“If there ever was a time to get smarter about philanthropy, this is it. Donations are down, endowments have been decimated, and state and local governments are slashing their budgets. And the number of those who need help are rising rapidly” writes editor Lawrence Rout, describing The Wall Street Journal‘s recent special report on philanthropy.
The report’s wide range includes suggestions for improving individual, foundation and corporate philanthropy, a discussion on the growing public-private partnership approach to philanthropy, thoughts on converting private foundations to donor-advised funds, and much more. The report is still available on line, as of March 1, 2010.
Thanks for posting this article. The article seems to focus on what foundations should do even though 75% of the $300 billion the U.S. gives to nonprofits is given away by individuals. Do you have any additional advice about what individuals should be doing? I am especially interested in how best to educate the pedestrian philanthropist about the need for better metrics and about introducing market forces to winnow out the less effective organizations so less money is wasted.
Ben – Thanks for your comment. Actually, individuals and couples account for more than 82%, when you count in what they do through their estate giving.
Concerning education, that of course is the focus of this site, and our public and private classes.
Now (demand for services is up, charitable giving is down) is an especially bad time to give money to a poorly performing charity. We all need to support strong charities, and avoid the clunkers.
For a sampling of metrics, take a look at my sample charity screening report on the Childhood Leukemia Foundation.
Ed