These Associations Are on the Cusp of a Big 2020

With the nature of the news cycle and the passage of time, some groups have bigger impacts than others in certain years.

And 2020 is by no means an exception. We’re now a fifth of the way through the century, and a lot of big events are coming up next year—and associations big and small are getting ready.

Read on for some organizations worth watching in the coming year.

CBD Groups

In the wake of a measure in the 2018 Farm Bill to legalize the production of industrial hemp  (opens in a new tab), a key byproduct of the growth of hemp in the marketplace is the development of cannabidiol, or CBD, an active ingredient of cannabis that is believed to have benefits.

The boom in CBD in 2019 has come as an information page on the Food and Drug Administration’s website  (opens in a new tab) suggests a desire for a tough regulatory stance. As the ground on CBD is sorted, associations are likely to make their stances known on potential regulations as they arise in 2020:

• The Grocery Manufacturers Association, which is rebranding as the Consumer Brands Association starting next month, has discussed CBD as a recent focus.
• The Hemp Industries Association, which has been active since 1994, is focused on CBD  (opens in a new tab) as a part of its mandate.
• The Council for Responsible Nutrition, a supplements group, has criticized the FDA’s stance  (opens in a new tab) on CBD issues.
• The CBD & Cannabinoid Industry Association  (opens in a new tab) is focused specifically on professionals in the quickly growing CBD sector.

Election Groups

The 2020 election is already ramping up to be a major talker, and many associations are helping to ensure that people are registered to vote and get trusted information before they go to the polls. Among them:

• The National Association of Secretaries of State has launched the #TrustedInfo2020 campaign to promote state and local election officials as trusted sources for election information.
• The National Association of Election Officials, also taking part in the #TrustedInfo2020 campaign, will help support government employees  (opens in a new tab) who help manage voter registration and election administration.

Census Groups

Elections, of course, aren’t the only periodic process that government bodies—and, by extension, associations and nonprofits—will be focused on in 2020. It’s Census time—and a variety of groups will be campaigning for populations to be fully counted, as it directly affects the funding they’ll receive from the U.S. government. A look at a few of them:

• The Census Project  (opens in a new tab), a coalition representing hundreds of associations and nonprofits nationwide, is focused on encouraging a fair and accurate Census in 2020.
• The Insights Association  (opens in a new tab), which represents the market research and data analytics field, is also focused on getting an accurate count and recently highlighted research  (opens in a new tab) on what will get people to respond.
• The American Library Association will take an increased role in the 2020 Census as portions of the survey go online for the first time—making libraries a more important asset  (opens in a new tab) than ever for ensuring everyone is tracked.

Leap Year Groups

About as common as a presidential election but more common than a census, a leap year is still infrequent enough that it creates a bit of a stir when one happens. And yes, as there’s an association for everything, there’s an association for this, too!

• The Honor Society of Leap Year Day Babies  (opens in a new tab), which manages the Leap Year Day website, has been active since 1997 after the merger of two other leap day clubs. While it was focused on connecting journalists with leap day babies for many years, one of its main goals currently is to promote Leap Year Day Awareness.

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