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Background
The
Hauser
Center
for Nonprofit Organizations is a university-wide research center at
Harvard
University
. Established in 1997 with
a generous grant from Rita and Gustave Hauser, the Center pursues
dispassionate research and education, promoting critical thinking
about the importance, roles and performance of nonprofit
organizations.
The
nonprofit sector has grown in importance both economically and
socially in the
United States
and internationally, and has become progressively interconnected with
the public and private sectors. Along
with this increase in size and standing has come increased
responsibility for, and impact on, helping to solving social problems
and provide public value. The
political economy has also become increasingly networked, with the
dependency and relationships between government, the market and the
nonprofit sector increasing as the lines between them blur.
For these reasons, it is critical to study and understand the
functions, challenges, role, and legitimacy--among other issues--of
nonprofits and civil society.
While
our name speaks specifically of nonprofits, our research has expanded
over the years to include other organizations of civil society as
well. The
Hauser
Center
for Nonprofit Organizations is a place where:
scholars,
researchers and students are nurtured
multi-constituency
learning events are hosted, emphasizing mutual learning and knowledge
building between academics and practitioners
public
policies are critically analyzed
cases,
courses and other teaching materials are produced
transdisciplinary
research is conducted
theories
are developed that impact policy and practice
The
Hauser
Center
is comprised of a community of Harvard researchers, faculty, staff,
students, and practitioners linked to similar individuals in the
US
and around the world. Our
work is disseminated through publications, conferences, seminars,
lectures, courses and scholarly testimony before public bodies at the
international, national and local levels.
In order to produce the highest quality research, we consider
it vital that our community represent a broad range of disciplines,
intellectual approaches, and interests.
This approach best reflects the breadth of the field, and
allows us to draw from and build upon a fuller range of experiences,
perspectives and frameworks.
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