Dear Friends and Colleagues:
The Center on Wealth and Philanthropy in conjunction
with the Association of Fundraising Professionals
have
just issued the following press release detailing the
current state of 2009 household charitable giving
which was down five percent from 2008 levels.
I have included the full release below for your
information. We hope to see a rebound in charitable
giving in 2010 and will continue to provide you with
periodic updates based on the forecasts for upcoming
quarters.
Cordially yours,
Paul G. Schervish
FOR RELEASE: Immediate
CONTACT:
Michael Nilsen
Senior Director, Public Affairs
Association of Fundraising Professionals
(425) 890-6628
mnilsen@afpnet.org
Patricia Delaney
Deputy Director
Office of News and Public Affairs
Boston College
(617) 552-3352
delaneyp@bc.edu
Authors:
John Havens, john.havens@bc.edu
Paul Schervish, paul.schervish@bc.edu
Center on Wealth and Philanthropy
Boston College
617-552-4070
HOUSEHOLD CHARITABLE GIVING DOWN
FIVE PERCENT FROM 2008
Totals in 2010 Projected to Rebound by 3-4
Percent
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. (May 27, 2010) - Individual
charitable giving in 2009 amounted to $217.3 billion, a
decline of $11.2 billion or 4.9 percent from the
estimated $228.5 billion total in 2008, according to the
latest report by researchers at the Center on Wealth
and Philanthropy at Boston College and published by
the Association of Fundraising Professionals. This 5%
decline is in addition to the 6 percent decline that the
Center calculated for 2008.
For 2010, the researchers project annualized
individual giving totals (also known as household
giving) will range between approximately $222 billion
and $227 billion, an increase between 3 and 4.5
percent over the estimated total for 2009. The
projected growth is based on analysis of the first two
quarters according to scenarios that assume relatively
low and high economic growth.
The full report, which will be published in the
July/August 2010 issue of Advancing Philanthropy, the
magazine of the Association of Fundraising
Professionals. The report's findings are based on
estimates produced quarterly by the Individual Giving
Model developed and housed at the Center on Wealth
and Philanthropy. It is the nation's first model designed
to estimate future and real-time charitable giving by
households on a quarterly basis.
The Individual Giving Model estimates how the most
recent changes in financial resources affect the
aggregate level of household giving which excludes
charitable giving from foundations, corporations or
bequests from estates. The IGM is designed to be
calibrated annually and modified every three months
based on data that are released quarterly or more
frequently, such as price and market indices, along
with components of income and net worth.
Launched last year, the IGM was constructed by CWP
Senior Research Associate John J. Havens and
Director Paul G. Schervish to provide more current
and potentially more accurate indicators of how
charitable giving is progressing on a national basis.
This is especially useful for charities and other
fundraisers, which previously had to rely on annual
estimates. This is the second estimate report issued
based on the IGM.
For the new report, Schervish and Havens expanded
and recalibrated the IGM based on information
available as of April 15, 2010. The findings are based
on data from the Federal Reserve, the Bureau of
Economic Analysis, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the
National Association of Realtors, Standard and Poor's,
Dow-Jones, and a variety of other sources of data in
the public domain.
"The Individual Giving Model is still in the
development and testing stage but we believe the
model's estimates nevertheless provide near real-time
guidance concerning the state of individual charitable
giving," said Havens.
"We're very optimistic about the growth in charitable
giving in 2010 predicted by the Individual Giving
Model," said Paulette V. Maehara, CFRE, CAE,
president and CEO of AFP. "The research developed
by the Boston College Center on Wealth and
Philanthropy certainly corresponds with what
fundraisers experienced last year and what we're
seeing so far in 2010. I believe the Giving Model will
be an important tool for fundraisers, especially as it is
refined even further in the future."
"I share Paulette Maehara's optimism,"said Schervish.
"2010 may just turn out to be the beginning of good
news for fundraisers and charities. But it may not be
until 2011 that we see the amount of individual giving
returning to its pre-recession 2007 purchasing
power."
As Havens explained, "Our IGM shows that individual
giving declined in real purchasing power an additional
5 percent in 2009 over and above the 6 percent loss in
2008. So it will be some time before we can reverse
these declines. Fortunately, charitable giving in the
first two quarters of 2010 seems to be on an uptick.
However, growth may not continue the rest of the year
if the fiscal crisis in Europe brings a second
recessionary dip to the United States."
The Center on Wealth and Philanthropy (CWP) is a
multidisciplinary research center specializing in the
study of spirituality, wealth, philanthropy, and other
aspects of cultural life in an age of affluence. Founded
in 1970, CWP is a recognized authority on the relation
between economic wherewithal and philanthropy, the
motivations for charitable involvement, and the
underlying meaning and practice of care. For more
information, visit www.bc.edu/cwp or call 617-552-
4070.
The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP)
represents over 30,000 members in 212 chapters
throughout the world, working to advance philanthropy
through advocacy, research, education and
certification programs. The association fosters
development and growth of fundraising professionals
and promotes high ethical standards in the fundraising
profession. For more information, go to
www.afpnet.org.