Category Archives: Effective giving

Try not to judge a charity by its admin costs alone

Posted on December 18, 2017 by

Producing the kind of data donors would like is hard and expensive, but not impossible This article first published in the Financial Times. We kept overheads low, boasts Camila Batmanghelidjh in her book published last week  about how and why … Continue reading →

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What is evidence-based philanthropy?

Posted on April 18, 2017 by

This five-minute video is Caroline’s take on what evidence-based philanthropy is, and how it’s similar to and different from evidence-based medicine. Filmed on a park bench…with Oxford-Cambridge boat race crews practising in the background.

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Breaking the hunger cycle for the price of a bus ticket

Posted on March 7, 2017 by

Modern philanthropists adopt an evidence-based approach This article first published in the Financial Times. The Christian tradition of giving things up for Lent comes, it is said, from making a virtueof necessity. Last year’s harvest, gathered in the autumn, would … Continue reading →

Posted in Effective giving, Great charities, Impact & evaluation | 1 Comment

Why are there so many charities?

Posted on January 24, 2017 by

This article first published in the Financial Times. Donors encourage smaller organisations — but does that help beneficiaries? There are 165,000 registered charities in England and Wales alone, which people often say is a lot. But is it? Moreover, it … Continue reading →

Posted in Donor behaviour & giving stats, Effective giving | 1 Comment

Don’t spread the love with your Christmas charity giving

Posted on December 11, 2016 by

This article first published in the Financial Times. One big donation will be more effective than several smaller ones Would you prefer to receive one big present this Christmas, or lots of little ones? Your inner child will tell you … Continue reading →

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How impact measurement can be more useful

Posted on November 15, 2016 by

This article first published in Civil Society Magazine.  Most of the impact data charities gather does not help raise funds or improve performance This opinion piece is a response to an article titled How do you measure the value of … Continue reading →

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What makes philanthropy succeed? – potentially revealing analysis

Posted on November 14, 2016 by

Remarkably little is known reliably about how to do philanthropy well – how to use it to achieve particular aims – despite philanthropy’s long and varied history. Giving Evidence (and others) is trying to fix this – to create reliable … Continue reading →

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When charitable donations cost more than they give

Posted on November 8, 2016 by

Popularity contests for funding waste time and resources This article first published in the Financial Times. Some charitable donors are a net drain: they cost organisations they seek to help more than they contribute. Others come pretty close, costing nearly … Continue reading →

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How to give it: Why charity should begin in the science lab

Posted on April 3, 2016 by

This article first published in the Financial Times. Not all charities are good causes. This may sound surprising, because we’re used to thinking of them all as being somehow virtuous, but they vary in their effectiveness. Smart donors know that … Continue reading →

Posted in Donor behaviour & giving stats, Effective giving, Impact & evaluation | 3 Comments

Oops: we made the non-profit impact revolution go wrong

Posted on March 7, 2016 by

By Caroline Fiennes and Ken Berger, managing director of Algorhythm.  The non-profit ‘impact revolution’ – over a decade’s work to increase the impact of non-profits – has gone in the wrong direction. As veterans and cheerleaders of the revolution, we are both … Continue reading →

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