The year-end holidays always serve as a reflection point for me. If you’re like me, the last week of the year is a great time to make your annual charitable donations. Not only can you (and/or your business) help causes you’re passionate about—you can also reduce your 2016 taxable income. Take this opportunity to do something special for your favorite non-profit! This year, why not green your giving? As 2016 wraps up, I am slanting my giving to a few select environmental non-profits. Every year my concern grows about current and future economic, social, and environmental impacts from the changing climate. The recent data about the artic warming are uniquely alarming, especially for those in coastal communities. In 2016, we witnessed unprecedented progress in collective actions from the public and private sectors to acknowledge and address climate change impacts—from the 200+ countries that signed the Paris Agreement—to the trillions of investment dollars shifting to companies with strong environmental, social and governance programs—to state and local efforts—to large businesses increasing their sustainability commitments and disclosures—to the growing number of B Corporations. Some of the U.S. presidential campaign rhetoric and president-elect nominations, on the other hand, cast a pall on the common ground forged in 2016. With uncertainty at the U.S. federal level, the importance of environmental non-profits is greater than ever. From Apple to Leonardo to Zuckerberg—sustainable giving is the thing to do in 2016. As you reflect how to increase your green giving, here are a few questions to ask to help align your giving with what’s most critical—from a sustainability perspective—to you. These questions will help identify what’s important and serve a general strategy to guide you as you select one (or more) environmental charities. All are in need of your support. Many organizations address multiple factors. 5 Factors to Focus Your Green Charitable Donations
Resources for Supporting Climate Resiliency and other Environmental Causes
After you’ve focused on the reasons for giving and have a general strategy, here are some resources about environmental non-profits. Most are national (U.S.) or global. If you want to give locally, use these and the general resource list below to help you with your research and selection process.
A Few of My Favorite Things | 14 Links to Help Make the Most of Your Donations Many organizations provide other tips and resources to guide your charitable giving. Here are a few of my favorites—first focusing on general (primarily individual) donations; and, secondly, on corporate philanthropy. General Charitable Donation Resources Here are six general resources to guide your charitable donations.
And a couple newer—slightly contrarian—perspectives that I like.
Resources for Business to Consider and Boost Charitable Engagements: Here are six resources to guide your corporation’s charitable donations and engagement.
What other tips or resources would you add to this list? I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts in the comments below. Thank you for reading my post. Here at Corporate Sustainability Advisors LLC blog and at LinkedIn, I regularly write about organizational, community, and personal sustainability. If you would like to read my future posts then please click 'Subscribe to Blog' and feel free to also connect via Twitter and Facebook.
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AuthorHi. I'm Colleen, Corporate Sustainability Advisor's founder and owner. Blogging about corporate sustainability trends, benefits, and best practices. Archives
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