Nonprofit Environmental Organization Research Project

Student checklist

______ 1. Choose a nonprofit environmental organization. Group chosen____________________________________________

______ 2. Research the group.

______ 3. Write a three to four page paper answering the required questions in detail.

______ 4. Create a visual aid for your presentation.

______ 5. Prepare your presentation.

Presentation Due Date: ______________

1. Choose a nonprofit environmental organization.

• Your group should take the first day of research time and choose an environmental group to research. If your group does not like any of the groups on the list brainstormed by the class, check out the following Internet site: www.webdirectory.com/. This site is a general search engine for environmental groups.
• Once your group has chosen an organization, meet with your teacher to check if anyone else has already chosen that group and make sure that no one else can select your organization. Have a back-up ready.
• If you cannot agree upon a group, see the teacher.

2. Research the group.

• Your most efficient resource for the majority of the environmental organizations is the Internet.
• If your organization is older (circa 1960's) you may also find information in the SIRS catalogs as well as other books about the environment that can be found in the library. You may also find your organization mentioned in the encyclopedia.

3. Write a three to four page paper answering the required questions in detail. In a well organized and neatly written three to four page paper, describe your environmental organization. You must answer the following questions in order to receive full credit for your paper. (Hint: Use the questions as sections in your paper.)

• What is the mission and/or goal of the organization?
• Do the goals of this organization meet a need in society today? Why or why not?
• What is the history of the organization: when was it founded? Where? By whom? Why was it started?
• What are some of the accomplishments of the organization over the years? What are its future goals?
• What kind of membership does it have: How many members? What type of people support the group and why? · What is the budget of the organization? (This can be found on the Web sites of many organizations or go to the following Web sites: www.guidestar.org , www.nccs.urban.org , www.gvsu.edu/philanthropy/ .)
• What amount of their budget is brought in by donations?
• What percentage of their money goes directly to the goals of organization (after administrative costs)?
• Based on the information your group found, would your group members support this organization if you had the economic means or time to volunteer? Why or why not?

4. Create a visual aid for presentation.

Create a visual aid to use with your presentation that will show the goals of your organization while also displaying many of the aspects discussed in your paper.

5. Prepare your presentation.

Prepare your presentation so that you can present the information in no less than 10 minutes and no more than 15 minutes. Your entire group should be active participants in the presentation. Your presentation should be engaging and students listening should be able to easily take notes on the information presented.

At any time while preparing for this paper and presentation, if something is unclear, make sure you speak to your teacher for clarification or help in finding the information.