted to approximately $1.65 billion. It recommends that the Australian Bureau of Statistics expand its survey work to gather better evidence of nonprofit support. The article acknowledges subsequent work on corporate support for the nonprofit sector and emphasizes the need for reliable data to inform decision-making and allocate taxpayer funds. [Extracted from the article]

The non-profit sector is under significant pressure worldwide to conduct performance evaluation of programmes. This is a result of the demands of their funders which include various governments, foundations, trusts, city councils, corporations, and other non-profit organisations (NPOs) that play a funding role. Evaluation is essential to NPOs since it provides them with an opportunity to improve the programmes they provide to their customers or beneficiaries and, in the longer term, this improves the well-being of communities. However, there are many barriers to the execution of evaluation processes about which NPOs need to be aware. Often, NPOs are deficient in the essential resources required to successfully implement evaluation programmes. These deficiencies have serious implications for the delivery of quality evaluation practices. This research reports on empirical research from New Zealand NPOs regarding their evaluation efforts, the level of their evaluation capacity, evaluation barriers, required resources and evaluation self-reflection. The key findings are: the majority of NPOs either undertake some performance evaluation (PE) or make a concerted effort to do so. The greater the size of an NPO's operating budget positively influences the level of effort made in its evaluation efforts. Key barriers to performing PE were insufficient time, funding, evaluation expertise and staff. Key resources needed to improve evaluation capacity were: more funding, education about evaluation models and concepts, specific training and better trained staff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four years ago, China adopted a sharply focused, comprehensive and restrictive regulatory framework for the control and monitoring of overseas nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), foundations, think tanks, trade associations and other nonprofits working in China, including those from Hong Kong and Taiwan. This report from the field discusses the origins and development of this new framework, which is centered in the Overseas NGO Law (2016, eff. 2017); analyses China's goals for this framework and methods of achieving the control it seeks; reviews the first four years of implementation of these new restrictions on overseas NGOs, foundations and other entities; and discusses some of the few formal enforcement actions taken by Chinese security forces to implement the Overseas NGO Law framework - and how much enforcement falls outside of formal sanctions. The result of this multi-year process is comprehensive control and monitoring of the activities and grant-making by overseas NGOs, foundations and other nonprofits in China, including now increasingly in Hong Kong as well. Despite earlier hopes in China and beyond that the constraints of this new framework might be slightly loosened once China's political and security apparatus perceived full control over the overseas nonprofit sector working in China (and now Hong Kong), there is no current sign of any relaxation in these measures, even in minor forms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dominant political debates and scholarship on the escalating state regulation of the voluntary sector invariably focus on the causes and agendas behind State action. This paper draws on the recent insights into how increasing state regulation influences the operational space of rights-based Non-governmental Organisations (NGOs) increasingly mediated and negotiated by technomoral politics. The increasing use of legal activism by such organisations to contest the revocation of its registration under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) 2010 shows that implementation of state regulation is a socially contentious process. Since its birth in 1976, the FCRA has continually caused both the Indian state and NGOs to negotiate and redefine their institutional boundaries and political relationships. In this paper, I position the recent tightening and amending of the FCRA regulations as a site where NGOs use constitutional rights and moral claims to both critique, and collaborate with, the state. With the growing rights-based discourses in the global politics, an increasing use of technomoral and judicialised political strategies by NGOs in India presents an opportunity to expand the space of citizen's rights and entitlements in times of shrinking dissent the world over. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The third sector in Australasia face s some serious challenges as it tries to deal with the fallout from climate change and from a neoliberal economic and political environment, with its increasing inequality and injustice. Within that context, Australian and New Zealand Third Sector Research Inc. (ANZTSR) plays a potentially crucial role in researching, documenting and advocating for more positive solutions. However, it is also subject to the danger of being co-opted within the prevailing economic/political hegemony. This paper therefore examines the current state of the third sector and the achievements of ANZTSR, and identifies some of the key challenges that third sector researchers must address if the organisation is to be a useful force into the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interest in social enterprise has grown across the world and across all sectors in recent years. This interest is underpinned by multiple drivers, arising variously from the logics of new public governance, market-centric approaches to meeting social needs and a reclamation of people-centred economic arrangements as a response to complex problems. In this commentary, I reflect on developments in social enterprise practice and scholarship in Australia since conducting the first national mapping of the field in 2010. I consider changes in practice and in the policy and development ecosystem that inform social enterprise development. In so doing, I consider what is driving these developments and their implications for future practice of both social enterprise and the third sector, and the related implications for scholarship of social enterprise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What has happened in the 25 years or so since purchase-of-service contracting was introduced for government funding of voluntary organisations in Aotearoa New Zealand? This article provides a brief commentary on the various iterations of public policy on funding over that time, and the impact on voluntary organisations. Just when efforts to ameliorate the extreme sharp edges of 'contracting', undergirded by Agency Theory, seemed possible, governments have changed but policies less so. Despite significantly increased funding, the period ends with voluntary organisations (especially those dependent on government funding) possibly at their most vulnerable and insecure, and the wider role of the voluntary sector in supporting social capital and strong communities less appreciated (if not actively undermined). The need for the sector to assertively rediscover its intrinsic value and the unique role it can play in society is perhaps greater now than ever before. And there are promising signs this is possible -- especially when needed most. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anniversaries provide the perfect opportunity for reflection on how things have changed -- or not. Managing accountability, collaborating with other organisations, and the myriad ways in which government funding shapes the behaviour of third sector organisations remain challenges, despite the passage of time and the development of scholarship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This personal comment examines legal developments in the Australian third sector over the last fifteen years. It begins by reflecting on the significant cases that have changed the face of the charity law after decades of no significant cases. This is followed by some observations about substantial legislative reform during the period. Finally, some comments are made about the development of legal scholarship, professional services and future challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Volunteering is a very important aspect of the third sector and civil society more generally. Volunteers have the highest levels of social capital and are active citizens. Volunteering is very much alive and well in Australia and New Zealand, though perhaps it is taking a different shape. The past 20 years have seen the growth of a volunteering infrastructure in Australia, and an enormous expansion in research -- and hence in levels of understanding of volunteering, how it operates and with what consequences. ANZTSR and Third Sector Review have been an important part of this evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this reflection on the 21 years of Third Sector Review we note the growth of the journal and the nature of the research. It is multi-disciplinary, as many disciplines contribute, interdisciplinary, as research concepts and findings combine disciplines, and transdisciplinary, in that research often originates beyond the academy. These qualities, along with our regional focus, have made it difficult for the journal to gain a high ranking. However, we argue that these qualities are necessary. Being regional means recognising context and avoiding claims of universality, but it does not mean being isolated from the international flow of ideas. Ultimately, 'making a difference' through research means being relevant and authoritative and focusing the most useful methods and theories to address the challenges faced by our sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the achievements of the journal "Third Sector Review" and offers reflections and updates of some of its published papers.

Third sector organisations (TSOs) are often unaware of the importance of intellectual property (IP) protection. This is because TSOs are typically focused on their social objectives, rather than on commercial benefits. Additionally, TSOs have unique challenges in dealing with IP protection, such as a lack of time, a lack of funding and a lack of knowledge. This article takes a practicebased approach in considering, firstly, what is relevant, protectable IP in the third sector context; secondly, the unique challenges facing TSOs and why their IP may be under-managed; and thirdly, how TSOs can improve their IP protection. The article proposes that there is a need for TSOs to balance their diverse objectives in fostering and protecting partnerships and collaborations with an effective IP protection strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake, citizens increasingly turned to third sector organisations (TSOs) for social services. Spatial patterns of traditional vulnerability metrics from the 2006 and 2013 census were interpreted, based on surveys of local TSOs. TSOs were found to have maintained business as usual, and evolved to the demands the recovering city was making on their organisations and clients. Weighted vulnerability indices demonstrated that the vulnerability factors of renting and social assistance were identified by TSOs as being amplified by the earthquake. These raised vulnerability in 54 to 65 per cent of the area units in the Christchurch City District. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the Majority Report of the Senate Economics Legislation Committee's review of the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (Repeal) (No. 1) Bill 2014, which in June 2014 recommended passage of the bill by the Australian Senate. Effectively, such action by the Australian parliament would bring to an end uniform national regulation of Australian charities, which, after twenty years of debate, and with the overwhelming support of charities and their supporters, commenced two years ago with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission Act 2012. The paper demonstrates that the Majority Committee was highly selective in its consideration of the evidence before it, preferring to ignore the largely consensus view of the charity sector, its professional advisors, knowledgeable academics and others, in favour of (in some cases poorly supported) minority views. Consequently, it raises the question: is the Coalition government's opposition to the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission based on a desire to improve the efficiency of charities, or is it driven by ideology and in service of narrow sectional interests? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented which discusses contradictions faced in markets, managers and mixed economies (three Ms), research on ePublic Trust and Confidence in Australian Charities' by Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission and workforce in third sector organizations.

The research study undertaken in relation to this paper broadly examined the perceptions of accountability by managers of faith-based social service not-for-profit organisations (NFPs). Through these perceptions, it aimed to gain an understanding of why particular forms and methods of reporting were used to satisfy accountability obligations to multiple stakeholders. This particular paper focused on what drove the construction of accountability reports and other accountability mechanisms investigated in the research study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the potential for sector-specific financial reporting standards to enhance the comparability of third sector organisations' (TSOs') financial statements. It draws on sixty-five interviews and an analysis of reporting standards to highlight two key problems that impair the comparability of TSO financial statements under sector-neutral standards - disclosures concerning donated PPE and fund accounting. The findings reveal that sector-specific standards can improve report comparability by providing TSOs with contextual examples and an appropriate definition of control. Further, this study extends the literature by illustrating some limitations to how well sector-specific standards can enhance comparability and protect the public interest. These findings are of relevance to financial reporting standard setters and countries that are grappling with how to address third sector comparability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

That not-for-profit organisations acquit multiple accountabilities to a wide range of stakeholders is well documented in the research literature and in practitioner submissions to enquiries into disclosures by third sector organisations. At a conceptual level, accountability has been acknowledged to extend beyond mere agent to principal reporting, to embrace ethical and strategic thinking. While the nature of the various stakeholders to whom third sector organisations acquit accountabilities have been well documented, as have the purposes served by such acquittals, the mechanisms by which multiple accountabilities can be integrated in meeting the needs of multiple stakeholders and the organisation have yet to be fully explored. This paper contributes to our understanding of the complex issue of third sector accountability by explaining the ways in which one large, multi-service Australian community service organisation managed its multiple accountabilities. In doing so, it builds on prior models of accountability by emphasising the relationship between after-the-fact reporting on outputs, ongoing behavioural processes and organisational inputs. It is the result of a single-organisation, field-based case study. The paper shows that the acquittal of accountabilities was essentially a strategic response by a voluntarily organisation, in order that it might stay true to its mission and optimise service delivery while navigating the highly regulated domain of Australian welfare provision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored the value added by the facilitating partner process within the Communities for Children program. Facilitating partners are those lead non-profit organisations funded by government to act as relational contractors of, and as capacity-builders to, service-provider organisations within an area. The study used a rapid assessment group exercise to collect and rank statements of value added. Natural gatherings of committee members and community partners were accessed during 2011, with a total of 55 respondents. A thematic analysis process was used to create clusters of such statements and a story was created for each cluster. The facilitating partner process was perceived to add value because it allowed meso-level planning, increased organisational capital and fostered a community of practice. The uses of the findings of this study are fourfold: collective consciousness-raising among stakeholders; immediate feedback on performance for facilitating partners; further conceptualisation of a facilitating partner practice model; and contribution to the literature on lead organisations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research focuses on government-not-for-profit (NFP) sector relationships, with particular reference to advocacy in New Zealand. It follows a study of advocacy in Australia by Onyx et al. (2009). There are concerns that NFP organisations in New Zealand have their advocacy functions curtailed by the requirements of government contracting and by decisions from the Charities Commission. This study looks at the kinds of advocacy activities that NFP sector organisations are involved in, the language they use to describe their advocacy and the reasons they give for the strategies they adopt. The study shows that advocacy methods are evolving, even though NFPs are increasingly self-regulating, and that NFPs need to find new ways to get their messages across in a rapidly changing context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The veterans' and ex-service community in Australia (the Australian Defence Force Family) is represented by numerous organisations. These organisations, commonly referred to as ex-service organisations (ESOs), are generally issuesfocused, protective of their particular association and, until relatively recently, wary of cooperation with others. With few exceptions, they are experiencing a decline in membership. The Returned and Services League (RSL) was recognised as the premier, historically iconic representative of the 'returned men' for over sixty years. The growth in the number of ESOs occurred in the period after the end of the Vietnam War and particularly in the 1980s. The veterans of this war and subsequent conf licts in which Australia had committed troops have proven to be better educated, more demanding and unafraid of using the organisational and lobbying practices of the twenty-first century to achieve resolution of their legitimate concerns. This research sought to understand why alternative veterans' organisations formed, and whether this was a response to or a cause of the diminishing status of the traditional veterans' organisations. The research used a qualitative research approach, using interviews and focus groups with thirteen ESOs. It showed that the RSL, as the premier, historically iconic representative of the 'returned men', should bear much of the responsibility for this increase in the number of ESOs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Conservative prime minister David Cameron has consistently sought to distinguish his party from its Thatcherite predecessors by his espousal of the 'big society'. The term has generated considerable debate, but all agree that it must necessarily imply a greater role for voluntarism and voluntary organisations. The Coalition government wishes to increase levels of charitable giving and volunteering, to facilitate the expansion of non-profit organisations in the welfare state, and to encourage the transfer of public assets and services to the voluntary sector. This raises questions about the capacities of communities to respond to the challenges posed by the big society. What do these capacities look like, and are they robust enough to cope with the fallout from the largest public expenditure reductions proposed by any Western European government in peacetime? Drawing on substantial research programmes at the Third Sector Research Centre and the Centre for Charitable Giving and Philanthropy, this paper looks at three areas in which the big society starts from uneven foundations: the distribution of voluntary organisations; the numbers, characteristics and distribution of volunteers, as well as trends in volunteering rates over time; and the exposure of voluntary organisations to public funding streams. It predicts that there will be considerable challenges ahead if voluntary organisations are to cope with current social challenges; indeed, there is a strong likelihood that these policies will widen rather than reduce divisions between communities in access to resources. This will raise questions about what can realistically be expected of charitable giving and voluntary action. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is threefold. First, it investigates how far issues concerning the conceptual meanings and terminology of 'the third sector' are settled. Second, it explores challenges to the concepts of the third sector. Finally, it considers whether it matters that there is agreement regarding the definition of the third sector and third sector organisations and the terminology used to describe them. The paper argues that it does matter that there is agreement concerning the objects being studied. However, this does not mean that there must be a single definition for each object. What is important is ongoing scrutiny of the applicability of working definitions, so that concepts and terms remain useful for the tasks of third sector research in a changing world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On 1 July 2006 UnitingCare West commenced operations. It was formed through a merger of services from eight Uniting Church agencies and parish missions in Western Australia. Using material from UnitingCare West archives and from interviews with participants in the merger process, this article provides the background to the merger, compares the merger process with success factors identified in the literature, and evaluates the potential for the merger to inform the sector more broadly. It also identifies an important factor not found in the literature - the development of an Aspirational Statement. This was used as a constant reference point throughout the process and provided criteria against which to measure the success of the merger's expected outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on recent research on regional strategic planning in four Australian states/territories. While some states have taken a participative approach, consulting exhaustively, others have adopted a corporate style, consulting selectively and hence developing a highly politicised planning product. Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia and the Northern Territory have each approached the task differently. Consequently, the extent of participation and civic engagement, particularly through the conduit of third-sector organisations, has varied considerably. Tasmania Together, the Tasmanian twenty-year strategic plan, is the oldest of the four, currently approaching its tenth birthday, and is arguably an example of successful policy transfer. This developed into policy diffusion as the approach spread across other Australian states and territories. As participants in the Tasmania Together process, third-sector organisations have engaged in partnership agreements with government to develop and implement strategies, as well as assisting the Tasmania Together Progress Board to assess progress towards agreed benchmarks. This independent approach, in which the Progress Board is legislatively separated from the government of the day, has come at a cost. Where political will is waning, it falls to the third sector and the community at large to maintain the momentum. The models adopted in the other states differ and are at earlier stages. Nevertheless, it is clear that the role of the third sector in each is vital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the lead-up to the November 2007 general election, the Australian Labor Party, led by Kevin Rudd, announced its intention to repair a relationship between the Commonwealth government and the not-for-profit sector (NFPS), which it alleged had been 'broken' by the Howard government. The key policy expression of this commitment would be a 'compact' that would set the terms of engagement between the federal government, through its departments and agencies, and the NFPS. The Rudd Labor government's pursuit of a compact followed the lead of governments overseas - most notably in the United Kingdom (1998) and Canada (2001) - whose landmark agreements set the benchmarks against which most other compacts are compared. It also followed in the wake of similar initiatives by state and territory governments over the previous decade. On 17 March 2010, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd launched the National Compact. Although an important milestone, the policy journey did not end with this event. This paper explores the implementation challenges confronting government and the NFPS and considers the prospects for an Australian compact in the light of overseas and Australian experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Access to capital is one of the key issues facing the social economy. This paper uses a case study of an original proposal to retrofit community housing with sustainability improvements to explore the capacity of Australia's social investment landscape to finance innovation in the social economy. While the proposal is characterised by a high degree of complexity, we tentatively find that it suggests that despite the push for social economy organisations to be more entrepreneurial and adopt market-oriented funding and financing approaches, a deficiency in the institutional, regulatory and policy environments appears to disadvantage smaller enterprising organisations. Further research is needed to assess whether this is typical of non-profit experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the last ten years, there has been growing interest in social enterprise by governments, the not-for-profit sector and philanthropy in Australia The drivers of this interest have been variously understood to be: increasing demand for innovative responses to social and environmental problems; pressure on not-for-profit organisations to diversify their income sources; and an increasing emphasis by government on the role of civil-society actors in partnering to develop and (more commonly) deliver services in response to social policy priorities. Whatever its genesis, very little is known about the scale and scope of the emerging social-enterprise sector. In order to research the scope of the sector, an important first step is to understand just what social enterprise is and how it may be operationalised. This paper presents the findings from the first stage of a national research project conducted by the authors in conjunction with a new social-enterprise development company. The purpose of the project was to provide a comprehensive snapshot of the social-enterprise sector in Australia. In this paper, we focus on the definitional debates arising from our workshop discussions, what these mean for understanding contemporary discourses of social enterprise, and their implications for research, policy and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the concepts of social inclusion and exclusion have become part of the repertoire of third-way policy discourses that seek to respond to complex socioeconomic problems through processes of 'joined-up' and 'integrated' governance. As part of this approach, we are witnessing an increased focus on the role of the third sector in facilitating social inclusion. While the push towards governing through networks has gained moral legitimacy in some areas of social policy, the practical legitimacy - that is, whether these new approaches actually produce demonstrably better outcomes than more traditional policy approaches - remains largely unsubstantiated. This article contributes to the evidence base, by examining the social-inclusion impacts of eleven community enterprises operating in Victoria, and to the wider available evidence on the social, economic and civic effects of social enterprise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including gender in third sector governance, the role of advocacy in relationships between scholars and third sector organisations, and the impact of broad political shifts on the third sector.

The article offers information on the 12th Biennial Australian and New Zealand Third Sector Research Conference titled "Resilience, Change and the Third Sector," to be held in Christchurch, New Zealand from November 18-20, 2014.

The article presents the author's insights on issues related to the Australian & New Zealand Third Sector Research Inc. (ANZTSR) including the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC), the Volunteering Australia National Conference, and the regulation mechanisms of the nonprofit sector.

A call for abstracts for the special edition of the journal "Third Sector Review" in relation to the role of accounting by third sector organisations is presented.

A call for papers for the Special Conference Edition of the journal "Third Sector Review" by the Australian & New Zealand Third Sector Research Inc. (ANZTSR) is presented.

The article offers information on the Australian & New Zealand Third Sector Research Inc. (ANZTSR) Annual General Meeting to be held on December 9, 2013 through the electronic resource Skype.

The article announces that doctor Craig Furneaux and doctor Angie Bletsas have received the Early Career Researcher Awards from the Australian & New Zealand Third Sector Research Inc. (ANZTSR) and Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC).

The article presents the author's insights regarding the publication of the third Australian & New Zealand Third Sector Research Inc. (ANZTSR) newsletter for 2013.