More Americans are opening up their wallets to give to their favorite causes, but the economic turmoil over the last 10 years has taken its toll.
The growth in charitable giving between 2006 and 2016 has slowed considerable compared to the previous decade, according to The Philanthropy Outlook 2016 & 2017, a report released Tuesday written and researched by the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy and presented by Marts & Lundy, a fundraising and philanthropy consulting firm based in Lyndhurst, N.J. The estimated average annual growth for giving between 2006 and 2016 was 1.1%, far below the 6.6% increase between 1996 and 2006, and still below the rates in the previous two decades (1.7% between 1986 and 1996 and 3.6% between 1976 and 1986).
The average annual growth rate between 1996 and 2006 was exceptionally high, thereby making the subsequent decade seem lower in comparison, a spokeswoman for the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy says. “The growth in charitable contributions during that period reflects robust economic development within the U.S., especially in the mid-to-late 1990s.” And while the growth in total giving in the 2006 to 2016 period was considerably impacted by significant declines in giving during the Great Recession, “the current projected averages are now within normal range for the long-term annual averages,” the spokeswoman adds.
