A kinder, back-to-basics approach to donor relations amounted to a 30 percent increase in contributions for D.C.’s Heritage Foundation.

By Margaret Battistelli Gardner

“What it comes down to is that an organization only has its reputation to bank on,” Walter says. “And Heritage keeps that very tight to its vest. Fundraising does not drive research. Corporations cannot come in and say ‘I want you to do a paper on this.’ If we already have a paper that we’re doing, yeah, we’ll solicit a contribution from a foundation or corporation, but we will not solicit work.”