The Chronicle of Philanthropy

📢 Coming Next Week: America's Favorite Charities Find out which 100 nonprofits raise the most in private support from individuals, foundations, and companies. This exclusive Chronicle of Philanthropy report has the inside scoop on hot causes, new giving trends, and shifting strategies at the most successful fundraising organizations in the country. Don't miss the interactive rankings and expert analysis, and take what America's Favorite Charities have learned to bolster your fundraising!

Philanthropy and nonprofits, big and small, stepped in to help thousands in Western North Carolina in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. A year later they are figuring out how to prepare for the much larger role they must play in addressing future disasters. The Smoky Mountain News, which dug into this complex story, is one of this year’s Philanthropy & Nonprofit Accountability Fellows—a program from the Chronicle of Philanthropy to encourage local reporting on the important role nonprofits play in the lives of every community. We are proud to share the fantastic reporting they produced through our program. Read the stories: 🟣 Frontline philanthropy: Nonprofit aid stepped up in Helene's wake: https://lnkd.in/emCeCbsT 🟣 Listen up: Dogwood Health Trust uses local ties to assess Helene's aftermath: https://lnkd.in/ebR3WM6s 🟣 Pushing through troubled waters: Mountain Projects saves lives after Helene, but sustainability questions remain: https://lnkd.in/epqCmtVJ 🟣 Beyond bureaucracy: When Helene exposed government failures, nonprofits stepped in: https://lnkd.in/ePHdkmAD And learn more about the Chronicle's fellowship program at: https://lnkd.in/e9mrZ48T

Even if all nonprofits are in the same storm, not all are in the same boat — those that have stashed money for emergencies are better protected. Giving experts share three approaches to endowment fundraising to help you save for a rainy day. https://lnkd.in/eDQhjAS9

Following complaints from some conservatives and prominent allies of President Donald Trump, FBI director Kash Patel announced the agency is severing ties with the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League, two organizations that for decades have tracked domestic extremism and racial and religious bias. https://lnkd.in/etEeD-jD

How can data help nonprofit leaders steer through uncertainty? With federal funding cuts, economic instability, and shifting government priorities, nonprofits are facing big decisions. In this complimentary online forum on October 14, hear how leaders are using data to drive programming, fundraising, and budgeting — and how you can do the same. ✅ Free registration 🎥 Recording + transcript available to all registrants Register today at 👉 https://lnkd.in/eqnCrw2r This online event is made possible with support from Amazon Web Services (AWS). #Nonprofits #DataDriven #Leadership #SocialImpact #NonprofitLeadership #MissionDriven #philforum

The ever-elusive philanthropist MacKenzie Scott gave two large gifts last month totaling $120 million to support Black and Native American college students. The gifts appear to be among the first of her donations announced this year. https://lnkd.in/eFm3iAhG #biggifts UNCF Native Forward Scholars Fund

Charitable giving by affluent Americans continues to decline — dropping from 91% in 2015 to 81% in 2024, according to a 2025 Bank of America Study of Philanthropy. But there's a bright spot: volunteering is on the rise, with 43% of wealthy individuals now giving their time — up from 30% in 2020. Why does that matter? Volunteers give twice as much, on average, as non-volunteers. This shift presents both a challenge and an opportunity for fundraisers and nonprofit leaders. The Chronicle's Maria Di Mento reports on the study: https://lnkd.in/eSUzqjSw #Philanthropy #Nonprofits #Wealth #Volunteering #Fundraising

Opinion: Even as more nonprofits struggle to survive, many fail to utilize one of their greatest assets: their fundraisers’ code-switching skills, writes Noel Martin Rubio. https://lnkd.in/eeAja8eD Martin Rubio leads foundation strategy for Mass Mentoring Partnership and is the founder and principal of Future Tense Strategies, LLC.

Opinion: A bipartisan plan to raise the foundation payout rate, and why a modest 1 or 2 percent increase could significantly benefit the nonprofit sector, writes columnist Craig Kennedy. https://lnkd.in/eEShwnjM Kennedy is a senior fellow at the Giving Review and the former president of the Joyce Foundation and the German Marshall Fund.

For donors facing fear and a paralyzing sense of overwhelm when considering the breadth of threats to democracy right now, the Democracy Fund's Joe Goldman shares specific examples of organizations doing critical work and an array of ways that donors can get involved. In his appearance on the Giving Done Right podcast his message is clear: "Courage breeds more courage. Solidarity breeds more solidarity." https://lnkd.in/eYXGsdz6 Center for Effective Philanthropy