NEW YORK — On Tuesday, U.S. donors contributed a remarkable $3.6 billion, reflecting a notable increase from the figures of the past two years, as reported by the nonprofit organization known as GivingTuesday.
Each year, the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, referred to as GivingTuesday, has evolved into an essential occasion for nonprofits to secure funds and engage with their supporters. This initiative originated in 2012 when the 92nd St Y in New York promoted it via a hashtag. Since then, GivingTuesday has transformed into an independent nonprofit that links a global network of leaders and organizations dedicated to fostering charitable giving within their communities.
Asha Curran, the CEO of GivingTuesday, commented on the overwhelming generosity displayed by American citizens. “This just really shows the generosity, the willingness of American citizens to show up, particularly collectively,” she stated. “We are just seeing the power of collective action and particularly collective giving over and over and over again.”
Estimates suggest that this year, approximately 18.5 million individuals donated to various nonprofits, alongside an additional 9.2 million who chose to volunteer. Both volunteer numbers and donations rose by about 4% compared to the 2023 estimates provided by the organization.
Curran emphasized that the overall impact exceeds mere dollar amounts. “For us, it’s not just about the number of dollars,” she explained. “It’s about the number of people who feel like they have agency over the way their communities progress forward into the future.”
To compile their estimates of donations and participation, GivingTuesday utilizes data sourced from donor management software firms, donation platforms, payment processors, and donor-advised funds. Curran mentioned that their approach to these calculations is intentionally conservative.
In the previous two years, nonprofits in the U.S. garnered $3.1 billion each on GivingTuesday, a trend that aligns with broader patterns of charitable giving wherein donation amounts declined in 2022 but remained relatively stable in 2023 once inflation was taken into account.
Predicting current giving trends has proven challenging. According to Una Osili, an associate dean at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, various economic factors are influencing donations in different ways. “At the very same time, there’s a lot of uncertainty, especially around prices, the cost of living, the supermarket toll that people are expecting to continue even though inflation has moderated,” she noted.
Aside from donating or volunteering with nonprofits, individuals are also engaged in their communities through means such as crowdfunding campaigns, political causes, or providing support directly to people within their networks. Tracking charitable donations serves as a crucial method for scholars seeking to understand civic engagement patterns.
“This country is undeniably in a lot of pain and very divided right now,” Curran stated, reflecting on the current societal climate. “And so to have a day that felt as hopeful and as optimistic as yesterday did, I’m sure was not only comforting to me, but to many, many millions of people.”