Time Matters in Philanthropy
SickKids Foundation’s year-end giving campaign has generated a lot of attention for its gripping “Vs” spots. Skillfully edited, the ad borrows fight, hip-hop and adventure movie imagery to dramatize the plight of the hospital’s young patients. This campaign is highly effective and a great example of visceral, urgent annual fundraising. Raw emotion has a place in charitable giving, but it doesn’t serve large “exceptional” donations at tax year-end and in estates.
Community-based Scholarships
Generally educational institutions, particularly at the post-secondary level, do an excellent job of administering awards. In my work, however, I have found a growing number of donors who want to help students who are in a specific community and/or share challenges or characteristics. The goal of these donors is to help the student, regardless of where they intend to study. In other words, the loyalty of the donor is to the future students, not a college or university.
Charitable Matching Funds
As a fundraiser at a university in the early 1990s I discovered that a primary extra incentive for major charitable gifts is matching funds. Typically from government sources, matching funds are compelling to donors and important fundraising tools for a lucky few charities. Unfortunately they create an uneven playing field in the charitable sector.
4x $100 Million+
In 11 weeks between March 25 and June 3, 2019 three $100 million dollar charitable donations were announced in Ontario. On February 13th, McGill University in Montreal announced a $200 million donation. These are enormous sums, and this unprecedented donation cluster is just the beginning of bigger things to come.
It’s useful to understand a bit of context.
One in Ten: Why Bequest Donors don’t inform Charities
One in ten. That, according to charitable sector studies, is how many estate donors inform the charities in their will of their intentions. While this ratio varies by charity it underscores a fascinating paradox. Bequest donors trust charities enough to make them beneficiaries of their estate, but they don’t trust them enough to tell them in advance.
The Philanthropist as Villain
Some of the most nefarious villains in popular culture are philanthropists. The fabulous – and fabulously junky – Netflix series Lupin makes it clear. Philanthropists are smiling hypocrites with too much money and no scruples. Evil.
Restricted Charitable Bequests
One the biggest trends in philanthropy of the last thirty-years is the rise of donor-directed or restricted giving. Donors want more control, which typically results in more restrictions being placed on gifts. But there are risks of placing restrictions on a charitable gift by will.
The Decline of Churches
Organized religion has been the bedrock of the Canadian charitable sector. When charities were first required to register federally in 1967, over 60% of organizations were religious and most were churches. As of January 2022, Christian charities represent just 29.7% of Canada’s 86,080 registered charities. The implications for society, giving, and estate planning are significant.
Charitable Prizes
When Lindbergh flew from New York to Paris in 1927, it was inspired by the $25,000 Orteig Prize. Also in the 1920s, when the International Math Union wanted to honour under 40-year-old rising mathematicians, Toronto math superstar J.C. Fields (under)funded a medal that has been awarded ever since.
Charities Lawyers Don’t Recommend
I recently spoke to an estate lawyer who told me she would never recommend certain charities to clients. Why? Because of the way these charities treated estate trustees. Some charities are unduly litigious, grind on fees, and are obstreperous about releases.
Transparency vs. Anonymity
The calls for greater transparency by charities in Canada is growing. Budget 2022 had a few promises of more reporting requirements for registered charities related to donor advised funds and disbursement quota, although the exact measures are still unclear. What does this mean for the charitable tradition of anonymous giving?
Seven Faces of Philanthropy
The Seven Faces of Philanthropy: A New Approach to Cultivating Major Donors is an iconic American fundraising book published in 1994. In it authors Russ Allen Prince and Karen Maru File neatly categorize charitable profiles. While written for a fundraising audience, the book is a helpful reminder that charitable motivations are diverse. There is not a single way that donors approach philanthropy.
Nobel Peace Prize’s Breach of Trust?
Norwegian lawyer Fredrik Heffermehl thinks the Nobel Foundation has blatantly ignored the intentions of Alfred Nobel for his namesake Peace Prize. Nobel’s will stipulated that the prize be awarded to the ”most worthy champions of peace”. Specifically it should go to “the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses.”
Approving Donor Recognition
Charities like to name things after donors. Simply, big gifts mean more prominent “naming opportunities”. Ontario’s Minister of Health recently issued a directive to hospitals stipulating that they can’t rename existing hospitals in recognition of donations. Is “naming” a risk for major donors? What are the estate planning implications?
New Ways to Help Ukraine
The invasion of Ukraine by Russia has prompted many Canadians to ask, “how can I help?”. This war is different from previous international disasters and so is the response to it by ordinary caring citizens. New ways to help are shattering traditional charity norms.
Too Many Charities?
Does Canada have too many registered charities chasing too few dollars? This is a complaint that is often heard. There is simply too much competition and not enough entities with scale that are effective. Or so goes the narrative.
A Statue in the Wrong Square
Bartolomeo Colleoni (1400-1475) was Lombardy-born general who served the Republic of Venice and Duchy of Milan in the 15th century wars on the Italian peninsula. A skilled mercenary, Colleoni was reputedly an evenhanded overlord who improved agricultural methods and was active in charity. Nonetheless, it was his will that secured his place in history.
Interview: How to make charitable giving part of your wealth plan (2021)
Interview for Scotiabank Perspectives. (December 2021)
Are Cause Funds a Great Charitable Equalizer?
These are the opening lines of a video that is part of the November launch of CanadaHelps.org new “Cause Funds” platform Unite for Change. https://uniteforchange.com/en/ There is urgency and emotion in the words and images. Judging from the faces, the audience for this new way of giving is young. The vision behind this new platform is just as bold: to address a crisis in Canadian charitable giving.
The Changes in Ordinary and Exceptional Donations
The majority of Canadians make annual donations to charity. These donations are done online, at the office, to places of worship, in response to a telemarketer, mail or social media appeal, or through a special event. This kind of “ordinary” giving is widespread, and so it creates a feeling of comfortable familiarity.