Items relevant to more than one category may appear more than once in this summary. From the issue dated October 26, 2006 About the Philanthropy 400 UNITED WAY OF AMERICA once again topped The Chronicle's annual list of the 400 most-successful charities, which collectively raised $62.7-billion last year. TAKING A CUE FROM BUSINESS, fund raisers at many big charities think of money spent to raise money as an investment, not an expense. CAPITAL CAMPAIGNS figured prominently in charities' fund-raising success last year, as more and more organizations set their sights on billion-dollar-plus goals. CROSS INTERNATIONAL ALLIANCE, a five-year-old international aid charity, makes a point of telling donors exactly how their gifts are used, an approach the group considers a key to its fund-raising success. FIRST BOOK, which gives away books to kids who can't afford them, has become a trendsetter in the use of corporate marketing deals to attract donations. HOW DOES AN INSTITUTION that looks "real rich" convince donors it needs help? The Huntington Library, in California, had to solve that dilemma to raise money for some badly needed upgrades. About Gifts and Giving THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE, awarded to the Grameen Bank and its founder, Muhammad Yunus, is likely to fuel the growing popularity of microfinance. SAVING THE WORLD'S OCEANS is on Edith Widder's to-do list. The MacArthur "genius prize" she just received should go some way toward helping her check off that item. STANFORD UNIVERSITY has received gifts totaling $90-million from three alumni; other recent gifts to nonprofit organizations and institutions. THE FACE OF PHILANTHROPY: The National Dance Institute teaches dance techniques to youngsters in New York public schools -- in the hopes that doing so will teach them discipline and other skills. About Fund Raising FUND RAISERS seeking planned gifts should take heed of the forces of change, warned speakers at the annual meeting of the National Committee on Planned Giving. CLEVER FUND-RAISING CAMPAIGNS by six nonprofit groups were among the winners of this year's Echo Awards from the Direct Marketing Association. A "GURU" OF GRASS-ROOTS FUND RAISING, Kim Klein has stepped down as publisher of the journal she helped to found (Exit Interview). UPDATE ON CAMPAIGNS for endowments, capital improvements, and other needs. INTEREST RATES for planned gifts, issued by the Internal Revenue Service. About Grant Makers GIVING TO INTERNATIONAL CAUSES by U.S. grant makers rose to a record high of $3.8-billion last year, according to the Foundation Center. RECENT GRANTS by foundations, corporations, and other grant makers. About Managing Nonprofit Groups THE VOLATILITY OF FUEL PRICES has hit some charities hard, forcing many of them to change the way they operate. "GREEN" IS THE WAY TO BUILD, according to a growing number of housing charities that hope to limit damage to the environment while cutting down on residents' energy costs. THE CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER of the Milwaukee Public Museum faces criminal charges that he improperly used money from the endowment to cover up the museum's mounting financial crisis. FIVE NONPROFIT GROUPS that lent assistance to the lobbyist Jack Abramoff may have broken the law in doing so, according to a report from the Democratic staff of the Senate Finance Committee (Tax Watch). AT THE FIRST NATIONAL MEETING of the fledgling Nonprofit Congress, charity leaders from around the country vowed to beef up their impact on policy making, especially in the states. THE NATIONAL COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION, in a letter from a member of Congress, has been asked to justify the tax-exempt status of big-time college sports programs (Tax Watch). BUILD IT AND THEY WILL SKATE: Tony Hawk, the world's most famous skateboarder, has created a foundation to help communities construct safe, well-designed skate parks (Dispatches). TIPS on gaining access to employee-giving programs, recommendations on how to explain gaps in a résumé, and guidance on building a fund-raising office from scratch (Hotline). REPORTS ON CHARITIES by the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance. About Technology ROCK FOR DARFUR, a Web-based campaign run by MySpace, the social-networking Web site, hopes to raise awareness of the crisis in Sudan as well as money for relief efforts there. NETWORK FOR GOOD, the Internet giving portal, has raised $100-million in online donations to charity. A NEW WEB SITE created by a committee of the Business Roundtable wants to help businesses improve not only their own disaster preparedness, but also their charitable response to a catastrophe. INFORMATION on federal grants and contracts are now available in a searchable online database. Also in This Issue OPINION: Rick Cohen looks at what's in store for charities should Congress change hands; Leslie Lenkowsky questions the yardsticks used to measure Americans' civic engagement; and Samantha King examines the mystique of breast cancer and the charitable response to the disease. BOOKS: A biography of Andrew Carnegie, and essays on his writing on philanthropy, a guide for nonprofit leaders "in the connected age," essays on women's philanthropy, and summaries of other publications on the rules for nonprofit participation in election-related activities, a grant-making program that sought to strengthen orchestras, and a handbook on dealing with problematic trustees. PEOPLE: Appointments and promotions in the nonprofit world. AWARDS: Honors for organizations and people in philanthropy.