Market meltdown, credit freeze, economic Armageddon, financial free fall. It’s an economy so bad that economists have come to sound like English majors as they grope for metaphors to describe its severity and depth. In an economic climate this gloomy, philanthropy has also taken a beating.
As organizations at the centre of the philanthropic community survey their members, there is, as one would expect, clear evidence of a decline in overall giving. All this when even those people who have never asked anyone for help and are still reluctant to seek help, who see it as a matter of pride not to – have come forward to call on help lines. There is a PGI – Philanthropic Giving Index just like the Consumer Confidence Index which tends to overreact to good news and bad news. One thing is for sure – although these are very difficult times for a lot of people, this is not a depression. Most people who say we are in another Great Depression didn’t live through the last one. They are being provocative and unnecessarily restless.
Many ordinary people feel fortunate they still have jobs and they come forward to do even more because they see how hard it is for those who are out of work. It is actually the wealthy individuals who made pledges but then incurred significant losses that find it difficult to honour their commitments. In any economic downturn, arts and culture non-profit organizations are often hit the hardest. In addition to the decline in overall giving, individuals and grant makers tend to redirect their donations towards groups that provide food and shelter and other basic needs. They will shortchange the local music or theatre troupe in favour of the food pantry. These are definitely hard times for artists and arts organizations. There is a shift toward health and hunger that may be understandable, but that does put them in jeopardy.
Actually, the arts are not just ornamental. They are not merely good for our souls and our quality of life. They are a smart investment that fuels economic growth. They contribute significantly toward the economy and account for millions of jobs especially in the rural sector. I believe tax laws should be changed to permit social benefit enterprises to receive tax advantages and growth allowed through capital investment. These “hybrid” companies fulfill the missions of traditional non-profits while operating under a for-profit business structure. This proposal would not only provide help to organizations and people in need – it could stimulate investment and speed the overall economic recovery. Another thing is that in hard times and competition, just like businesses become innovative in attracting their customers, so can NGO’s. It reminds me of the blind boy whose sign was changed by a passerby from “I am blind” to “Today is a beautiful day and I cannot see it.” His hat was full of money at the end of the day. Be creative, be innovative, think differently – that’s the mantra. One can visit the site - http://yes-inspirations.blogspot.com/ for more inspirational stories.
From the perspective of all us who are fortunately donors, positivism in attitude is essential. There are many other ways of beating this downturn than shying away from giving. In fact philanthropy means to give till it hurts. Until it hurts it is not true charity. There is also a whole group of social entrepreneurs out there with a lot of pent-up demand to do things. They believe in a triple bottom line: take care of the community, take care of the environment, and earn a profit. They believe that “you can do well and do good at the same time.” In the words of Henry Ford, “If money is your hope for independence you will never have it. The only real security that a man will have in this world is a reserve of knowledge, experience and ability.” As long as we believe that the system will work and we all do our jobs well and do some good in the process, there is a hope and security which we will never lack. The turnaround is bound to happen with good times for all. But this chance of doing good for those in need now may not come again in our lifetimes.
As organizations at the centre of the philanthropic community survey their members, there is, as one would expect, clear evidence of a decline in overall giving. All this when even those people who have never asked anyone for help and are still reluctant to seek help, who see it as a matter of pride not to – have come forward to call on help lines. There is a PGI – Philanthropic Giving Index just like the Consumer Confidence Index which tends to overreact to good news and bad news. One thing is for sure – although these are very difficult times for a lot of people, this is not a depression. Most people who say we are in another Great Depression didn’t live through the last one. They are being provocative and unnecessarily restless.
Many ordinary people feel fortunate they still have jobs and they come forward to do even more because they see how hard it is for those who are out of work. It is actually the wealthy individuals who made pledges but then incurred significant losses that find it difficult to honour their commitments. In any economic downturn, arts and culture non-profit organizations are often hit the hardest. In addition to the decline in overall giving, individuals and grant makers tend to redirect their donations towards groups that provide food and shelter and other basic needs. They will shortchange the local music or theatre troupe in favour of the food pantry. These are definitely hard times for artists and arts organizations. There is a shift toward health and hunger that may be understandable, but that does put them in jeopardy.
Actually, the arts are not just ornamental. They are not merely good for our souls and our quality of life. They are a smart investment that fuels economic growth. They contribute significantly toward the economy and account for millions of jobs especially in the rural sector. I believe tax laws should be changed to permit social benefit enterprises to receive tax advantages and growth allowed through capital investment. These “hybrid” companies fulfill the missions of traditional non-profits while operating under a for-profit business structure. This proposal would not only provide help to organizations and people in need – it could stimulate investment and speed the overall economic recovery. Another thing is that in hard times and competition, just like businesses become innovative in attracting their customers, so can NGO’s. It reminds me of the blind boy whose sign was changed by a passerby from “I am blind” to “Today is a beautiful day and I cannot see it.” His hat was full of money at the end of the day. Be creative, be innovative, think differently – that’s the mantra. One can visit the site - http://yes-inspirations.blogspot.com/ for more inspirational stories.
From the perspective of all us who are fortunately donors, positivism in attitude is essential. There are many other ways of beating this downturn than shying away from giving. In fact philanthropy means to give till it hurts. Until it hurts it is not true charity. There is also a whole group of social entrepreneurs out there with a lot of pent-up demand to do things. They believe in a triple bottom line: take care of the community, take care of the environment, and earn a profit. They believe that “you can do well and do good at the same time.” In the words of Henry Ford, “If money is your hope for independence you will never have it. The only real security that a man will have in this world is a reserve of knowledge, experience and ability.” As long as we believe that the system will work and we all do our jobs well and do some good in the process, there is a hope and security which we will never lack. The turnaround is bound to happen with good times for all. But this chance of doing good for those in need now may not come again in our lifetimes.
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