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Philanthropy is changing—fast. Policy shifts, economic pressure, evolving donor expectations, and new technologies are reshaping how nonprofits operate. Philanthropy Today delivers clear analysis, relevant trends, and straight talk to help you stay ahead. No fluff. No panic. Just what’s happening now—and what it means for your mission.
We spend enormous amounts of time talking about our missions and values, but we don’t always talk about the culture that determines whether those values actually come to life.
A widow lost her entire deduction because a museum left one sentence out of a thank-you letter. Your acknowledgment template may be doing the same thing right now, and nobody will ever tell you.
Most nonprofits have never read the document their biggest donors read first. Your Form 990 lists what you paid people, not what you accomplished, and major donors, foundations, and estate attorneys are reading it right now. You can’t change the filing. You can claim your nonprofit profile free, add your mission, your outcomes, and your legacy giving contact, and stop letting a tax form speak for you.
The Form 990 asks what an organization spent last year. It does not ask what its leaders did before they got here. Treasury is weighing new disclosure rules for nonprofit officers. They address the wrong half of the problem — and the public record still won’t show you the difference.
A donor just printed an article listing eight hard questions to ask her favorite charity before naming it in her will. Yours may be on that list. In a few weeks she’s going to call, and one conversation will decide it. Most nonprofits fail this test and never learn they failed — because a bequest that quietly goes elsewhere sends no rejection letter.
Most nonprofit trustees approve the annual Form 990 without realizing it is far more than a tax filing. It is a public governance report scrutinized by donors, journalists, regulators, and watchdogs. Learn the sections every board member should review, the risks of overlooking them, and how the Form 990 can strengthen both accountability and public trust.
As the United States retreats from foreign aid, China and the Gulf states are stepping into the vacuum, winning the loyalty of the world’s fastest-growing populations. Former intelligence officer Allison Yezril argues that America’s private foundations—Gates, Rockefeller, Mott—are now the last credible voice of American ideals abroad. The question is whether American donors will rise to wield it.
The natural instinct when online antisemitism spikes is to fund awareness. But fighting digital hate is infrastructure work, not awareness work — and the gap between an online post and a physical attack has shrunk to zero. Removing 67% of antisemitic content takes analysts and software, not outrage. Funders who skip the back-end are wiping down the counters while the pipe keeps bursting.
As resources dwindle and donors become more selective, nonprofit cooperation — not competition — is the way forward. With the right mindset, creativity, and a shared commitment to mission, organizations can turn perceived barriers into opportunities for alignment rather than division.