The Future of Monarch Watch

[Jim]

The Future of Monarch Watch
written by Chip Taylor, Director

The year 2009 marks the eighteenth year of Monarch Watch. We started the program in the fall of 1992 and, given the economic conditions, I’m wondering if we will still be around next year at this time. Keeping Monarch Watch going from year to year has always been a concern yet somehow we have managed. In fact, we are one of the longest surviving educational outreach programs in existence. Most such programs have initial funding from grants, corporate benefactors, and contributions but only keep going for a year or two after the initial funding runs out. I don’t know the half-life of outreach programs that are similar to Monarch Watch, but I’d guess that it’s roughly 5-6 years. If this is the case, we have done relatively well. But, can we keep it going?

At a recent meeting, the discussion turned to the funding of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the statement was made that most NGOs are anticipating declines in revenues of 20-40% in the next year. I’ve heard similar concerns on NPR and on local radio stations as well. Monarch Watch might be able to survive a 20% drop in revenue but not 40% or even 30%. So, what is the prospect for the future? We've been looking at the books and it doesn't look good. Last year our expenses exceeded our income by $18,000 - clearly, we need to increase our income and it's really an open question as to whether we can do so...


Please take a moment to read Chip's complete blog article about what we do here at Monarch Watch, why we need to survive, what you can do to help, and some of our plans for 2009:

The Future of Monarch Watch

Thank you for your continued support!

Jim