Reinventing Philanthropy

Several years ago, Eric Friedman decided to donate a substantial percentage of his income to charity. As many people do when making a big decision, he researched the best path he should take to accomplish his goal. After speaking with foundations, consultants, and nonprofit staff members, he found that few could adequately respond to his basic questions: How should donors choose the causes they support? How can donors maximize the impact of their giving?

In Reinventing Philanthropy, Friedman shares the answers he found when exploring the world of charitable giving. What he discovered will help readers combine their business acumen with their compassion, soul-searching, and self-awareness so they can become highly effective donors. While many donors choose to direct their giving based on personal interests and passions, Friedman reinvents the best practices in philanthropic giving and demonstrates how the selection of donation recipients can be based more on maximizing a donation’s benefits to those in need. He also provides specific strategies for effective giving, including the best ways to identify high-performance nonprofit organizations and the most important criteria for selecting causes to support.

Is charitable giving more about satisfying the needs of the donor or those of the recipient? The answer, according to Friedman, is both, and Reinventing Philanthropyprovides the essential tools for maximizing the impact of one’s donations.

“Read this book before you make your next donation to charity! It could make your donation thousands of times more effective. Philanthropy needs reinventing, and that reinvention will have to start with more thoughtful donors. Friedman’s engagingly written book will help you to become one of those more thoughtful donors.”

“Reinventing Philanthropy gives voice to a new generation of individual donors. Not everyone will follow Friedman’s specific path. But if all follow his lead to focus on impact and think bang-for-buck, individual donors will not only reinvent philanthropy, they will change the world.”

“In our increasingly interconnected world, charitable giving has the potential to save and improve millions of lives. Reinventing Philanthropy is an important read for anyone who wants to spend their money wisely and have it make the greatest impact. Filled with practical advice and compelling case studies, the book gives philanthropists a clear roadmap for how to donate more effectively—and, ultimately, achieve transformational results.”

“Like the philosopher Peter Singer, Eric Friedman is a radical utilitarian. But while Singer focuses on how much a person should give—almost everything—Friedman concentrates on what one should give to. He argues that the only legitimate objective of philanthropy is maximizing the wellbeing of humanity, regardless of one’s personal passions. Even readers who are not prepared to entirely abandon their passions will be pressed to rethink their giving, and they will also pick up some tips for good grantmaking.”

“This book will push you to think hard about why you really give: is it to feel good, or to truly change the world as effectively as you can? If you agree with everything in the book, this likely means you didn’t read it very carefully. Lots of controversial ideas to challenge conventions. The world will be a better place if more people take this hard-nosed analytical approach to philanthropy. What we need now is better ongoing analysis of organizations that helps donors act on the ideals put forward here.”

“The most funding often goes to the issues with the best PR groups, with the most scary pictures or with the cutest animals. That needs to change. We need to reinvent philanthropy, to focus on getting the most bang for the buck. Eric Friedman shows you how to think smarter and do better.”

“The norms of charitable giving are too much ‘heart’ and not enough ‘head.’ Reinventing Philanthropy seeks to balance the two, exploring techniques for more effective giving. If you’re looking to become a more effective donor, this book is a must-read.”

No Marketing Info Available