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Weekly News Recap: June 16, 2017

Vincent Duckworth

Ruth Kelly was a publisher and editor-in-chief of Alberta Venture and Alberta Oil magazines. (John Ulan)

Design is pervasive: what we design is designing us. — Anne-Marie Willis

Philanthropic tools

  • Online raffle tech a game-changer (Winnipeg Free Press) WINNIPEG STORY "For all those under-appreciated hockey moms and community club volunteers — and their organization administrators — tasked with selling raffle tickets for their non-profits, now there’s an app for that." Thanks to Ron Bailey for sharing this story. 6/13/17

News

Tips and tricks

Trends and shifts

  • How Much Money Has Been Going to Ocean Philanthropy? And Who's Giving? (Inside Philanthropy) Ocean philanthropy is on the rise. Yes, just like the oceans themselves. 6/15/17

  • San Diego Unseats Houston As Top Philanthropy City (Nonprofit Times) Congrats to San Diego! Some very interesting stats on charitable regions in U.S. 6/14/17

  • In perpetuity – Canada Games has rules for legacy buildings (Globe and Mail) CANADIAN STORY The Canada Summer Games has a rule that its facilities need to be named in perpetuity. This rule bucks the trend but, as the Canada Games Council (CGC) says, this rule is “non-negotiable”. 6/13/17

  • Tech veterans launch online guide to donation-worthy charities (Seattle Times) This is not your typical charity ranking site. It's beautiful and appears to be relevant and useful. They envision "...acting somewhat like a Google search engine specifically for quality nonprofits and charities [...]. The website and app display information about different types of causes, pulling in articles, local trainings and events, so people can quickly find information about issues they’re interested in supporting." 6/12/17

  • GM to end foundation, redirect its charitable giving (Detroit News) This is worrisome. "General Motors Co. is overhauling its $30-million-a year philanthropy efforts to focus on high-tech education, safety and economic sustainability, a move that has some local nonprofits and arts groups worried about funding cuts." 6/12/17

  • Traditional forms of philanthropy being replaced by a more market-based solutions approach: Roopa Kudva (Live Mint) "On the sidelines of the Asian Venture Philanthropy Network’s 5th annual conference in Bangkok, Thailand, [Omidyar] Kudva spoke about why India is a favoured destination for impact investing, how social entrepreneurship needs to be defined better and the way to deal with talent crunch in the development sector." 6/9/17

  • Is philanthropy catching on among China's super rich? (BBC) "When US billionaires Bill Gates and Warren Buffett held a banquet in China a few years ago to urge fellow tycoons to donate their fortunes to charity, some of their intended targets didn't bother to turn up. The no-shows sparked a fierce debate on social media: are China's super rich really so stingy? By some measures, they are. Total charitable giving in China stands at just 4% of levels in the US or Europe, according to the United Nations Development Programme. Chinese charities have been hit by scandal, and there is widespread mistrust of the private wealth on which much of the giving depends. But according to a new report from Harvard University and the Swiss bank UBS, the picture is far more complex. 'Philanthropy in China today is in a state of expansion, experimentation and evolution,' it said." 6/9/17

  • What Does Segregation Cost? And How Can Funders Counter It? (Inside Philanthropy) "Dividing students, residents or customers by race was outlawed decades ago, but most American neighborhoods remain segregated." 6/9/17

Philanthropic controversy

Philanthropic personalities

  • How Will Sam Simon’s Eccentric Philanthropy Translate to a Foundation? (Inside Philanthropy) Interesting dude. In life and in death. "When The Simpsons co-creator Sam Simon was diagnosed with advanced cancer in 2012, he was already active in philanthropy. Back in 2002, he had started his own charity specializing in a mix of animal welfare and poverty work. But as Simon faced his own mortality, that giving famously sped up, going mostly to animal rights causes in some pretty remarkable ways. For example, he became known for buying and rescuing captive animals from shady roadside zoos and other operations—freeing everything from an elephant in India to 500 chinchillas." 6/8/17

  • A Billionaire Defends Modern Philanthropy (The Atlantic) An interesting take on modern philanthropy from one of the founders of LinkedIn. Some of this you will likely agree with. Some of it you might not. 6/8/17

Life and career hacks

Uncommon knowledge

  • The Tricky Question of Director Benefits (Imagine Canada) CANADIAN STORY Most of us in the nonprofit sector know that we cannot compensate directors on our boards. There is much more to this that you might not know. For more on the tricky bits, read on. 6/13/17

Large gifts

  • Thomas Miles Sr. lynching: Google’s $1M donation amplifies racial justice (Rolling Out) Go Google! On the heels of their 2015 gift of $1 million to the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) and EJI’s recently published 80-page report, “Lynching in America: Confronting the Legacy of Racial Terror” Google.org will donate another $1 million to EJI to support its racial justice work. 6/15/17

  • University of Guelph setting up lab to research Lyme disease with $1.4M donation (CTV) GUELPH STORY This does NOT tick me off! "Is it Lyme disease or not? That's one of the questions the University of Guelph hopes to be better able to answer with a new research lab dedicated to improving testing -- and eventually treatment -- for the tick-borne bacteria that is increasingly affecting Canadians country-wide. [The] Ontario university announced it will be setting up the lab with a $1.4-million grant from the G. Magnotta Foundation for Vector-Borne Diseases, named for Magnotta Winery co-founder Gabe Magnotta." 6/15/17

  • Stevenson Memorial Hospital gets $4M donation (CTV) BARRIE STORY "Honda Canada is donating millions of dollars to support the expansion of Stevenson Memorial Hospital. The Honda Canada Foundation presented the hospital with a cheque worth $4 million [...]. It’s the largest donation the hospital has ever received." 6/13/17

  • ABAC's Ag Literacy Program gets million-dollar donation (ABC) "ABAC received a million-dollar donation to help educate kids about agriculture. The Harley Langdale Junior Foundation committed $1 million over the next four years. The funds will be used to continue the Destination Ag program at the Georgia Museum of Agriculture." 6/13/17

  • Meals on wheels: Fort McMurray Salvation Army gets $600K donation for new vehicles (CBC) FORT MCMURRAY STORY Lovely gift from the W. Garfield Weston Foundation. 6/13/17

  • The Crown Prince Of Abu Dhabi Has Made A MASSIVE Donation To Bill Gates' Polio Eradication Efforts (Lovin Dubai) Wow! "Bill Gates has tweeted his appreciation of a massive donation given by the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi to help eradicate polio. HH Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al Nayhan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces made a personal donation to Gates' charity of USD30 million. The donation was announced [...] in Atlanta at the Rotary Convention, and will be directed to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI)." 6/12/17

  • $500K DONATION MADE TO GRANDE PRAIRIE REGIONAL HOSPITAL FOUNDATION (My Grande Prairie Now) GRANDE PRAIRIE STORY Nice gift! "The Grande Prairie Regional Hospital Foundation has received a large donation from one of the original homesteaders of the city. A $500,000 donation will go to the Key to Care campaign in the late I.V. Macklin and his wife Matilda’s name." 6/12/17

  • Springville receives $2 million donation for upgrades to new aquatic center (Deseret News) "Clyde Companies Inc., an Orem-based construction and insurance holding company, has donated $2 million for upgrades to the city’s new aquatic center, which is currently under construction." 6/9/17

  • Luminato receives $600,000 donation to give boost to emerging artists (Globe and Mail) TORONTO STORY This is a great organization. "Luminato has received a gift of $600,000 spread over three years for projects involving emerging artists. Anthony Sargent, the annual Toronto arts festival’s CEO, says it’s a sign that key supporters are excited not just about a particular show but about the contribution Luminato as a whole makes to the city. The donor insists on being anonymous." 6/8/17

  • TAMUK receives massive donation from Welhausen Foundation (ABC) " It was a happy occasion for faculty and staff at Texas A&M University-Kingsville Thursday as the university announced it will use proceeds from the sale of land to enhance its programs. The land was donated by the J.R. Welhausen estate in 1980 and reportedly sold for an estimated $6 million." 6/8/17

  • St. Elizabeth’s Hospital receives $2.5 million anonymous donation (Belleville News-Democrat) "An anonymous person donated $2.5 million to St. Elizabeth’s Hospital’s capital campaign, which is helping to fund construction of its $253 million replacement hospital in [O’Fallon, Illinois]." 6/8/17

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