By Brenda B Asare, President & CEO, Alford Group
Alford Group sponsored this year’s Giving USA event in Chicago with Lipman Hearne and the Baumhart Center for Social Enterprise and Responsibility. We shared the recently released Giving USA 2018 numbers, discussed new research on megadonor archetypes, and hosted a panel of local experts to discuss what it all means for the social sector. Here are the main takeaways.
Giving USA 2018 Numbers
(Report on Philanthropy for the Year 2017)
Total giving in 2017 reached its highest level ever, surpassing the $400 Billion mark for a total of $410.02 Billion.
Giving has been on the rise for the past few years. This year, giving increased among all four sources (corporations, foundations, bequests and individuals), with corporate giving increasing by the largest amount at 8 percent growth (5.7 percent adjusted for inflation). This growth from corporations is in part due to a $405 million bump in corporate gifts to natural disasters in 2017.
Photo: Alford Group staff at As Good as It Gives: America’s Philanthropy Today on June 17, 2016 at Mesirow Financial in Chicago.
Giving is on a two-year increase, as 2014 was previously charted as the most generous year of giving. Since the Great Recession ended in 2009, giving has increased by 23 percent. Individuals continue to represent the majority of giving in America at 71 percent of total giving in 2015.