As a follow on to our last post on recommendations for good philanthropy-related reading, we wanted to let you in on the final results from Tactical Philanthropy‘s giving carnival on the topic, which features our post (yay!) along with some other great recommendations.
So start those Wish Lists at Barnes and Noble and turn off the TV…we’ve all got a lot of good reading to do!
As Britton said, “Lisa, do you know that you just used the phrase ‘blogging buddy’ and ‘blogging carnival’ in one e-mail? What is that? You’re killing me over here.”
So, in response to Sean’s request on Tactical Philanthropy for “philanthropy book recommendations relevant to donors or to people who care about the field of philanthropy,” the women of Washington Area Women’s Foundation have proposed the following tomes for your consideration:
She also recommends Inspired Philanthropy: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Creating a Giving Plan by Tracy Gary and Melissa Kohner. “Love this book,” she says. “An excellent workbook for anyone interested in becoming more strategic and engaged in their personal giving.”
Nisha just heard about a new book, The Foundation: A Great American Secret by Joel Fleishman, which she says, "Sounds like a worthwhile read for those of us working in philanthropy, with information about the historical context of foundations, as well as questions to consider in improving the way foundations operate at present and in the future."
Happy reading!
And we’d love your comments or thoughts on the books we’ve proposed–or other books on philanthropy you’d recommend!
Philosophers wonder about the chronological concerns of chickens and eggs. Those in Homeland Security wrangle the line between safety and liberty. Corporate CEOs debate strategies for getting a bigger slice of the market. Politicians ponder the make-up of the swing voter’s brain.
We in the non-profit world think a lot about results—and how you measure something as intangible and nebulous as social change. Counting participants or dollars given or even change in individual lives is one thing—but for those interested in measuring the impact of a movement, of societal change, well, what’s the yard stick? Behavior can’t be counted, and multiplier effects aren’t nearly as numerical as they sound. How do you measure the impact of a financial literacy class taught to 25 women over their lifetimes, over knowledge transmitted to their children, over decisions made generations from now?
Well, I’m sure I don’t need to tell you this, dear loyal readers, since I am sure that after last week’s endorsement of Grey’s Anatomy, you went straight home last night to curl up and watch.
But, for those of you who were caught up in the second winter storm of the year here in Washington, never fear. Your update is here.
Indeed, Grey’s is still going philanthropy, with Dr. Bailey running to and fro, among residents, interns and chiefs, to cull support for her new pet project, a free clinic to provide health care for those who can’t afford it.
Everyone is nearly as shocked as she is, considering her usual approach of quelling any overly emotional medical practices with a dirty look and a strict reprimand.
The resounding echo seems to be, "But why? You’re a surgeon. You operate. You don’t care."
But it all becomes clear when she explains to her colleagues, "I need more. I need to believe that medicine can do more than save lives. That it can change lives. I need to believe in something."
With the first appeals of resistance therefore rebuked, the next wave of opposition comes in the form of, "But how will you fund it?"
In T.V.-land though, where there is a will–and an intern with a newly inherited $8.7 million–there is always a way.
Some may see it as just a convenient, cheesy plot twist.
To the trained eye though, Bailey’s taking inspiration from Izzy is evidence of the power of giving together–and just how contagious being a model of compassion and social change can be.
Because at Seattle Grace, it’s not just the germs that are catching.
Might as well learn something from our mistakes.
But why not both?
Many former Peace Corps volunteers, adventurers and otherwise purpose-driven folk, have fulfilled this obligation early on in life and then moved on to more lucrative opportunities.
And some of the world’s most powerful do-gooders clearly established themselves on career paths built far more around financial ambition than saving the world.
I love Grey’s Anatomy, even more than I love Google and Goodsearch. I agree completely with Oprah, when she says, "If you’re not watching Grey’s, you’re nowhere."
Indeed.
And now there’s even more to love, because they’re taking on some philanthropy-related issues through one of my favorite characters, Izzy.
Background (for those of you who don’t watch it yet, but will, after this resounding endorsement blog): Izzy is a surgical intern, and is always in trouble because she’s getting too emotionally involved with her patients (For you old schoolers out there, think female version of Dr. Carter in ER). In sum, she fell in love with one, got engaged, he died but left her with $8.7 million which she, last night, used a portion of to pay for a life-changing but uninsured operation for a young woman.
At which point Dr. Bailey, her resident, got very, very angry. "You are still too emotionally involved," she said, with great authority, because she’s Dr. Bailey.
But in the end, Izzy gave a speech which, to me, summed up the heart and soul of good giving.
"I’m both," she told Bailey. "I’m a surgeon, and I’m someone who gets emotionally involved. I’m both. And I won’t apologize for it."
Good for you Izzy. Because doing good and good giving are about just that…"first with the head, then with the heart"*…
*Shout out to Bryce Courtenay’s The Power of One.
It’s been a big week for the little guy (or gal) of philanthropy this week, it seems, between two of my favorite bloggers, Dollar Philanthropy and Tactical Philanthropy discussing giving plans and options for those who may be in the market to give $10 instead of $25,000.
Not to mention Claudia Thorne’s inspiring piece in the Washington Post about how you don’t have to have Oprah’s money to feel the Oprah-level joy of giving.
As a girl who hasn’t yet made her millions, and has been around non-profits long enough to have a clear sense of just how powerful money can be when used strategically, effectively and with the best interests of communities and clients in mind–and also how it can do very little good at all when it’s not–I’ve been thinking, talking and doing a lot more about my own personal giving and what strategies are the most effective when you don’t have enough to just up and build a $40 million school in South Africa.
Do you take what little you do have and break it up for various organizations and causes? Or put all your bets on one horse and hope it’s the right one? What about when you know that you’ve found a few excellent, effective organizations and can’t decide between causes you’re very committed to? Do you give to the little start-up to help it get off the ground and scale up, or do you fund the already-accomplished, established organization with years and years of experience behind it?
If I’m not carried away, that creeping sense of smallness can rapidly take over, and lead me away from the idea of giving entirely. What’s $50 after all, compared to $5,000, $50,000 or half a million?
Sean’s post on Philanthropic Planning on $10 a Week offers some great suggestions (including, of course, giving circles such as those found here at The Women’s Foundation) and Dollar Philanthropy in general is a bastion of welcome ideas for and attitudes on giving at any level.
So, for the rest of you out there, what say you?
What thoughts, ideas, experiences or insight do you have for those of us who may have less to give, are new to the concept of giving or are starting to re-examine our giving practices and principles? What have been the various paths you’ve taken to giving, and what have been the most rewarding (or not) experiences you’ve had?
Let’s take a moment for some giving mentoring and share the wealth (of knowledge and questions) that’s out there in our community about various giving strategies, approaches and attitudes.
(I can’t be the only one who’s wondering, right?)
I love Will Smith. And I loved his new movie, Pursuit of Happyness.
I guess I just hope that the many who see this movie will keep in mind–as they watch this story of the daily struggle that low-income, single parents go through to move themselves and their children to better lives–that typically this is a woman’s story.
That movies are usually made because they’re unusual, and not about the realties we see every day.
2006 hasn’t been a bad year for us girls.
Whew, see how time flies when you’re making a difference and changing lives?
I love Google.
Possibly too much. I’m an addict. If they had Google Anonymous, I would probably need to go.
This occurred to me one night when I asked my husband what we should have for dinner, and he responded, “I don’t know, but I’m sure you could find the answer on Google.”
I believe I can find the answer to anything on Google. I’m one of those people who helped Google become a verb.
Which is why it’s funny for me to think back to the day when I first met Google. My friend Heather had just come back to Benin from her home leave when we were Peace Corps volunteers.
“You’re not going to believe this thing they have now,” she said, in the conspiratorial way we talked now about the crazy things they were cooking up “over there” while we were in Africa. “It’s called Google, and you can find anything.”
“Yeah, right,” I said. I was just fine with my Excite search engine. And I felt that Google was probably some sort of a phase, much like I had thought the Internet would be when I first heard about that.
Little did I know that years later, my Homepage would default to Google, my e-mail address would be @gmail.com and I’d be shopping through Froogle while getting my news from Google News.
All of this, even though I’m fairly certain that the government is somehow using all of this information to spy on me.
It’s worth it. I’ll never go back, said I.
Until a few days ago, when Dollar Philanthropy turned me on to Goodsearch.
What, said I, surfing that serves? C’est possible?
Indeed, it is.
Goodsearch is a search engine, powered by Yahoo!, that gives approximately a penny per search to any charity or school when a user designates it as their favorite. To bring that to scale, if a charity has 100 supporters who each do two searches a day, the non-profit would earn about $730 a year. If you have 10,000 supporters, well, that would be $73,000.
Seek, and they shall fund, I guess.
So it’s time to re-align your homepage, switch search engines and get ready to give. Because as of today, Washington Area Women’s Foundation is listed as a non-profit on Goodsearch!
If I can make the switch, anyone can.
Just type in Washington Area on the home page, click Verify, and then search as you normally would.
You get information, and the good feeling of knowing that the more you learn, the more women’s programming in the Washington area earns!
So make the change. I did it, and the withdrawal symptoms have been minimal. I promise.