Questions list:
- How did Bolder Giving start?
- Can Bolder Giving fund me or my project?
- What makes these extraordinary times?
- Why do you focus on how much to give?
- Why do you highlight stories?
- What is the 50% League?
- Why is it needed?
- How can it help me?
- Will you advise me where to give?
How did Bolder Giving start?
Bolder Giving was initiated by Anne and Christopher Ellinger, co-authors of the award-winning book We Gave Away a Fortune and founders of More than Money.
In their decades of involvement in donor networks, the Ellingers were struck by how rarely even very committed people gave at their full potential. At the same time, they encountered inspired philanthropists who were giving far beyond the norm, and knew that personal stories from these donors could have the power to encourage givers of all levels.
In 2005, they began to informally collect giving stories from extraordinary donors, and in April 2007 they launched Bolder Giving.
Can Bolder Giving fund me or my project?
Bolder Giving does not give money. We don’t make grants on behalf of our Bolder Givers, nor do we act as a “broker” between donors and projects needing support. Here are some suggestions of resources if you are looking for funding.
If your organization has donors, please encourage them to take the Bolder Giving Challenge. As they grow as givers, they may decide to increase their gifts to your organization.
What makes these “extraordinary times?” Why give more boldly now?
We are in a time of profound crisis and opportunity, when a breakthrough of generosity could turn global problems around:
If affluent households donated as high a proportion of their assets to charity as do the middle class … donations in the U.S. could increase more than $25 billion a year.
Annual expenditures of $19 billion between now and 2015 could eliminate global starvation and malnutrition.
NewTithing
Many factors converge to make this a time of unprecedented philanthropic possibility:
- The historic transfer of wealth, estimated at $30-70 trillion being passed from the older generation to their descendents, opens door to greater philanthropy.
- Crises are heating up. Public awareness – about global climate disruption, and the growing disparity between rich and poor – creates urgency to act now, before problems are insurmountable for future generations.
- Wealth generation and tax law changes are creating more affluent Americans than ever before.
- Tremendous organizational infrastructure in the philanthropy field – dozens of groups that simply didn’t exist twenty years ago – now enable major individual donors to give more effectively.
- The Internet opens never-before-seen possibilities for action and coordination world-wide.
- Public figures such as Warren Buffet and Oprah Winfrey are role-modeling substantial giving.
Why do you focus so much on “how much to give”?
Because there are so few places people can get a hand with this key question.
- Almost no one talks with friends about how much of their total income or assets they could give to charity – it’s too touchy and personal.
- Most financial advisors focus on how to preserve assets and minimize taxes, not on how to maximize giving.
- Most fundraisers, foundation staff and philanthropic advisors consider the question off-limits (unless the client brings it up, which most donors don’t feel safe to do).
And so the only guidance or “benchmarks” donors find are the norms of their peers (if they dare ask), or the level suggested by some religious communities of tithing 10% of income, or recently, a couple of groups suggesting affluent people can comfortably give 1-3% of assets.
People drawn to give more boldly than any of these benchmarks often feel isolated, worried about what is prudent, and afraid of making mistakes. Bolder Giving is here to change that. And once people know how much to give, we refer them to places that help them give wisely.
Although our special niche is the question, “How much can I give?” our Bolder Giving Challenge encourages you to explore four different ways of being bold. You can give more time, rather than money. You can be more effective with whatever you give. You can develop ways to become more fulfilled as a giver. And you can inspire the giving of others. No matter what your financial resources, you can be a Bolder Giver.
Why do you highlight stories?
We are all influenced more than we may realize by what is “normal” among our peers. We judge what is possible by what we see around us. Hearing other people’s giving stories is one of the most potent ways to realize new possibilities.
We know many examples of people who were inspired to bolder giving by meeting someone else who did it and who spoke passionately about what they gave to. Even for people who would never give near the level of our featured Bolder Givers, their stories will still open eyes and hearts to new options.
What is the 50% League?
We launched Bolder Giving in 2007 with 50 stories from people who had given at least 50% of their income, assets, or business profits. We dubbed this “The 50% League.” The 50% number was catchy, and as we had hoped, it helped the project get media attention.
We have since broadened our story collection to include extraordinary givers who are bold in other ways. Most are giving at least 20% of income or total net worth, or volunteering 100% of their time when they could be earning significantly.
Why is Bolder Giving needed?
Because for more than forty years, average charitable giving in the U.S. has remained at 2% to 3% of income, despite growing wealth and economic inequality of nearly historic proportions. Everywhere,the intense consumer culture urges people to accumulate more and spend more.
We believe that this can change. Bolder Giving encourages donors at all levels – especially those with significant discretionary resources – to figure out “how much is enough” and then step up their charitable commitment. We are confident that among the nearly 8 million millionaires in the U.S., there are many who would seek to realize their full giving potential if they had sufficient moral and technical support to do so.
How can it help me?
As an individual giver, we can inspire you to think big, figure out how much to give, and connect you to resources that will help you be a more effective, strategic, and satisfied giver.
If you work with donors, we can inspire your donors, members, or clients to consider their full giving potential, and offer you tools to help them give more boldly. See For Advisors.
Will Bolder Giving advise me where to give?
No. We can help you make an overall giving plan, and if requested will guide you to sources of philanthropic information and advice, but not to specific organizations. Members of Bolder Giving make their own giving decisions.
