CEP in the News

Did you donate to charity in the past, but no longer do so?  If the answer is yes, you’re not alone. For the second year in a row, the philanthropy research foundation Giving USA reported that fewer Americans are donating to nonprofits than they...

You don’t hear so much about effective altruism now that one of its most famous exponents, Sam Bankman-Fried, was found guilty of stealing $8 billion from customers of his cryptocurrency exchange. (This spring, at age 32, he was sentenced to 25 years in...

Is your foundation any good? I don’t mean: is it big, or does it give away a lot, or does it run an efficient process, or do the grantees achieve much. Rather, I mean: are you any good at being a foundation? Are you effective? Are you good at finding work that will...

Philanthropy’s constructive critics, financial activists, and virtually all nonprofits have long argued for a dramatic increase in unrestricted grantmaking. Yet grants untethered from funder restrictions and requirements remain relatively rare. As a result, funding is...

Elements of the charitable sector appear to be suffering from long COVID, which impacts those infected for months and even years. New data from the Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP) shows executive and staff burnout top the list of issues. In a new...

For anyone hoping that burnout in the nonprofit sector was a pandemic-era phenomenon that would recede like mask-wearing and social distancing, the latest report from the Center for Effective Philanthropy offers little reason for hope. On the contrary, the center’s...

The murder of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, triggered massive protests around the world against police violence and systemic racism. Those events, in turn, prompted a surge in pledges from corporations, foundations, and wealthy individuals to advance racial equity in...

Much about billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott’s giving remains a mystery, but those receiving grants from her recent open call for nonprofits do offer some insights, experts say. Scott’s grants, announced in March, largely fall in line with her usual themes —...

Grants to create or increase nonprofit endowments represent only a small portion of foundation giving, and the most likely recipients are arts organizations or direct services charities, according to a study released Tuesday. Nonprofits love endowments because of...

Billionaire philanthropist and author MacKenzie Scott announced Tuesday she is giving $640 million to 361 small nonprofits that responded to an open call for applications. Yield Giving’s first round of donations is more than double what Scott had initially pledged to...

Last year was in many ways unremarkable for MacKenzie Scott, one of the most closely watched philanthropists in America. After finalizing her divorce from her second husband in January, Scott kept a low profile. She awarded $2.1 billion in grants, her lowest total...

Some U.S.-based philanthropic funders are changing the way they frame their diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, or DEI — including removing references to Black and other marginalized communities — in an effort to avoid potential legal troubles as...

Foundation leaders’ support for racial equity initiatives appears to be mostly holding steady despite a pair of Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) rulings in June 2023 overturning affirmative action at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina....

In the months right after the Supreme Court ruled on college affirmative-action programs, many foundations examined their own efforts to ensure grants made to advance racial equity weren’t at legal risk, but few found a need to make big changes, according to a study...

Stanford Social Innovation Review Organizational performance depends on thoughtful policies and practices with respect to employees and culture. That may seem obvious, but we have all had our experiences with less-than-stellar situations. The reasons range from...