News/Stats/Studies

Despite the dreary economy, the nonprofit sector in Maryland is growing, with jobs and nonprofit startups both on the rise, a new study says.

While the state endured a drop in total employment of 3.2 percent in 2009, nonprofit jobs were up 2 percent, says the report from Maryland Nonprofits. And over the five-year period from 2004 to 2009, nonprofit employment rose 9.5, compared to a decline of 2.1 percent in overall employment in Maryland.

Aid flows from OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) donor countries totalled USD 129 billion in 2010, the highest level ever, and an increase of 6.5 percent over 2009. This represents about 0.32 percent of the combined gross national income of DAC member countries. While the 2010 figures demonstrate a commitment to the neediest countries, they also confirm that some donors are not meeting targets they set.

Looking ahead, a recent OECD survey shows that most donors plan to increase aid over the coming three years, though at a sharply reduced pace.

Here are key findings from the 2010 Nonprofit Fundraising Survey:

• Fewer nonprofits reported decreased contributions.
• Online giving increased at 58 percent of the organizations.
• Major gift and events income increased for half of the nonprofits.
• Many organizations received contributions for general operating expenses.
• 52 percent of the organizations received a significant portion of funds during the last quarter of the calendar year.
• The majority of participants expect contribution levels to increase in 2011.

The country's more than 76,000 grantmaking foundations gave an estimated $45.7 billion in 2010, virtually unchanged from 2009. According to Foundation Growth and Giving Estimates (2011 Edition), released today by the Foundation Center, 2010 giving remained just 2.1 percent below the record high of $46.8 billion awarded by foundations in 2008, despite the fact that foundation assets were still close to 10 percent below their 2007 peak.

Thirty-one percent of foundations that give money to improve people’s health direct at least half of those grant dollars to poor communities, according to a new study by the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, a watchdog group in Washington, D.C.

Meanwhile, 4 percent give at least a quarter of their health grants to advocacy and organizing work.

A recent study conducted on behalf of Harvard University's Institute of Politics found that around a third of four-year college students said using online tools like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube has a greater impact than in-person advocacy.

The "Survey of Young Americans' Attitudes toward Politics and Public Service" study, conducted by Knowledge Networks in February, found that 32 percent of college students with Facebook accounts believe advocating for a political position using online tools has more of an impact than advocating in-person.

Driven largely by giving to international disasters, online fundraising grew 14 percent in 2010 after falling in 2009, a new report says. Excluding international online giving, which grew 163 percent, online fundraising grew 10 percent, says the 2011 eNonprofit Benchmarks Study by M+R Strategic Services and NTEN.

Based on data from 40 nonprofits, the report also says the response rate for fundraising e-mail fell 19 percent on average to 0.08 percent in 2010, while the response rate to advocacy e-mail fell 7 percent on average to 3.3 percent.

The State of the Plate survey of more than 1,500 churches across the country found 43 percent saw an increase in giving. On the other hand, 39 percent of the churches surveyed actually saw their giving decrease, perhaps many believe in this uncertain economy they can't afford to give.

A recent study, “Harnessing Corporate Philanthropy to Educate the World’s Poor,” conducted by the Center for Universal Education finds that every year, American corporations contribute nearly half a billion dollars for education in developing countries. This estimate shows that, in the aggregate, U.S. corporations constitute a significant source of financial resources for education in developing countries. In fact, they are the 7th largest donor after the World Bank, France, Germany, United States, Netherlands and Japan.

Fundraisers have long worried about a possible downside to corporate-charity marketing deals — that people who buy a special brand of yogurt or computer or stuffed animal because a retailer promises to give a small percentage of the purchase price to a good cause will figure they have met their charitable obligation and not give as much in direct donations.

It turns out the worries are warranted, according to new research from the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business.