Downplaying the Estate Tax’s Impact on Charitable Giving, Plus More: Monday’s Roundup
November 16, 2009, 11:15 am
By Maria Di Mento
- National nonprofit associations are misguided in their attempt to get Congress to change the federal estate tax because the tax is not a major factor in charitable giving, argues Bill Beach, the director of the Center for Data Analysis at the Heritage Foundation, on the Washington think tank’s blog. The estate tax will decline to zero in 2010, which many charities say will hamper bequests.
- Most donors don’t give money to needy people on the street because they feel that it’s more effective to contribute to “knowledgeable intermediaries” such as homeless shelters, writes Timothy Ogden, editor in chief of the online publication Philanthropy Action. So why are so many people drawn to the idea of establishing a “connection” with small business owners overseas through a Web site like Kiva, instead of contributing to a knowledgeable intermediary like a microfinance institution, Mr. Ogden asks.
- Beth Kanter, the author and speaker, shows how Wildlife Direct, an organization based in Kenya, is using social-media tools to raise money, on Beth’s Blog.
- With help from Heifer International and other charities, Tererai Trent, a woman from impoverished rural Zimbabwe, will receive her Ph.D. next month, a sign that aid efforts in Africa have led to amazing success stories, writes Nicholas D. Kristof, a columnist with The New York Times.
- “Foundations need to wake up to the needs and potential of rural America and invest more time and attention to building its philanthropic capacity,” writes Todd Cohen, editor of Philanthropy Journal, on the Stanford Social Innovation Review Web site.
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