Smart Giving
Matching Gifts, Donor-Advised Funds and Other Ways to Multiply Your Giving
Employer matches, donor-advised funds, appreciated stock and steady monthly gifts can make the same budget go further. Here is how each one works.
All guides
Practical, evergreen articles on smart giving, humanitarian aid, volunteering and running a small nonprofit. 10 guides and counting.
Smart Giving
Check charities, understand the numbers and make every gift go further.
Smart Giving
How to Verify a Charity Before You Donate
A step-by-step checklist for confirming a charity is real, registered and well run before you give, plus the red flags that signal a scam.
Humanitarian Aid
How relief, clean water, mobility and education programs work on the ground.
Humanitarian Aid
Supporting Orphan and Child Education Programs Responsibly
Helping vulnerable children is one of the most generous instincts in giving. Here is how to make sure your support strengthens families and schools instead of causing harm.
Humanitarian Aid
Clean Water Projects: Wells, Pumps and Why Maintenance Matters
Building a well is the easy part. Keeping water flowing for years depends on testing, community ownership, spare parts and a realistic maintenance plan.
Humanitarian Aid
Wheelchair and Mobility Aid Donation Programs: How They Work and What Makes Them Effective
A wheelchair is only helpful if it fits the person and the terrain and can be repaired. Here is how effective mobility aid programs work and what to ask before supporting one.
Humanitarian Aid
How International Humanitarian Aid Actually Reaches People
Needs assessments, coordination, procurement, last-mile delivery and cash assistance: a plain-language look at how aid really gets from a donor to a family in crisis.
Volunteering & Community
Organize donation drives and choose volunteer roles that genuinely help.
Volunteering & Community
Volunteering Abroad vs. at Home: An Ethical Guide
Volunteering can do real good or quietly cause harm. Compare volunteering abroad and at home, and use our checklist to vet any placement before you commit.
Volunteering & Community
Winter Relief and Emergency Drives: How Community Donation Drives Are Organized
Coat drives and emergency collections work best when they start with a receiving partner and a clear list of needs. Here is how to plan one that genuinely helps.
Running a Nonprofit
Start, govern and report on a small nonprofit with confidence.
Running a Nonprofit
Understanding Nonprofit Overhead: Why “Low Overhead” Isn’t Everything
Overhead ratios are easy to compare and easy to misread. Here is what the numbers mean and what to ask instead.
Running a Nonprofit
Starting a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit: A Step-by-Step Overview
Before you incorporate, decide whether you need a new organization at all. Then follow the core steps from state filing to IRS recognition and annual reporting.