New Report: State of Philanthropy

Posted by on May 2, 2002

National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy Releases State of Philanthropy Report (4/20/02)

The National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy ( http://www.ncrp.org/ ), a watchdog, research, and advocacy organization that promotes public accountability among foundations, corporate grantmakers, and individual donors, has released a collection of essays on the field of grantmaking that looks at where the field is now, where it is headed, and how it can do better.

The first in a planned series of such publications, the report, The State of Philanthropy 2002, addresses an array of topics, including philanthropy and public accountability, social justice advocacy, venture philanthropy, workplace giving programs, and the aftermath of September 11. While the perspectives presented in the report are wide-ranging, several important themes emerge, among them: foundations should invest a higher percentage of their endowments in grants to nonprofits; funders should shift their giving significantly toward core operating support for nonprofits; funders should fund social change advocacy; and philanthropy must become a vehicle for positive social change that is equally effective for all genders, races, faiths, ethnicities, sexual orientations, ages, abilities, and socioeconomic backgrounds.

“The State of Philanthropy 2002 aims to help philanthropy live up to its best intentions of investing in common-sense social change to improve the quality of life for all Americans,” said NCRP president Rick Cohen. “This new publication offers the kind of constructive critical thought and sensible solutions that could greatly benefit nonprofits and funders alike — and ultimately the communities we are all striving to serve.”

To download an excerpt from the report (13 pages, PDF), visit: http://www.ncrp.org/Pages%20from%20SOP2002-FINAL.pdf

“Philanthropic Watchdog Issues First ‘State of Philanthropy’ Report, Offering Sensible Solutions for Field of Grantmaking.” National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy Press Release 4/29/02.

http://fdncenter.org/pnd/news/story.jhtml?id=7500171