Working Towards the Common Good 2015: Findings from the New Mexico Nonprofit Survey

In the fall of 2015, the Building Movement Project (BMP) and partner organizations in New Mexico surveyed the state’s nonprofit organizations. This report analyzes the responses of 267 nonprofit organizations that participated in the survey effort. As with the 2014 survey, the results from 2015 reconfirmed that organizations in New Mexico engage in a wide range of activities to support the well-being of New Mexicans. Organizations that completed the survey reported doing everything from providing critical social services for children and families, to using art to teach about the environment. The survey results provide a snapshot of the work that nonprofits do to support New Mexico’s communities, the key issues that organizations are working on, the opportunities and challenges they face, and how they work together to advocate for the common good.

This report consists of seven main sections: 

Meeting the Needs in New Mexico provides an overview of the diverse nonprofits that took part in the survey and the communities they serve.

Making Ends Meet shares key insights about budgetary and funding challenges.

Working in Coalitions explores the reasons that nonprofits join-and how they engage in-coalitions.

Networks and Partnerships uses social network analysis methodologies to provide an in-depth look at the connections and relationships between nonprofits.

Pushing for Broader Change examines how nonprofits engage in advocacy.

Creating a Unifying Narrative discusses the responses to new questions about “the common good” as an overarching frame.

Growing a Stronger Nonprofit Community offers recommendations for how to help New Mexico’s nonprofits continue to increase their impact.