The Many Ways To Give

1. The Many Ways To Give Philanthropy flows from a loving heart, not an overstuffed pocketbook. - Douglas M. Lawson

2. Definitions of Common Vehicles for Giving • Bequests:Leaving a stated sum of money or a percentage of your estate to nonprofits, family, or friends by naming them in your will. • Community Development Financial Instituition (CDFI):A lending institution whose mission is to reinvest in targeted, underserved communities.

3. Definitions cont. • Community Foundation: A public foundation that receives donations from a broad base and whose charter is to serve its community or issue-specific population. • Nearly 1000 throughout the United States. • Vary in length of time in existence, asset base, level of service to donors, political orientation, and level of community involvement.

4. Definitions cont. • Community-Based Foundation or Federation: A public foundation or workplace-giving alliance of organizations that receives donations from a broad base of donors. • Aim to identify problems in their communities and then to address or solve them or advocate for changes together. • Impact of funds is to democratize philanthropy as well as to share power in decision making and community building.

5. Definitions cont. • Corporate Foundations: A private foundation established by a business or corporation as a means of carrying systematic programs of charitable giving. • Donor Circle or Giving Circle: Pooled fund where donors make a commitment of 1-5 years to share in studying, donating funds, and becoming advocates around a specific issue, region, or population.

6. Definitions cont. • Donor-Advised Fund: A fund established by an individual donor or group of donors at an existing community foundation, public foundation, or federation, or through philanthropic program at a financial service institution. • E-Philanthropy: Online nonprofit and philanthropic activity, including Web-cased giving, volunteering, advocacy, and organizing.

7. Definitions cont. • Family Foundation: A private foundation involving family, extended family, and sometimes community advisors. • For-Benefit Corporations: A new wave of companies that have been formed, in the spirit of Paul Newman’s company, Newman’s Own, for the primary purpose of generating profits to a contributed to nonprofits as grants.

8. Definitions cont. • Pooled Fund: Individuals pooling any amount of money together to gain philanthropic leverage. • Private Foundation: An organization whose function is to give away money; generally supported by a small number of private donations.

9. Definitions cont. • Supporting Foundation: A tax-exempt organization, usually with at least $10 million in assets, that is closely tied to at least one other public charity. • Trusts: A variety of vehicles that can offer a lifetime income or tax advantages to you, your family, or your favorite charity.

10. Definitions cont. • Venture Philanthropy: The application of the investment and management practices of venture capitalism to philanthropic giving.

11. Online giving • New Opportunities in Philanthropy creating a vehicle for better-connected and better-informed philanthropy. • The Internet is a connecting resource where people can join funds, talents, and knowledge; or an information portal on good giving.

12. Online Resources • www.pledgebank.com • A place to challenge others to join in an activity or make a gift conditional on the participation of a set number of others. • www.dropcash.com • A way to post a fundraising campaign anywhere online.

13. Online Resources • www.10over100.org • Created by Internet entrepreneurs as a way to commit giving and to challenge peers. The site offers a place where a donor can pledge to give 10% of income over $100,000. • www.donorleaders.org • Offers information about and links to donor networks for high-end donors.

14. Online Resources • www.newdea.com • A Web site for high-end donors to organize and evaluate giving. • www.networkforgood.org • Information and connection to opportunities to volunteer.

15. Online Resources • www.onebrick.org • Helps connect local volunteers to local projects, rewarding volunteers with social activities. • www.CharityFocus.org • An organization of and for volunteers, connects people to opportunities to serve, especially opportunities related to technology.

16. Exercise 8.1 Giving Methods 5–10 minutes

17. Exercise 8.1 Giving Methods, Cont’d

18. Exercise 8.1 Giving Methods, Cont’d Reflection: • What is your analysis of your methods of giving? • What methods do you want to learn more about? • What information do you need and who or what resource can best answer your questions?

19. Philanthropic Conversations • Internet provides a wealth of knowledge from and for foundations, nonprofits, and other organizations involved in philanthropy. • Blogs offer individuals a voice for sharing their perspective on giving and causes.

20. Conversation Resources • www.worldchanging.com • Share ideas and information about making the world a better place. • www.Idealist.org • Information and a connecting space for volunteers and nonprofits • www.nextbillion.net • Site to identify and discuss sustainable business models that address the needs of the world’s poorest citizens.

21. Conversation Resources • www.gifthub.org • Prominent blog on developing a conversation about a wide range of issues within philanthropy. • www.philanthromedia.org • Offers discussion for the high net worth donor and professional philanthropist and advisors. • www.gayleroberts.com/blog • Offers discussions about fundraising for nonprofits.

22. Conversation Resources • Philanthropy.blogspot.com • Offers “provocations on the future of philanthropy.” • www.thephilanthropiceneterprise.org • Seeks to understand “the role of voluntary action and philanthropy.” • www.onphilanthropy.com • A global resource for nonprofit professionals. • www.globalfundforwomen.org • A site about women’s philanthropy worldwide.

23. Virtual Worlds, Real Philanthropy • Virtual world avaters interact with each other in a wide range of activities. • Nonprofits open virtual doors and hold fundraising events. • www.secondlife.com • Offers a meeting place for people striving to create a better world. • American Cancer Society holds virtual Relays for Life in the world of Second life.

24. Workplace Giving • Many donors participate in workplace giving campaigns whereby charitable donations are deducted regularly from employees’ paychecks. • United Way has had the largest and best-known workplace fundraising appeal.

25. Workplace Giving • Community based workplace funds have started with 50 charitable federations and funds serving more than 2,000 nonprofits nationwide. • According to Giving at Work 2003, by the National Committee on Responsive Philanthropy, employee contributions to the progressive community-based funds made up 11% of pledge dollars from traditional donors in American workplace from 1996- 2001.

26. Giving Circles and Donor Circles • New models of giving that has taken off. • Both involve groups of people pooling philanthropic dollars and making joint decisions on the use of those funds. The difference is in institutional affliation.

27. Giving Circles • Giving Circles usually have no institutional affiliation. • They consist of groups of people with some common interests and values who seek to make philanthropic gifts through collective giving.

28. Giving Circles • A social investment club with the funds invested in nonprofits have become a popular community-building and collaborative learning experience. • By acting collectively, giving circle members have the chance to infuse the nonprofits of their choice with financial and intellectual capital, resources, and contacts.

29. Giving Circles cont. • Members share the following desires: • Leverage the impact of their charitable contributions with shared expertise and volunteerism. • Connect meaningfully with communities and causes they acre about. • Participate in a social network of people who share similar interests and values. • Learn more about philanthropy as a vehicle for social change.

30. Giving Circles Advantages • Pooled dollars invested toward a key issue can have a far greater impact than smaller individual gifts • Collective “know-how” of a group adds value and impact to volunteerism and charitable investments. • Creating partnerships with a smaller number of charities creates a deeper level of involvement and gives better chance to gauge your return on investment.

31. Common Elements of Giving Circles • Membership is broad, diverse, and inclusive. • Each member contributes money at least once a year. • Money is pooled and members determine how it will be distributed. • Money is used to help address specific community or institutional needs.

32. Common Elements of Giving Circles • Educational opportunities are available to learn more about philanthropy and finance. • Memberships are proactive and participatory. • There is a minimum of recognition other than personal thanks. • Volunteers provide most of the circles support.

33. Donor Circles • Ms. Foundation for Women and the Global Fund for Women pioneered the model of donor circles in the 1990s. • Programs developed by established giving institutions, often for the benefit of their grantees and their own programs.

34. Donor Circles cont. • Significant pools of money for specific projects or interests areas with gifts of $5,000- $1 million each from donors are created by organizations. • Generally consist of 10-25 donors or their representatives who meet 3 to 5 times a year to deepen partnerships and collective knowledge among themselves, staff, and advisors.

35. Donor-Advised Funds • Offer an alternative to establishing your own private foundation. • Enables a donor to make an outright, irrevocable contribution of cash or securities to an organization that acts as fiscal manager of the fund and distributes the fund’s income or assets to nonprofits.

36. Donor-Advised Funds cont. • Available through public foundations, Jewish Federations, and United Way. • More recently financial-service companies have developed donor-advised charitable giving programs.. • Fidelity, Vanguard, Schwab, and American Express • Customer’s dollars can be easily transferred within an institution for charitable purposes.

37. Advantages of Donor-Advised Funds • Easy to establish. • No need to involve your own attorney. • Parent organizations handle administration of the fund. • Charitable deductions can be made as soon as the donation to the fund is made. • No capital gains tax is imposed on long-term appreciated securities donated to these funds.

38. Advantages of Donor-Advised Funds • Low management costs • Additional gifts and investment earnings and growth increases the fund’s balance. • Can carry on donors’ charitable values beyond their lifetime. • Financial and programmatic reports are informative and easy to read. • Donor education programs or site visits are sometimes provided for fund holders.

39. Venture Philanthropy • Applies the principles and practices of venture capitalism to the nonprofit sector. • Long term partnership and strategic management assistance leverages and augments financial investments.

40. Venture Philanthropy Characteristics • Donors refer to them selves as investors and have high investor engagement. • Investors initiate projects by convening people and resources as well responding to requests for funding. • Investment is long term. • Investors act as managing partners. • Investors require ongoing accountability. • Investors provide cash, expertise, and problem solving, and monitor projects. • Investors plan their exit or transition from partnership from the beginning.

41. Venture Philanthropists • Refer to nonprofit partners in whom they invest as social entrepreneurs. • Nonprofit professionals creating sustainable profit models for organizations within a business environment. • Attempts to counter the undercapitalization of infrastructure that leaves nonprofits at a state of struggle.

42. Nonprofit Venture Forums • New model of showcasing nonprofit groups that you may want to investigate replicating in your community. • www.craigslist.org • Connected local nonprofits with philanthropists who wanted to learn more and become involved.

43. Venture Forums • Generated funding and resources for small, social change organizations and educated donors about new groups. • Venture fairs for nonprofits to present their soluntions for community issues.

44. Community-Based Philanthropy • The 20th century viewed philanthropic giving as expanded from wealthy industrialists and business owners seeking to balance their amassed wealth with public charity to incorporate more broad-based involvement. • Grant making, networking, community organizing are common in community based philanthropies.

45. 1920s • United Way began • First large organization to pool donors’ funds and distribute them to community projects. • Following more traditional community foundations were created in particular geographic areas. • Community Foundations attracted unrestricted donations, such as distributing funds to established health, human services, arts, and education institutions.

46. 1960s & 1970s • Beginning of more demographic form of organized philanthropy emerged. • Women, people of color, and others whose issues and organizations were not being supported by traditional foundations and the United Way forged new ground by creating community-based public foundations. • Mission: support grassroots organizations working specifically with societal change.

47. Late 1970s • Funding Exchange: (www.fex.org) gathered many alternative funds that were committed to providing support to grassroots organizing locally, nationally, and internationally under one umbrella and sought to strengthen their services and capacities. • Democratic governance structure ensure that decision-making bodies are representative of the communities served by the foundations’ programs.

48. Late 1990s • Changemakers was founded to help promote community-based philanthropy efforts. • Providing guidance for the field of community-based philanthropy.

49. Changemakers • Set of values derived from and defining the work of community-based philanthropy. • Accountable: • practicing honesty and transparency and answers to a wider community. • Compassionate: • being motivated to uplift all beings. • Inclusive: • valuing all people equally and treating people with respect without regard to race, culture, religion, language, immigration history, age, class, gender, or disabilities.

50. Changemakers cont. • Democratic: • involving a broad range of constiuencies in decision-making processes. • Strategic: • addressing root causes of social, economic, and environmental problems, often with innovative and creative approaches. • Collaborative: • working in partnership with like-minded organizations and building bridges between donors and grantees.