Charitable giving fell last year by the largest percentage in five decades, according to a new study by the Giving USA Foundation and as reported by The New York Times.  MORE »

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According to a report by MSNBC, the recession could be changing the giving habits of America's wealthiest donors. Gifts from seven of the 10 biggest donors in 2008 were made from estates, according to an annual ranking of America’s most-generous donors, released recently by The Chronicle of Philanthropy and the online magazine Slate.  MORE »

The number of gifts of $1 million or more given to charities by individuals fell 33 percent in the last six months of 2008 compared to the same period in 2007, according to records compiled by the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University.  MORE »

Charitable giving in the United States is estimated to be $306.39 billion in 2007, exceeding $300 billion for the first time in history, according to Giving USA 2008, the yearbook on philanthropy released today by Giving USA Foundation.  MORE »

U.S. charitable giving reached a new record in 2006, an estimated $295.02 billion, according to Giving USA 2007, the yearbook of philanthropy published by Giving USA Foundation (TM) and researched and written by the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University.  MORE »

Both for-profit and nonprofit professionals need timely "cutting-edge" knowledge and confidence to continually identify, cultivate new prospects and retain donors/clients for their organization or business. Boom Generation women who already control 51% of the nation's wealth and expect to be major beneficiaries of the $42 trillion intergenerational wealth transfer need and want credible and trusted advisors who understand and can relate to their concerns, goals, and basic core values. This session will provide insight into the largest generational cohort coming of age in the 21^st century - Boom-Generation women - and explore the impact they will have on designing a new paradigm for giving. Within this framework, the session will address the implications for gift planners and explore effective strategies to capture and retain the loyalty of these donors with significant wealth and wisdom.  MORE »

The Giving USA Foundation and the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University have released their annual report on philanthropy, "Giving USA." According to the report, Americans gave total contributions of $260.28 billion for 2005, a 6.1 percent increase from 2004. The report stated about half the $15 billion increase is attributable to donors' response to three major natural disasters.  MORE »

It has now been 15 years since the first widespread predictions of a coming transfer of wealth. It is a real phenomenon and will help shape American society for decades to come. Many have predicted that charities will enjoy a windfall as they inevitably receive their share of the wealth. Why, then, have bequests and other planned gifts seen declines in recent years according to industry reports? Many are learning that the wealth transfer will not occur at a constant rate and that bequests and other gifts may actually see a decline before they begin increasing again. This session will explain how to adjust planned gifts and other development efforts today to assure continued success in coming years. Syllabus for Gift Planners code: 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0  MORE »

After two years of limited growth in charitable contributions, Americans picked up the pace in 2004, showing they are a generous bunch. They donated nearly $250 billion to various causes across the United States, an almost 5 percent increase over 2003. That's the key finding in "Giving USA 2005," published annually by the Giving USA Foundation. The $248.52 billion in donations set a new record for philanthropy in the United States.  MORE »