Nonprofit AI Check-in: Reclaiming Human Rights and Protecting Local Communities

In this midweek check-in, Carolyn Woodard steps back from the technical "how-to" of AI to look at the "why" behind the ethical concerns many nonprofit leaders are feeling. This episode focuses on two significant areas where AI intersects with our core mission of serving others: the protection of basic human rights and the physical impact of the infrastructure that makes AI possible.

First, we explore insights from human rights lawyer Malika Saada Saar on how we can reclaim AI to serve dignity and democracy rather than ceding it to companies that make a profit by exploiting sensitive and marginalized groups.

Second, we look at the reality of the data centers powering these tools—specifically the environmental and economic pressures they place on local residents. Carolyn shares resources on creating Community Benefit Agreements (CBAs) with data centers as a path forward for local communities.

Whether it's protecting a survivor’s right to privacy or ensuring a local community has a say in how a data center is built, these are the human issues that will define how we use technology in the years to come.

Featured Resources

• Webinar: Slow Violence, Fast Tech | Watch on YouTube In this 30-minute session from All Tech Is Human, human rights lawyer Malika Saada Saar discusses the "slow violence" of AI and how nonprofits can advocate for technology designed with consent and safety in mind, particularly for women, children, and marginalized communities.
• Report: Why Community Benefit Agreements are Necessary for Data Centers | Read at Brookings As data centers expand rapidly across the U.S., this Brookings Institution paper explains how "Community Benefit Agreements" (CBAs) can help local leaders and residents negotiate for transparency, environmental protections, and shared economic benefits.
• Community IT Resource: AI Ethics and Policy Webinar | View the Framework If you are ready to start moving from learning to doing, this webinar provides a practical framework for nonprofits to begin drafting their own AI use policies and start conversations around ethics.

Next Step for Your Organization

Does your nonprofit have an AI ethics policy yet? If not, now is the perfect time to start the conversation with your leadership and board. You don't need to be a technical expert to advocate for your organization's values. We encourage you to use these resources to continue your education and ensure that your use of AI remains mission-aligned.

_______________________________
Start a conversation :)

• Register to attend a webinar in real time, and find all past transcripts at https://communityit.com/webinars/
• email Carolyn at cwoodard@communityit.com
• on LinkedIn

Thanks for listening.

In this special anniversary episode, we celebrate a major milestone: 25 years of Community IT. Founded on February 1, 2001, by David Deal as a mission-focused spin-out from Reliacom, Community IT has spent a quarter-century navigating the ever-changing tides of technology for nonprofits exclusively. CEO Johan Hammerstrom, who was one of the early employees to move from Reliacom to the new company, joins us to reflect on our journey from the early days of wiring offices for the internet to our modern role as a national provider of remote IT services and cybersecurity.

We discuss how our bedrock foundation of servant-leadership has allowed us to remain a stable, trusted partner for the nonprofit community through dot-com busts, financial crises, and global shifts in how we work.

Beyond the history of servers and software, this conversation focuses on the vibrant people who make our mission possible. Johan shares why it is useless to predict exactly where IT will be in five years, and why Community IT instead invests in the creative, dedicated staff who can guide nonprofits through whatever the future holds.

Whether you have been a partner since our founding or are just joining our community, tune in to hear how our commitment to technology expertise ensures that nonprofits can stay focused on their missions, no matter how the digital landscape evolves.

_______________________________
Start a conversation :)

• Register to attend a webinar in real time, and find all past transcripts at https://communityit.com/webinars/
• email Carolyn at cwoodard@communityit.com
• on LinkedIn

Thanks for listening.

To follow on from our recent discussions regarding the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence in the nonprofit sector, this episode explores the critical technical and privacy distinctions between public and enterprise AI tools.

The CISA Incident and the AI Privacy Gap

Last week, news outlets including Politico reported that the interim director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Madhu Gottumukkala, mistakenly uploaded sensitive government contracting documents into a public version of ChatGPT. This triggered automated security warnings designed to prevent the unintentional disclosure of government material.

This incident highlights that anyone can mistakenly upload sensitive data to a public tool. Even the head of CISA.

Key Differences Between Public and Enterprise AI:

• Data Privacy: Enterprise versions (like Microsoft Copilot for 365 or Gemini for Workspace) keep your prompts and data within your organizational "cloud boundary." Your information is not used to train the underlying public models.
• AI Search and Permissions: With Enterprise AI, the tool can surface any document a user has permission to see. This makes cleaning up your SharePoint or Google Drive permissions essential to avoid sensitive files being inadvertently surfaced via AI search. Pay attention to files that have been shared with "anyone with this link" because Copilot and Gemini will view that as granting permission to anyone searching. Finally, spend time on staff training on how to save and share files so that permissions will need less clean up going forward.
• Commercial Protections: Enterprise licenses include copyright indemnity that are absent in public versions.
• Security: Enterprise licenses give IT management and administrative controls which are essential to securing your nonprofit's valuable data.

Resources:

Trump’s acting cyber chief uploaded sensitive files into a public version of ChatGPT from Politico by John Sakellariadis, published Jan 27, 2026. https://www.politico.com/news/2026/01/27/cisa-madhu-gottumukkala-chatgpt-00749361

"The interim head of the country’s cyber defense agency uploaded sensitive contracting documents into a public version of ChatGPT last summer, ... The material included CISA contracting documents marked 'for official use only,' a government designation for information that is considered sensitive and not for public release."

Microsoft Copilot vs. ChatGPT: Data Protection Explained from Community IT.

"If you are using Copilot with a 365 subscription, your prompts and data are not used to train the underlying large language model. It keeps your data within your enterprise cloud boundary... This protection only applies when you are signed in to an eligible work or school account."

Upcoming Webinar: Verifying Your AI Security

Join Community IT CTO Matt Eshleman on February 25th to learn how to distinguish between public and enterprise accounts. Register here: How to Use AI Tools Safely at Nonprofits

_______________________________
Start a conversation :)

• Register to attend a webinar in real time, and find all past transcripts at https://communityit.com/webinars/
• email Carolyn at cwoodard@communityit.com
• on LinkedIn

Thanks for listening.

Panel Discussion with Matt Eshleman, Steve Longenecker, Jennifer Huftalen, and Carolyn Woodard

Our experts answered your questions about where nonprofit tech is going next.

In part 1, Community IT senior staff discuss nonprofits and AI, and updated cybersecurity trends to be aware of. In part 2, they discuss updates to Microsoft and Google Workspace, and take audience Q&A.

AI, Cybersecurity, Google Workspace v Microsoft Office, Gemini v Copilot or ChatGPT or another generative AI tool, AI agents, AI FOMO, data data data, safety and security of your staff, budgeting for and maintaining basic IT, not to mention fancy IT … anything else you want to know about?

We don’t have a crystal ball but we do know our way around nonprofit IT.
We’ll look back at the trends of 2025 and what we got right last January, and we’ll look ahead to make predictions for 2026.

The nonprofit tech roundtable is always one of our most popular webinars every year. As with all our webinars, this presentation is appropriate for an audience of varied IT experience. Community IT is proudly vendor-agnostic, and our webinars cover a range of topics and discussions. Webinars are never a sales pitch, always a way to share our knowledge with our community.

_______________________________
Start a conversation :)

• Register to attend a webinar in real time, and find all past transcripts at https://communityit.com/webinars/
• email Carolyn at cwoodard@communityit.com
• on LinkedIn

Thanks for listening.

To follow on from last week's episode of the ethical issues around AI use and companies generally that nonprofits and the philanthropy sector need to discuss and evaluate through the lens of organization values and mission, here are some resources for moving forward with that discussion of ethics as you put your policy in place and refine it.

• How Nonprofits Can Resist the AI Efficiency Trap from Nonprofit Quarterly by James A Lomastro, published Oct 28, 2025. https://nonprofitquarterly.org/how-nonprofits-can-resist-the-ai-efficiency-trap/

"Today, when nonprofits implement AI without protecting workers’ judgment and autonomy, they facilitate a similar transfer of power. The tacit understanding of experienced staff—knowing which families need outreach, when silence signals distrust, and which community leaders bridge cultural gaps—is extracted into databases and algorithms....The “AI efficiency trap” plays out in familiar ways: Time savings often lead not to relief, but to higher expectations. Workers may feel more productive yet overwhelmed, as efficiency gains are absorbed into rising demands instead of reducing workloads. In nonprofits, if AI is used solely to expedite routine tasks, it can exacerbate burnout and diminish time for relationship building or advocacy—the work that drives lasting change...

Steps leaders can take are:

Invest in bias-aware AI governance

Position experienced staff as strategy guides

Develop new productivity measurements."

Other resources referenced in this episode:

• Ethics, AI Tools, and Policies Webinar from Community IT: https://communityit.com/webinar-nonprofit-ai-framework/
• AI With Purpose: How Foundations and Nonprofits Are Thinking About and Using Artificial Intelligence from the Center for Effective Philanthropy (with lots of other resources on their site for the sector) https://cep.org/report-backpacks/ai-with-purpose-how-foundations-and-nonprofits-are-thinking-about-and-using-artificial-intelligence/
• Humanity AI consortium project from 10 Foundations https://humanityai.ai/ Humanity AI is uniting philanthropy in a broad coalition to build a more human(e) future in which AI is shaped by and for people.
• Tech to the Rescue matchmaking ideal AI projects from the social impact sector with ecosystem partners for funding and expertise. https://techtotherescue.org/
• Board.dev matchmaking tech-savvy individuals looking to serve on nonprofit boards with the nonprofits that need their expertise. https://board.dev/
• Responsible AI Adoption for Nonprofits: a Holistic Support Model webinar Jan 28, 2026 with Tech to the Rescue and Board.dev. Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_DSDEIrLFQxSApI8zQIUhyA#/registration

_______________________________
Start a conversation :)

• Register to attend a webinar in real time, and find all past transcripts at https://communityit.com/webinars/
• email Carolyn at cwoodard@communityit.com
• on LinkedIn

Thanks for listening.

Panel Discussion with Matt Eshleman, Steve Longenecker, Jennifer Huftalen, and Carolyn Woodard

Our experts answered your questions about where nonprofit tech is going next.

In part 1, Community IT senior staff discuss nonprofits and AI, and updated cybersecurity trends to be aware of. In part 2, they discuss updates to Microsoft and Google Workspace, and take audience Q&A.

AI, Cybersecurity, Google Workspace v Microsoft Office, Gemini v Copilot or ChatGPT or another generative AI tool, AI agents, AI FOMO, data data data, safety and security of your staff, budgeting for and maintaining basic IT, not to mention fancy IT … anything else you want to know about?

We don’t have a crystal ball but we do know our way around nonprofit IT.
We’ll look back at the trends of 2025 and what we got right last January, and we’ll look ahead to make predictions for 2026.

The nonprofit tech roundtable is always one of our most popular webinars every year. As with all our webinars, this presentation is appropriate for an audience of varied IT experience. Community IT is proudly vendor-agnostic, and our webinars cover a range of topics and discussions. Webinars are never a sales pitch, always a way to share our knowledge with our community.

_______________________________
Start a conversation :)

• Register to attend a webinar in real time, and find all past transcripts at https://communityit.com/webinars/
• email Carolyn at cwoodard@communityit.com
• on LinkedIn

Thanks for listening.

As AI tools become more integrated into our nonprofits' daily workflows, it can feel as though the technology is moving faster than our ability to evaluate it. However, for mission-driven organizations, technology adoption isn't just a matter of efficiency—it’s a reflection of our values.

This episode steps back from the technical aspects of AI tools for nonprofits and explores the significant ethical questions that every nonprofit leader and board member should consider when shaping their AI policies.

Carolyn explores the complex human issues that often get lost in the marketing noise, from the environmental and community costs of massive data centers to the inherent biases found in Large Language Models. She also discusses the potential risks to mental health and the concerns surrounding the concentration of power within a few global tech giants.

Our goal isn’t to steer you toward a specific choice, but to provide a framework for understanding how these tools may intersect—or conflict—with your commitment to equity, sustainability, and community trust.

This conversation is designed to be a starting point for your internal discussions. We cover four major areas of concern: power imbalances, bias and exploitation, environmental impact, and the psychological effects of AI-human interactions. By acknowledging these challenges openly, nonprofit professionals can make more informed, intentional decisions about if, when, and how to use these tools in a way that truly serves their mission and the people they support.

Resources:

https://www.wired.com/ai-issue/

Imbalance of Power:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevenwolfepereira/2026/01/20/davos-wont-save-us-from-ai-the-boardroom-might-be-our-last-hope/

https://nonprofitquarterly.org/how-nonprofits-can-resist-the-ai-efficiency-trap/

https://medium.com/@Craig_W/the-corporate-playbook-when-good-ai-goes-bad-by-design-aedf9621b07b

Bias and Exploitation:

https://www.ibm.com/think/topics/ai-bias

Racism, Surveillance and AI panel, Howard University, October 2025

Environmental and Community Impact:

https://news.mit.edu/2025/explained-generative-ai-environmental-impact-0117

https://naacp.org/campaigns/stop-dirty-data-centers

Mental Health Impacts:

https://jedfoundation.org/american-psychological-association-on-generative-ai/

https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/preliminary-report-on-dangers-of-ai-chatbots

_______________________________
Start a conversation :)

• Register to attend a webinar in real time, and find all past transcripts at https://communityit.com/webinars/
• email Carolyn at cwoodard@communityit.com
• on LinkedIn

Thanks for listening.

Director of Client Services Jennifer Huftalen answers questions about the IT Business Manager role at Community IT. How is an IT Business Manager different from a vCIO or an account manager? Learn more from this conversation.

The takeaways:

• The IT Business Manager is a unique role in the sector and at MSPs serving nonprofits. A combination of technology expertise and a business background make Community IT’s IT Business Managers ideally suited to help our clients undertake strategic planning and management of their IT.
• Similar to a vCIO, like an account manager but so much more, the IT Business Managers work with the primary contact to manage and understand the costs and strategies of IT investment in addition to supporting the help desk team provide day-to-day support.
• The IT Business Manager comes in at onboarding and helps analyze the initial assessment. IT Business Managers at Community IT can spot trends, identify duplicate tools, extra licenses, help the client create an accurate inventory of devices and licenses, and basically work in manageable stages to move the nonprofits’ IT to a “steady state” of well-managed IT.
• Community IT considers our clients our partners in managing IT. Nonprofits know what their ideal IT would look like. We find that a part time vCIO who parachutes in monthly or quarterly can’t develop the deep understanding of that client’s needs and pain points and help them invest wisely and manage change. The IT Business Manager at Community IT monitors trends in help desk tickets and identifies ways technology can make the nonprofit more efficient and secure. And the IT Business Manager documents everything, so you can ask any questions and understand how your processes work and what IT you are using.
• The IT Business Manager has a long term relationship with your organization and can develop 3-5 year planning in conjunction with your executive team that can be used for grant applications and funding support. For just one example, check out our case study on how an adult charter school in DC was able to implement a 4 year plan in 3 months to move all their students to remote learning in 2020.
• Using Community IT and having access to an IT Business Manager solves the nonprofit problem of trying to hire for this leadership position and find people with a technical AND business background and be able to retain these unique people. And the IT Business Manager at Community IT has the entire team as a resource and their experience at other clients, so you get the benefit of that network of information and expertise.

Navigating the complexities of IT management doesn’t have to be a solo journey for nonprofit leaders. By bridging the gap between high-level strategy and daily operations, the IT Business Manager ensures your technology is an asset rather than a cost. At Community IT, we believe the strongest solutions come from this kind of deep, human-centered partnership. To learn more about how our unique approach to IT management supports long-term mission success, we invite you to listen to our podcast episode or reach out to start a conversation today.

_______________________________
Start a conversation :)

• Register to attend a webinar in real time, and find all past transcripts at https://communityit.com/webinars/
• email Carolyn at cwoodard@communityit.com
• on LinkedIn

Thanks for listening.