Steven Rhines oversees the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation's effort to explore switch grass an an alternative to oil fuel.

John Harrington

Brian Gallagher says United Way fund raising is improving because of changes the organization has made.

Michael Ventura, for The Chronicle

Edwin J. Feulner, of the Heritage Foundation, is praised in a new book for his "charismatic yet egoless leadership."

From the issue dated October 4, 2007 About Gifts and Giving ALTERNATIVES TO OIL AND GAS have proved elusive, but nonprofit groups are becoming more active in their pursuit. AN OKLAHOMA RESEARCH GROUP is working to move the once-oil-rich state toward the production of switch grass, a plant that can be turned into fuel for cars and trucks. HOW MUCH OIL IS LEFT? Using the 50-year-old "peak oil" theory, a nonprofit group in Denver suggests that the worldwide supply is alarmingly low. CHARITIES ARE USING THE COURTROOM to combat America's dependence on oil. BIG MONEY is going into the effort to find energy alternatives, but some nonprofit leaders say public-interest groups need to help with public education and consensus-building. "CLEAN CARS" are one answer to cutting oil consumption, and two charities are working to design such a vehicle. THE CLINTON GLOBAL INITIATIVE, the former president's annual philanthropic forum, opened in New York with announcements of billions of dollars in commitments, mostly from businesses and governments. ACTING AS A BROKER between donors and colleges, a new charity hopes to use philanthropic dollars to prod institutions it believes have become "complacent." COMMUNITY FOUNDATIONS need to exercise more leadership in helping to curb nonprofit abuses, a speaker urged grant makers at the Council on Foundations' conference for community funds. TWO BIG-NAME DONORS, Susan Buffett and David Rockefeller Jr., offered their views on philanthropy and fund raising at a panel discussion in New York. A QUAKER SCHOOL in Pennsylvania has been promised $128.5-million from an alumna. A $60-MILLION BEQUEST to California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo will help support the architecture program; other recent gifts to nonprofit organizations and institutions. THE FACE OF PHILANTHROPY: Community Voice Mail, a Seattle charity, works in 40 cities to help people who can't afford their own phones get a personal voice mailbox. About Fund Raising A NEW APPROACH to the way they do business is starting to pay off for many local United Ways: Sixty percent of them saw increases in donations last year. A PERSON CAN TAKE just so many free address labels and key chains in the mailbox before he decides to do something about them. Ask Bernard Olson. UPDATE ON CAMPAIGNS for endowments, capital improvements, and other needs. INTEREST RATES for planned gifts, issued by the Internal Revenue Service. About Managing Nonprofit Groups THE BEST CHARITIES reach out to business, government, and other organizations to achieve success, according to a new book. EXECUTIVE SALARIES at wealthy nonprofit organizations are rising at a faster rate than those at charities with smaller budgets, according to a GuideStar book. MANY CHARITIES fail to direct sufficient resources to areas with large concentrations of minority and poor people, nonprofit officials and others told a House subcommittee last week. AN EPISCOPAL CHURCH in California wants the Internal Revenue Service to apologize for an investigation it conducted into allegedly improper political activity by the congregation. NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS contribute far more to the gross domestic product in many countries than has previously been recorded, a new study found. EXECUTIVE COACHING, popular in the corporate world, is fast becoming a way for harried nonprofit managers to get themselves and their organizations back on track. TURNAROUND EXPERTS can help organizations in financial distress, but the changes they recommend are sometimes hard for charities to stomach. TO BUILD A BRAND successfully, nonprofit leaders have to let go of some popular misconceptions, say Robert Wilburn and Peter Rogovin. THE AMERICAN RED CROSS has asked a federal court to dismiss a lawsuit filed against it by Johnson & Johnson over use of the red cross trademark. About Grant Makers THE BILL & MELINDA GATES FOUNDATION, criticized for the insularity of its three-member board, is in the process of naming three panels of experts to help guide its grant making. MANY OF THE MACARTHUR FELLOWS named this month are working to harness science and technology for the good of humanity: a list of the 24 recipients. MORE THAN $590-MILLION in grants by foundations, corporations, and other grant makers. About Technology FIVE NONPROFIT GROUPS have been honored for their outstanding use of the Internet for fund raising and advocacy. FEW SMALL GRASS-ROOTS GROUPS in California take advantage of free or low-cost technology aid available to them, a new study has found. GOVERNMENT WATCHDOG GROUPS have joined forces in an online project that asks citizens to help investigate Congressional earmarks. TWO ORGANIZATIONS THAT focus on helping nonprofit groups deal with technology are undergoing leadership changes. Also in This Issue OPINION: Leslie R. Crutchfield and Heather McLeod Grant suggest a better way than rankings to define charity success. LETTERS: on proposing ways to fix the shortage of fund raisers, and questioning the public's place in grant making. BOOKS: An examination of the giving and other habits of the Forbes 400, a look at what makes high-performing groups excel, a guide on evaluation for small groups, plus summaries of other publications on how foundations can make effective operating-support grants and the law of tax-exempt groups. PEOPLE: Appointments and promotions in the nonprofit world.