Creating a Legacy: Building a Planned Giving Program From the Ground Up

This book explores if, when, and how to use planned giving as part of a fundraising strategy. Includes tips and practical examples, as well as the dos and don'ts associated with building a well-integrated planned giving program

Cultivating Lifelong Donors: Stewardship and the Fundraising Pyramid

This handbook helps nonprofits build long-term giving programs that span the entire supporter lifecycle, from engagement through the end of life. It highlights strategies for engaging new supporters online, investigates the characteristics of loyal donors, examines the importance of developing personal relationships with transitional giving prospects, and discusses donor cultivation

High elevation watersheds in the southern Appalachians: Indicators of sensitivity to acidic deposition and the potential for restoration through liming

Southern Appalachian high elevation watersheds have deep rocky soils with high organic matter content, different vegetation communities, and receive greater inputs of acidic deposition compared to low elevation sites within the region. Since the implementation of the Clean Air Act Amendment in the 1990s, concentrations of acidic anions in rainfall have declined. However, some high elevation streams continue to show signs of chronic to episodic acidity, where acid neutralizing capacity (ANC) ranges from 0 to 20 µeq L-1. We studied three 3rd order watersheds (North River in Cherokee National Forest, Santeetlah Creek in Nantahala National Forest, and North Fork of the French Broad in Pisgah National Forest) and selected four to six 1st order catchments within each watershed to represent a gradient in elevation (849–1526 m) and a range in acidic stream ANC values (11–50 leq L-1). Our objectives were to (1) identify biotic, physical and chemical catchment parameters that could be used as indices of stream ANC, pH and Ca:Al molar ratios and (2) estimate the lime required to restore catchments from the effects of excess acidity and increase base cation availability. We quantified each catchment’s biotic, physical, and chemical characteristics and collected stream, O-horizon, and mineral soil samples for chemical analysis seasonally for one year. Using repeated measures analysis, we examined variability in stream chemistry and catchment characteristics; we used a nested split-plot design to identify catchment characteristics that were correlated with stream chemistry. Watersheds differed significantly and the catchments sampled provided a wide range of stream chemical, biotic, physical and chemical characteristics. Variability in stream ANC, pH, and Ca:Al molar ratio were significantly correlated with catchment vegetation characteristics (basal area, tree height, and tree diameter) as well as O-horizon nitrogen and aluminum concentrations. Total soil carbon and calcium (an indicator of parent material), were significant covariates for stream ANC, pH and Ca:Al molar ratios. Lime requirement estimates did not differ among watersheds but this data will help select catchments for future restoration and lime application studies. Not surprisingly, this work found many vegetation and chemical characteristics that were useful indicators of stream acidity. However, some expected relationships such as concentrations of mineral soil extractable Ca and SO4 were not significant. This suggests that an extensive test of these indicators across the southern Appalachians will be required to identify high elevation forested catchments that would benefit from restoration activities

Effects of riparian zone buffer widths on vegetation diversity in southern Appalachian headwater catchments

In mountainous areas such as the southern Appalachians USA, riparian zones are difficult to define. Vegetation is a commonly used riparian indicator and plays a key role in protecting water resources, but adequate knowledge of floristic responses to riparian disturbances is lacking. Our objective was to quantify changes in stand-level floristic diversity of riparian plant communities before (2004) and two, three, and seven years after shelterwood harvest using highlead cable-yarding and with differing no cut buffer widths of 0 m, 10 m, and 30 m distance from the stream edge. An unharvested reference stand was also studied for comparison. We examined: (1) differences among treatment sites using a mixed linear model with repeated measures; (2) multivariate relationships between ground-layer species composition and environmental variables (soil water content, light transmittance, tree basal area, shrub density, and distance from stream) using nonmetric multidimensional scaling; and (3) changes in species composition over time using a multi-response permutation procedure. We hypothesized that vegetation responses (i.e., changes in density, species composition, and diversity across the hillslope) will be greatest on harvest sites with an intermediate buffer width (10-m buffer) compared to more extreme (0-m buffer) and less extreme (30-m buffer and no-harvest reference) disturbance intensities. Harvesting initially reduced overstory density and basal area by 83% and 65%, respectively, in the 0-m buffer site; reduced by 50% and 74% in the 10-m buffer site; and reduced by 45% and 29% in the 30-m buffer site. Both the 0-m and 10-m buffer sites showed increased incident light variability across the hillslope after harvesting; whereas, there was no change in the 30-m and reference sites over time. We found significant changes in midstory and ground-layer vegetation in response to harvesting with the greatest responses on the 10-m buffer site, supporting our hypotheses that responses will be greatest on sites with intermediate disturbance. Ground-layer species composition differed significantly over time in the 0-m buffer and 10-m buffer sites (both P \u3c 0.0001), but did not change in the 30-m buffer and reference sites (both P \u3e 0.100). Average compositional dissimilarity increased after seven years, indicating greater within stand heterogeneity (species diversity) after harvesting. These vegetation recovery patterns provide useful information for evaluating management options in riparian zones in the southern Appalachians

Competition, and Drought in the Southern Appalachians

ABSTRACT. Conversion of low-quality, natural mixed pine/hardwood ecosystems, containing a mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia L.) dominated understory, to more productive eastern white pine (Pinus strobus L.)/ mixed-hardwood systems is a common prescription on relatively xeric southern An important component of southern Appalachian forest ecosystems is the mixed oak-pine forest type on xeric midslopes and ridges. In recent years, the pine component of this forest type has been substantially reduced by drought and associated southern pine beetle (Dendroctonus frontalis Zimmerman) infestations (Smith 1991). As a result, extensive areas are poorly stocked and have dense understories dominated by the evergreen mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia L.) Manuscript received December 4, 1994, accepted January 22, 1996 1976, Van Lear and Waldrop 1988); therefore, silvicultural prescriptions are necessary to regain productivity. Chainsaw felling, burning, and planting of eastern white pine (Pinus strobus L.) are currently prescribed to convert these shrub-dominated ecosystems to more productive stands of mixed-hardwood and white pine. A necessary objective is to reduce the competitive influence of mountain laurel sufficiently to allow the planted white pine to become established. The prescribed fire rarely eliminates the mountain laurel, so competition with the planted pines may intensify over time. A mechanical or other form of release is often prescribed during early stand development to reduce competition from mountain laurel and other vegetation. It is not known whether such release is necessary or effective. Pine growth during early stand development has been documented for the first year following outplanting, where diameter growth and seedling physiology were related to biomass of all competitors (Elliott and Vose 1993), but information on competitive effects later in stand development is lacking. In addition to competition, severe drought can have longterm adverse effects on tree growth. Some species never fully SJAF 21(1) 1997 1

Metabolomic Profiling in the Characterization of Degenerative Bone and Joint Diseases

Osteoarthritis and inflammatory arthropathies are a cause of significant morbidity globally. New research elucidating the metabolic derangements associated with a variety of bone and joint disorders implicates various local and systemic metabolites, which further elucidate the underlying molecular mechanisms associated with these destructive disease processes. In osteoarthritis, atty acid metabolism has been implicated in disease development, both locally and systemically. Several series of rheumatoid arthritis patients have demonstrated overlapping trends related to histidine and glyceric acid, while other series showed similar results of increased cholesterol and glutamic acid. Studies comparing osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis reported elevated gluconic acid and glycolytic- and tricarboxylic acid-related substrates in patients with osteoarthritis, while lysosphingolipids and cardiolipins were elevated only in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Other bone and joint disorders, including osteonecrosis, intervertebral disc degeneration, and osteoporosis, also showed significant alterations in metabolic processes. The identification of the molecular mechanisms of osteoarthritis and inflammatory arthropathies via metabolomics-based workflows may allow for the development of new therapeutic targets to improve the quality of life in these patient populations