January 2012 giving came in at a 6.4% increase over January 2011, 1.5% better than December 2011, the best month of 2011.

DALLAS (February 21, 2012) – Atlas of Giving today announced results from its January 2012 report on charitable giving. The report outlines charitable giving in the United States from January 2012 and forecasts the upcoming year based on demographic and economic factors. According to the report released by Atlas of Giving, total giving to U.S. nonprofits rose 6.4% for January 2012, totaling 28.55 billion. This was a 1.5% increase over the best month in 2011, which was December. Giving to environmental and nature organizations experienced the largest increase with a growth of 12.3% over January 2011, while the religious sector grew at a modest 3.9% over January 2011.

“The results were better than forecasted, and build on the momentum of the 7.5% U.S. giving increase for 2011,” Rob Mitchell, Atlas of Giving CEO, said. “The continuing strong resurgence is being fueled by the quickening pace of the U.S. economic recovery, the strongest January stock market performance in 15 years, low inflation, unseasonably warm weather and continued improvement in the unemployment picture.” 

“When stock values are high, individuals can make gifts of stock and avoid capital gains tax; grant making foundation portfolios increase making more grant money available, and estate gift values are enhanced.  Low inflation increases giving because individual and corporate donors have more income available. The unseasonably warm weather across the U.S. in January translated into more gifts because less money was being spent by individuals and corporations on snow removal, heating bills, and transportation costs. High unemployment is directly related to charitable giving by individuals, especially small gift donors and participants in special fundraising events. People who are unemployed or fear becoming unemployed suspend their giving activity. After finding work, it takes as many as 24 months before giving activity resumes because people are catching up on delayed maintenance, replacement of household goods, and paying off accumulated debt.  Since individual contributors account for 75% of all giving, any positive movement in employment numbers translates favorably for donations,” Mitchell, explained.

The current forecast indicates that every month in 2012 will be a growth month, better than the same month last year. Giving in 2012 can be expected to grow 4.1% to $360.31 billion, $13.42 billion more than was given in 2011. The forecast is expected to change as events unfold during the year. Natural and man-made disasters, economic events, and many other things affect the velocity and trajectory of charitable giving results. The Atlas of Giving actively monitors the factors affecting giving and provides monthly updates of the forecast to account for these.

Watching the horrific events in Japan unfold on live TV is sobering and sad.  And, it may just be me, but it doesn’t seem like there is a spontaneous and widespread outpouring of American support – yet. 

This is a personal observation, not a professional analysis based on data.  I just don’t feel the momentum of grassroots giving that we have observed in past disasters.  I hope I’m wrong.  I’m not seeing a steady stream of celebrities appealing for our help on TV and radio.  There is not a constant banner running across the bottom of my screen telling me how to help.  I haven’t seen a single web click-ad for a disaster related organization.  The news of the disaster feels crowded out by what’s going on in Libya, the struggles of the Wisconsin state house, and March Madness. 

If my perception of an uninspired giving response is correct, could it be that we don’t feel as compelled to help the 3^rd largest world economic power?  Are we fatigued from our personal economic challenges and other recent disasters?  Or, could it be that since events are still unfolding, we are waiting and hoping that the nuclear mess and body count is not going to get worse? Or, do we still harbor feelings related to Pearl Harbor and WWII? 

I have to admit that it is weird to see the people of Tokyo already going about business as usual while thousands of people are still unaccounted for and three nuclear reactors are in trouble.  The image may be out of context and not a fair portrayal of the Japanese emotional response, but it’s what we see on our televisions. 

The Philanthromax Atlas of Giving team is collecting and analyzing data and will give updates as we have them.  

In the meantime, please do something personally to help the hurting people of Japan.

This horrible disaster will undoubtedly have a significant impact on US Giving.

The American people are the most philanthropic on the face of the earth.  The outpouring of US philanthropic assistance for the Japanese people will be proportionate with the scale of human tragedy in this event. 

Disaster relief organizations will of course experience a significant surge in giving in the coming weeks and months. Other charities and churches that are not soliciting disaster donations should prepare for an immediate downturn in giving that will likely last for several months. The impact of the giving decline will be most acutely felt by nonprofits that rely primarily on small gifts from individuals and those that rely on corporate contributions.   History has shown that individuals and companies will redirect a significant portion of their charitable support toward helping the victims of the tragedy. 

The Philanthromax Atlas of Giving has already begun working on an analysis of the impact of the Japanese disaster on US Charitable Giving.  We are examining monthly giving data following similar events, US economic impact of similar disasters, and specific historical data related to specific organizations and groupings of organizations.  To get this right, we must wait for events to unfold that measure the loss of life, damage to infrastructure, property loss, and impact on the Japanese and global economies.

Subscribers to the Atlas of Giving will receive updates and notifications.  Subscriptions are free at www.atlasofgiving.com.