So What Exactly Is an Endowment?

Endowment is one of the most misunderstood terms in our charitable sector.   Given the fact that “endowment” lacks a formal legal definition, this should hardly come as a surprise.    There are many who still hold on to the traditional definition of an endowment – that...

Random Thoughts on Philanthropy in Canada

Let’s stop comparing ourselves to Americans when it comes to charitable giving. It is true that on a per capita basis, Americans are more far generous than we are but the truth is that they are miles ahead of every nationality when it comes to...

Corporate Giving: The Decision-Making Process

In the past, I have attempted to dispel some of the basic tenets of corporate philanthropy – namely, that the notion of “corporate philanthropy” is a misguided one because all corporate giving must be driven by building shareholder value and that the values associated with...

Corporate Giving: Don’t Call it Philanthropy

There are many myths and erroneous assumptions about how corporations manage their community investments. The first myth (and probably the most important one to dispel) is the notion of corporate philanthropy – that corporations are entities that share human goals and ideals and are thus...

Canada’s Charities Deserve Better

It’s time to have a frank discussion about charities and their administrative and fundraising costs. Over the past decade, the increasing focus on a charity’s cost of doing business – and yes, charities are in the business of societal betterment – has forced the entire...

Building an Endowment Fund: How Do We Get Started?

Over the last few years, both donors and fundraisers have had the opportunity to consider the notion of endowments and how they might fit into an overall donor development model. Over this time, I have discussed endowments with many people in the charitable sector. What I...

Are Endowments a Lost Soul?

The endowment is a bit of lost soul. It’s a term with no true legal meaning but a whole bunch of different interpretations. It’s a word embraced by some fundraising organizations yet frowned upon by others. Endowments are like perennial flowers – we don’t necessarily...

The Disbursement Quota Rules: Looking Back on the 2010 Changes

The Disbursement Quota is a hot topic in the charitable world.   There are strong advocates for changing the existing rules, most notably raising the 3.5% minimum spending threshold on long-term assets.  So given this renewed attention on the DQ, I thought it might be fun...

Impact of Donor Advised Funds on Canadian Philanthropy: A 2010 Perspective

Over the decade, the influx of commercial donor-advised funds (i.e. DAFs operating under the brand of a financial institution) into the charitable marketplace has raised the eyebrow of many Canadian  fundraising professionals.  Will these DAFs take money away from my cause? While the institutional donor-advised...

Fundraising Strategies

In many sophisticated fundraising organizations, there is still a sharp dichotomy between major and planned gifts. As a fundraising professional, I cannot, for the life of me, understand this how this approach truly benefits the donor. Despite the growing professionalism of the non-profit sector, there...