| What the heck is going on in the world, how will it affect my organization, and what do I do about it? | You can't control what happens in the world, but you can choose your response to dramatic change. Your four options are: try to prevent impacts in advance, mitigate the harm, adapt, or embrace the change. |
The first time I recognized a “threat” to the nonprofit where I worked, I was sitting in a pub in Toronto’s financial district. I’d gone for drinks with some donors to talk about environmental projects we might work on in the future.
As our pints of beer sweated onto coasters on top of the wooden table, my companions kept fidgeting and glancing down at the Blackberries in their laps. The conversation never faltered and the smiles stayed fixed on their lips, but after one drink they each stood and slipped away.
When I got home, I saw the news: the American financial system was in collapse. The stock market had just dropped more than any other day in history, and the whole world was about to feel the effects.
Within three months, the Toronto Stock Exchange would lose 35% of its value, wiping out $700-billion in personal and corporate wealth in Canada. Within one year, more than 400,000 people in Canada would lose their jobs. Demand for community services soared, while foundation grants and individual donations plummeted. It would take six years for charitable giving to rebound.
Whatever we thought we might be doing Monday was out of the question by Friday. Things can change that fast.
Every few years, a new force shakes up organizational life. Sometimes it’s helpful, like the internet’s arrival; other times, it’s devastating, like the COVID-19 pandemic.
The one thing these external forces have in common is that they usher in change. They are currents that will push against you, steer you in new directions, or propel you forward at breakneck speed. They come for you whether you welcome them or not, so they can’t be ignored or rescheduled.
All you can do is recognize them when they arise, and react.
The sheer number of changes coming at you right now is dizzying. With so many different winds of change blowing, it can be hard to figure out how to react.
Whether you are creating a new strategic plan for your organization or just updating your priorities for the week, you need to think about the forces swirling around you right now. But you also have to keep the lights on and get your “normal” work done and be a human yourself.
If you’re updating your SWOT Analysis right now or strategic plan (or just trying to navigate the storm), here’s a summary of some Opportunities and Threats you should be including (mostly Threats, if we’re being honest).
These are three monumental forces shaping what and how every organization in Canada will operate in 2025:
As of this writing (February 2025), the Trump administration initiatives most likely to affect Canadian nonprofits are sweeping program cuts and tariffs.
If you work with American partners or in areas of global interest (such as environment or security), you probably know that these organizations, U.S. commitments, and global targets are all in jeopardy. Between 200,000 and 300,000 jobs are being eliminated (so far). Trillions of dollars in government program funding was ordered frozen (though currently under court review). Entire aid, conservation, and research programs have been shut down.
For all organizations operating in Canada, tariffs on Canadian products could lead to job losses, lower incomes, and more inflation. If that happens, nonprofits have to deal with three problems: demand for their services tends to increase; the costs of delivering those services also increases; and revenue to pay for the work drops. It’s a perfect storm that tends to hit small and over-extended organizations hardest.
Escalating and increasingly hateful rhetoric around DEI — Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion — as well as Trump’s threat to invade Canada are two other issues that organizations should watch. Organizations that have a mandate linked to equity and inclusion and those who serve women and LGBTQIA2+ communities are already seeing impacts on public discourse, safety, and policy proposals. Expect to see impact on science, health, research, statistics, and international relationships as well.
Speaking of misinformation, the widespread dissemination of false and inflammatory information has been called the greatest threat to democracy of our time. Even without an election, it would be a concern.
We talked about it in the last issue of The Organizer, so for today we’ll just reiterate that misinformation is having a large, negative influence on nonprofit work. You are competing against noise and mistruth whenever you try to raise awareness, generate revenue, or create social impact. That makes your work much harder, but even more important. Your communications plans need to reflect the reality of public discourse in 2025.
The first two issues are all taking place in the midst of ever-growing affordability problems. Nearly half of Canadians say that rising prices are affecting their ability to meet day-to-day expenses.
When people struggle to pay for basic living expenses (like food and housing), nonprofit organizations have to do more to help. In 2023, 17% of Canadians said they had relied on a nonprofit to help them cope, nearly double the number from the previous year.
Despite growing demand for their services, nonprofits themselves struggle to recruit and retain staff and volunteers; rising costs of living affect you and your team, too. With rising prices, rising costs, rising demand for services, and fewer resources to get the work done, your work can be harder, more expensive, and more stressful.
Oof. Just looking at that list is stressful. It can feel overwhelming trying to predict how all of these forces might affect your life and your organization.
That’s why you need to keep planning. Making a plan makes the scary things less scary.
In this case, you only need two steps to plan your response:
With any threat or opportunity or swirling external force, there are really only three things that might happen: this force can affect the need for your work, your capacity to do the work, or perceptions of your work.
Focus on these tangible impacts, and let them guide your plan:
Once you know how threats and opportunities might affect you, it’s time to choose your response.
You have very little control over what happens in the big wide world, but you do get to choose your response. For every shift in the prevailing winds, you have four options:
Whatever response you choose, make a short list of the key steps you need to take. Be as specific as possible. Add them to your strategic plan, your workplan, or your to-do list for the week. Write them on your hand if that’s what works for you.
Yes, it will take a little extra time to update your strategy. Yes, you should probably talk to managers and advisors. But this is worth the extra hour(s). What you choose to do in moments like this resonates for years. That’s the only thing you know for certain.
In the original email edition of this article, published in February 2025, the Canadian federal election was also listed as a factor. With the election over, this section has been removed for better readability.
The Organizer is a newsletter for people working to create equitable and sustainable communities. Whether you are part of a nonprofit, a charity, or a social enterprise, this newsletter is for you.
Each edition, we explore one aspect of social impact work. We answer a common “How do I …?” question, and we tell you about a tool that will help make your work a little easier. Subscribe for free at Entremission.com.