By Andy Carroll, Exponent Philanthropy

I regularly explore trends influencing philanthropy by spotlighting articles, reports, and essays in the media. I cast a wide net, venturing beyond philanthropy and traditional topics to consider a variety of ideas, innovations, debates, and critiques. Read previous posts in the series  

Proposed Tax Changes and Their Impact

An article in the Nonprofit Law Blog offers a concise summary of tax reform changes proposed in February by Representative Dave Camp (R-MI), the Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee. Among the significant proposals in Representative Camp’s almost 1000-page document is a change to adjusted gross income (AGI) limits on charitable giving, an excise tax on excessive executive compensation at nonprofits, and a payout requirement for donor advised funds. Though the proposed changes have not been enacted into law, the draft will influence discussions and debates of tax reform by Congress in the months ahead.

Women Come Together to Research Needs, Make Giving Decisions

Collective giving by groups of community members is a growing movement, with hundreds of “giving circles” now operating across the country. Each group determines its own goals, member donation amounts, grant sizes, and decision making processes. Many are founded and operated by women. Two recent articles explore how collective giving groups operate, and their impact on the community and the donors themselves.

The nearly 400 members of the Women’s Impact Fund in Charlotte, North Carolina give $1,200 a year to support area nonprofits. Recently the group awarded over $375,000 to five nonprofits in diverse fields. “In a social media twist, members also used their phones to vote by text message and award a flash philanthropy prize of $5,000 to a grant finalist.” Says incoming chair Carolyn Meade, the goal of the fund is “to create informed people who really care.”

In Florida, Pensacola Bay Area IMPACT 100 has recruited over 1,000 women who donate $1,000 a year; the money is pooled to support local nonprofits with grants of $100,000. Women visit each applicant organization, and members vote on recipients. Says Wendy Steele, who founded the first IMPACT 100 organization in Cincinnati, “I was frustrated with some of my talented women friends not involved in giving back to their community. So this was designed to overcome the obstacles that keep women from being involved in philanthropy.”

Climate Change Already Making Impact, According to New Report

A scientific report released in early May, the National Climate Assessment, documents the immediate impact of climate change region-by-region in the United States. “Climate change, once considered an issue for a distant future, has moved firmly into the present,” according to the authors. As one New York Times article summarizes, “The effects of human-induced climate change are being felt in every corner of the United States… with water growing scarcer in dry regions, torrential rains increasing in wet regions, heat waves becoming more common and more severe, wildfires growing worse, and forests dying under assault from heat-loving insects.”

South Florida is particularly vulnerable to damage by climate change, from rising sea levels. An article focusing on Miami Beach offers a vivid illustration of the local impact of this massive phenomenon:

“The sunny-day flooding was happening again. During high tide one recent afternoon, Eliseo Toussaint looked out the window of his Alton Road laundromat and watched bottle-green saltwater seep from the gutters, fill the street and block the entrance to his front door.

‘This never used to happen,’ Mr. Toussaint said. ‘I’ve owned this place eight years, and now it’s all the time.’

Down the block at an electronics store it is even worse. Jankel Aleman, a salesman, keeps plastic bags and rubber bands handy to wrap around his feet when he trudges from his car to the store through ever-rising waters.”

Senior Program Director Andy Carroll writes resources, designs workshops, and facilitates seminars for funders. Andy also dedicates a significant portion of his time to managing our Leadership Initiative that defines, validates, nurtures, and celebrates the many ways philanthropists lead. Andy has 25 years of experience in nonprofit organizations, and he enjoys talking with funders about their questions, interests, passions, and plans for making a difference.