Accountable Now is an organization that provides consulting services to major left-of-center nonprofits. The organization is based in Germany but has 24 member chapters including those in Europe and the United States. In 2023, Accountability Now became a “venture” of Accountability Lab. ¹

History

Accountable Now was founded in 2008 as the International NGO Charter of Accountability. According to its website, the group had eight founding members: Actionaid, Amnesty International, Civicus, Greenpeace, Oxfam, Save the Children, Survival, Terre de Hommes, Transparency International, and World YWCA. ^{2 3}

In September 2023, Accountable Now became a “venture” of advocacy group Accountability Lab, joining the latter’s network. Accountability Lab also gained a permanent seat on the former’s independent board of trustees. ^{1 2}

Activity

Accountable Now provides online tools, training programs, and support systems that claim to “ensure the organization’s values are lived out in practice with staff, partners, funders, and other key stakeholders.” ^{4 5} As of 2024, Accountable Now hosts “Dynamic Accountability Dialogues” discussions that include members of nonprofit and advocacy groups as guest speakers. ⁶

The group claims to adhere to “12 Commitments” that include “women’s rights and gender equality,” “healthy planet,” “people-driven work,” “open organizations,” and “responsive decision-making.” ⁷

As of November 2024, Accountability Now’s cheatsheet” advocates for left-of-center environmentalist policies and lifestyle choices that include monitoring one’s carbon footprint and setting personal carbon reduction “benchmarks. ^{8 9}

Members and Partners

As of November 2024, Accountable Now has 24 members. These include Accountability Lab, Amnesty International, the Child Fund Alliance, Child Fund Australia, Child Fund International, Child Fund Korea, Child Fund New Zealand, Civicus, Educo, Mio-Ecsde, Plan International, Restless Development, Sightsavers, SOS Children’s Village International, the Taiwan Fund for Children and Families, Techo, Terre des Hommes, Transparency International, Scouts, and World YWCA. ²

As of November 2024, Accountable Now’s partners are listed as the Accountability Lab, the Dynamic Accountability Community of Practice, the Global Standard Partnership for CSO Accountability, Social Value International, Bond, and the International Aid Transparency Initiative. ¹⁰

Leadership

Megan Colnar is the executive director of Accountable Now, holding the role since June 2023. She previously was a board member starting in October 2020 but took the position of executive director following the group becoming a “venture” for Accountability Lab. Colnar is a co-founder of Revolution Impact, a consulting firm that supports nonprofits and “socially-oriented businesses.” From October 2016 to November 2021, Colnar worked in several positions with the Open Society Foundations (OSF), including a role as the director of strategy and impact of the Economic Justice Program and Soros Economic Development Fund. Prior to this, Colnar worked in roles for the Hunger Project, the United Nations, the Jolie-Pitt Foundation, and the Watson Foundation. ¹¹

Bao Han Tran Le is the head of accountability practice at Accountable Now, serving in the role since January 2024. First joining the organization in 2019, Tran Le previously worked as a network coordinator for the Youth United Foundation. ¹²

Finances

According to its 2023 annual report, Accountable Now reported €316,312 ($334,060.64) in revenue and €345,504 ($364,890.64) in expenses, for a deficit of €77,594 ($81,946.64). ¹³

1. “Accountability Lab and Accountable Now Announce Strategic Partnership.” Accountability Lab. Accessed November 13, 2024. https://accountabilitylab.org/accountability-lab-and-accountable-now-announce-strategic-partnership/.
2. “About Us.” Accountable Now. Accessed November 13, 2024. https://accountablenow.org/who-we-are/#aboutus.
3. “Accountable Now.” International Civil Society Centre. Accessed November 13, 2024. https://icscentre.org/our-work/accountable-now-2/.
4. “Membership.” Accountable Now. Accessed November 13, 2024. https://accountablenow.org/what-we-do/membership/.
5. “Dynamic Accountability.” Accountable Now. Accessed November 13, 2024. https://accountablenow.org/who-we-are/dynamic-accountability/.
6. “Dynamic Accountability Dialogues.” Accountable Now. Accessed November 13, 2024. https://accountablenow.org/dynamic-accountability-dialogues/.
7.  ^[1] “12 Commitments.” Accountable Now. Accessed November 13, 2024. https://accountablenow.org/12-commitments/.
8. ^[1] “Spotlight: Climate.” Accountable Now. Accessed November 13, 2024, https://accountablenow.org/what-we-do/spotlight-climate/.
9. “How To Maintain “Healthy Planet” As A Cross-Cutting Value In CSOs’ Work.” Accountable Now. Accessed November 13, 2024. https://accountablenow.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/How-To-Maintain-Healthy-Planet-As-A-Cross-Cutting-Value-In-CSOs-Work-1-1.pdf.
10. “Partnerships.” Accountable Now. Accessed November 13, 2024. https://accountablenow.org/what-we-do/projects-partnerships/.
11. “Megan Colnar.” LinkedIn. Accessed November 13, 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/in/megancolnar/.
12. “Bao Han Tran le.” LinkedIn. Accessed November 13, 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/in/baohantranle/?originalSubdomain=de.
13. “2023 Annual Report.” Accountable Now. Accessed November 13, 2024. https://accountablenow.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Annual-Report-2023.pdf.