Care to take a break to look at the big picture? The Giving USA Foundation, (a nonprofit whose mission is "advancing the research, education and public understanding of philanthropy") recently released its annual survey of giving trends and amounts.
Some highlights:
Some highlights:
- Not surprisingly, giving is down, by 2%.
- Surprisingly, among the hardest hit are those charities that provide for basic human needs like food, shelter, and clothing.
- There's some good news: Overall giving is still over $300 billion per year, or 2.2% of U.S. GDP -- a historically strong amount, and a good indicator that people still want to give to the extent they can.
