‘Tis the season to do some extra good. If you’re not already set on a charitable cause (aside from, say, a sibling with a business idea that’s a Sure Thing), start by checking out Charity Navigator (www.charitynavigator.org). This independent organization is working “to advance a more efficient and responsive philanthropic marketplace by evaluating the financial health of America’s largest charities.”
What I like about it is how you can explore categories such as Health, Education, the Environment, Arts, Culture and Humanities, etc., zone into a specific city or region, cross-reference results as a function of a comprehensive ratings system (financial ratios on organizational efficiency and capacity), and filter further according to such characteristics as Donor Privacy, CEO Pay and even Mission Statements that have not been simply lifted rote from a website but researched and confirmed in the process of independent evaluation.
Time Magazine named Charity Navigator as one of its “50 Coolest Websites”, and the only one in the Philanthropy category. Good stuff, and if nothing else it makes for an interesting read, especially with all the peripheral data including: “Not-for-Profit theaters contributed more than $1.46 billion to the U.S. economy in 2004 … an oak tree produces about 50,000 acorns in a good season; only a handful actually survive in just the right conditions to grow into trees … [and this one I found a bit startling] one of every six children in America lives in poverty.”
Posted by: Colin Mangham