Why Do We Call It Nonprofit?

A nonprofit is a business — including nonprofits that make exhibitions. It must make more than it spends or it won’t survive. That leftover money is called profit.

Then why do we call it nonprofit?

There are many kinds of nonprofits in the tax code, but the National Council on Nonprofits says:
The one common condition is not paying out profits (“…no part of the organization’s net earnings can inure to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual…”); hence the term, “nonprofit”.

Nonprofits do make profits. They have to. But they can’t legally pay out profits out to individuals. Instead, they keep it, and use it “to the benefit” of members of the public.

Maybe a better way to think about the word “nonprofit” is “non-profit-paying”. The word nonprofit is commonly misunderstood to mean that nonprofits don’t make profits. The opposite is true.

Last question: how does truly understanding the word “nonprofit” make us better at planning exhibitions?

We'll start there next, and wrap up this series.

Warmly,
Jonathan