Finally, perspectives vary as to whether philanthropic activity enhances or undermines democracy (Franks 2020).
These tensions are a reminder that philanthropic organizations themselves encounter difficulties. Although most organizations are genuinely focused on the social well‐being of many, some organizations experience teleopathy or the disease of purpose or mission (Payton and Moody 2008, 120). They may lose sight of their mission and focus on maintaining their existence, rationalizing and practicing in a corrupt manner, and finally, involving themselves in morally corrupt activities such as those of the Ku Klux Klan and contemporary hate groups.
The current context of increasing disparity in wealth, racial justice, devastating environmental disasters, and political division intensifies these longstanding questions around philanthropy and highlights hazards and failures. Fundraisers benefit from understanding the possibilities and the limitations of philanthropy in order to help their organizations navigate important philosophical and practical dilemmas. Before addressing the big questions facing philanthropy, it is important to understand the size and scope of philanthropy and the available data that will inform fundraisers' daily activity.
Size and Scope
Philanthropy and nonprofit organizations play a significant role in American society. The nonprofit sector grew in both numbers and finances from 2006–2016. According to the National Center for Charitable Statistics at the Urban Institute (NCCS Project Team 2020), approximately 1.54 million nonprofits were registered with the Internal Revenue Service in 2016, an increase of 4.5 percent since 2006. This number, however, understates the sector's size by not including nonregistered groups – namely, religious organizations and churches, which are not required to register, as well as small, mostly informal groups. Between 2006 and 2016, the number of registered public charities (501(c)(3) organizations) grew by approximately 20 percent to 1.08 million of the total. Among them, human services comprise the largest subsector (35 percent), followed by education (17 percent), and health (12 percent). Among the smaller subsectors, international/foreign affairs and environment/animals saw the largest growth rates in the number of organizations, increasing by 16 and 10 percent, respectively, during the same period.
Formal and informal volunteering helps nonprofits operate while furthering community building. In 2017, 30.3 percent of adults volunteered through an organization (AmeriCorps 2018b). Volunteers donate to charity double the rate of nonvolunteers, engage in their communities, talk more frequently to neighbors, and vote more often in local elections among other civic activities.
Volunteerism acts at the intersection of instrumental and expressive values of nonprofits. Volunteers provide program delivery and help with fundraising (instrumental); and they embody values like care, hope, and equity (expressive). These values represent a shared articulation of the community values of which the nonprofit organization is a part. Fundraisers have a particular responsibility to ensure that both the instrumental and expressive contributions of volunteers are recognized and remain central to the mission of the organization (Lu Knustsen and Bower 2010).
Turning from volunteerism to donating, Giving USA (2021) estimates 2020 total giving to be $471.44 billion, or 2.3 percent of GDP, a 5.1 percent increase in current dollars (3.8 percent increase in inflation adjusted dollars) over 2019 giving. Since the end of the Great Recession in 2009, the total growth in inflation‐adjusted giving is 37 percent for the 2011–2020 decade. In 2020, three of four sources of giving (individual, foundation, bequest) were at an all‐time high in inflation‐adjusted terms. These data reveal that giving by individuals is the largest share, nearly 70 percent. In 2020, individuals gave $324.10 billion. Individual giving and bequests when combined totaled 78 percent in 2020. Chapter 8 provides additional information about giving trends by subsector.
Finally, it is important to pay attention to donor‐advised fund giving (see Chapter 37) and online giving, including crowdfunding (see Chapter 24). Despite the global crisis, #GivingTuesday (2020) reported a 29 percent increase in participants (34.8 million people) and a 25 percent total giving increase ($2.47 billion compared with $1.97 billion in 2019). Multiple charitable crowdfunding platforms attract both individual and institutional donors including foundations and corporations (Bernholz, Reich, and Saunders‐Hastings 2015; Weinger 2016).
Giving USA and other specialized data sources on volunteerism, nonprofits, donor‐advised funds, online giving, and crowdfunding can empower fundraisers' work. Understanding national data can help fundraisers engage in meaningful conversations with staff and board members about key trends and assist in tracking, comparing, and contextualizing the organization's progress.
Technological and Educational Advances in Philanthropy Infrastructure
The nonprofit sector has grown significantly since the Filer Commission's report, in the United States and globally. Growth of the sector has occurred alongside the adoption of an increasingly complex use of media and technology for communication and an expansion of educational programs.
The growth of community foundations globally provides an interesting example for the increasingly multifaceted communications required of nonprofits. Community foundations raise money in their communities, support nonprofit organizations, and integrate local citizens on their boards. Strategic communication and engagement with all forms of media widen their networks of relationships, engage stakeholders, and increase public awareness of their multiple roles and activities (Esposito and Besana 2018). In 2014, there were an estimated 1,800 community foundations worldwide with over 1,000 in the United States and Canada, and 670 in Europe (Community Foundation Atlas 2014). Often connected to thematic or local community foundations are giving circles – groups of individuals who come together to support their community through funding, volunteering, and networking. Leveraging the power of the digital age, giving circles and related initiatives like Philanthropy Together (2020), are increasing not only donations but the numbers of individuals engaged in collective giving. The Philanthropy Together collective, which promotes the democratization and increase in diversity in giving circles across the United States and globally, is enhancing the ability of these groups to gather, discuss, decide, give, and engage. By the year 2020, the network had brought together 2,000 giving circles that donated $1.29 billion.
Media channels, both traditional (newspapers and radio) and digital (websites, social media platforms, podcasts, and digital downloads) are enmeshed in the daily practices and routines of nonprofit professionals, including fundraising and volunteer recruitment (Burger 2019). These practices, linked to the professionalization of the sector, require specific communication and digital literacy skill sets that are needed in all nonprofit organizations (see Chapters 16 and 24). The term digital literacy refers to “the ability to use information and communication technologies to find, evaluate, create, and communicate information, requiring both cognitive and technical skills” (American Library Association 2020). It is considered the next core function of any nonprofit organization alongside financial and program management (Bernholz 2017).
The size and scope of philanthropy education and research has grown significantly in the last two decades. The number of institutions offering programs has nearly doubled in just the past 15 years (Seton Hall University 2020). In 2020, there were 342 colleges and universities offering nonprofit management courses, which included 86 programs with noncredit courses, 78 continuing education programs, 252 graduate degree programs, and 82 programs with online courses. Scholarly activity about the nonprofit field has existed for nearly a century and has accelerated since 1990. Top research themes include theories of volunteering, social capital, and civic engagement. The frequent disconnect between academic research and practice calls for more collaboration between academics and practitioners and a search for new explanations of the functioning of the sector (Ma and Konrath 2018). Fundraising theory is one method to bridge this
