Understanding the local community served by the social enterprise and local competing organizations is essential to strategic planning. The databases listed below can be used for local research and nonprofit research.
Depending on the focus of the organization you are consulting for and the scope of your engagement, many other library subscription databases not listed here will be helpful. For example if your team is consulting for an organization that provides psychological services, the PsycInfo database will be helpful. Similarly if your consulting project involves services to formerly incarcerated people, searching the databases focused on criminal justice or counseling may be beneficial. Use the Databases A-Z "More Options" to find relevant databases or ask a librarian for tips on which databases to use and how to search them.
Community Profiles

Access courtesy of the Department of Geography & the Environment.


Nonprofits & Grants Databases



Partially funded by Villanova School of Business.
social enterprise associations
Listed here are associations directly related to supporting social enterprise. Professional associations focused on specific industries or services can be found by scanning industry reports.


Schwab Foundation
local news




Local business directories




best Practice Books
The library has many ebooks on best practices related to nonprofit and social enterprise managment, strategic planning, volunteer recruitment, governance, fundraising and many other topics.
