The Global Journal is proud to announce the release of the second edition of its annual Top 100 NGOs special issue. The only international ranking of its kind, this exclusive feature reflects the increasing global influence of NGOs in all facets of modern life, in the process shining a light on a dynamic, innovative and inspiring sector estimated by the Public Interest Registry (PIR) to encompass close to 10 million organizations.  In the multilateral context alone, the number of UN-accredited NGOs had risen from 40 in 1945 to 3,536 by the end of 2011.  The Top 100 NGOs ranking will inform policy-makers, business, academics and non-profit leaders.

Continuing to refine its evaluation methodology, The Global Journal considered a pool of approximately 450 NGOs this year based on three key criteria: impact, innovation and sustainability.  For some organizations, these changes have resulted in a climb up the ranking, for others, a no doubt unwelcome slide.  Beyond the fortunes of individual NGOs, however, the following are some key takeaways from the 2013 list:

• While the overall top 10 continues to be dominated by major international development and humanitarian NGOs, the most innovative NGOs reflected a more diverse mix of education, peacebuilding, environment and health activities.

• The best represented sub-sectors overall were Development (23), followed by Health (17), Education (15), Children & Youth (13), Environment (10) and Peacebuilding (10).  

• While the United States again outpaced other countries in geographical terms – with one-third of the NGOs headquartered there – another third of the NGOs featured were based in developing countries, led by India (6), Brazil (5) and Kenya (4).  Only the United Kingdom (11) and Switzerland (9) outperformed these emerging actors, while major donors like France (2) and Germany (1) were only a marginal presence in the list.

Beyond profiles of the 100 NGOs that made it into the 2013 edition of the ranking, The Global Journal’s Top 100 NGOs special issue also features a fascinating history of international NGOs by Thomas Davies, an eyewitness account of the ‘dark side’ of NGOs in post-earthquake Haiti by Jonathan M Katz, a thought-provoking essay on the globalization of ideas by Harvard professor David Armitage, a worrying report from Laurent Vinatier on Europe’s ‘last dictatorship’ in Belarus, an exclusive interview with leading historian Mark Mazower on the past and future of global governance and an evocative photo essay by Daniel Blaufuks capturing the everyday beauty of today’s Iran.

Further information – including regarding the evaluation methodology – is available here.