June 5, 2018

Gary Mendell channels his pain into relentless efforts to improve treatment, insurance coverage, and public awareness. He has also donated $5 million to the cause — and is raising millions more.

Investors Richard and Melanie Lundquist, part of the latest crop of Giving Pledge signers, have tapped business connections and teamed with Los Angeles’s former mayor to improve education and health care for thousands in the city.

As addiction rates soar, the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation seeks to multiply the power of its $43.5 million fund to combat the problem.

Far more than just a burial ground, the 180-year-old landmark is also a public park and tourist destination with a calendar full of unconventional events.

Grants from big-business foundations flow to causes favored by legislators with clout on issues of company interest, creating what one economist involved in the research calls a “tax-advantaged form of lobbying.”

Neighborhood canvassing using demographic data has netted new, relatively young supporters for 14 stations.

The major-gift-fueled rise in overall dollars donated is masking a fundamental shift in philanthropy: The share of people who give is dropping across all demographics. Are fundraisers doing enough to lock in tomorrow’s donors?

Experts suggest ways to maintain and expand your donor base.

In other news about people in philanthropy, Deepak Bhargava, president of the Center for Community Change, plans to depart after the 2018 midterm elections.

A study of 2,000 organizations found that organizations thrive when charities find a way to allow founders to share their knowledge without getting in the way of a new leader.

See the country’s declining rate of charitable giving by age, income, education, marital status, and religion.

The documentary Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story, one of the foundation’s latest projects, tells the little-known story of how a famous actress invented technologies that helped change the world — and led to the technology behind Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

I’m tired of nonprofits being in service to and subservient to philanthropy. I’m weary and beaten down by the business-as-usual practices in the nonprofit world — it’s working for exactly no one. Not the communities and missions we serve, our nonprofit organizations, or our colleagues at…

I’m tired of apologizing for philanthropy. For our inconsiderate behavior. For our inefficient timelines. For our opaque communication (or entire lack of communication). For our ego-driven fragmentation. And for so much more. The nonprofit world that we are part of has boundless untapped potential…

It started raising money from all over for causes everywhere — and lost its way.

Nearly 1 in 5 donors over all plans to donate more in 2018, according to a new study of more than 1,300 donors by Blackbaud and Edge Research.

The American Heart Association, Nature Conservancy, colleges and universities, and others have started their own funds instead of ceding donations to Fidelity, Schwab, and community foundations that are more typical sponsors.

15 ways to improve your odds of gaining support from small grant makers

To inspire rich millennials to give, be prepared to listen and introduce them to philanthropic mentors.