The results are in: charitable giving is up
The long-awaited day for fundraising geeks like me has finally arrived. On Monday, June 20, the Giving USA Foundation released its 2010 Giving USA Report. The report tells us how the nonprofit sector fared in 2010. According the Giving USA Foundation and its research partner, the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, Americans gave $29.4 billion last year, a 3.8% increase over 2009. As the economy slowly crawls out of the seemingly never-ending Great Recession, this report gives us hope that there may indeed be light at the end of the tunnel.
Key findings from the report on 2010 include:
- Giving by individuals rose 2.7%
- Charitable bequests rose 18.8%
- Giving by foundations fell an estimated .2%
- Corporate giving rose an estimated 10.6%
By the Slice
In terms of where the dollars are going, the religious sector receives the greatest percentage of charitable dollars, accounting for 35% of all donations. Education is second at 14% followed by human services at 9% and health at 8%. Education saw an increase of 5.2% over 2009.
Who’s Giving
Consistent with giving in previous years, gifts from individuals in the form of cash or charitable bequests accounted for 81% of all contributed dollars in 2010. Foundations contributed 14% of the total dollars contributed and corporations gave 5%.
How you interpret the report will be based on your own experiences and attitudes. Look at it this way: 2010 was the first year giving increased since 2007. While we don’t know what tomorrow will look like, we can take a hold of our organization’s future using thoughtful strategy and a donor centered approach to fundraising. That means knowing where you’re going and how to involve donors personally on your voyage, even among the thrashing waves.
I’d say the glass is half full.
-Katrina
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