Abstract As the articles in this special issue demonstrate, the emergence of government-voluntary sector compacts around the world is intimately linked to comprehensive transformations the welfare state is undergoing in many countries. The fact that the first compact was developed in England is...

Abstract Nonprofit human service agencies are an essential part of the social safety net and their role in many policy fields such as community care, workforce development, and disability services is growing. The funding, delivery and entire configuration of human services systems is in...

Abstract Conflicting cultural and religious values pose challenges – challenges that are too often ignored – to efforts to comprehend and to solve tough social problems. Value-conflict challenges call for much more thoughtful attention both by analysts seeking to understand the sources of...