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Women have been affecting the philanthropic landscape of the US since the founding of the country in 1776. Women have created universities, like Smith College, founded in 1871 by Sophia Smith, and museums like the Museum of Modern Art, co-founded by Lizzie Palmer Bliss. Yet, it has been during the last quarter of a century that women have truly claimed their philanthropy as a means of social change in the US and the world.
Research suggests that women’s giving differs from men’s. Women demand involvement in the institutions that they support, giving not only of their finances, but also of their time and talent. Women seek a connection based on values and give to see creative solutions to problems.
A selection of research findings on women’s philanthropy in the US include:
- Recent studies generally show a reversal of a long-time trend: more women are giving to charities than are their male counterparts, and they are giving away higher percentages of their incomes than are men
- Single women are 37% more likely to be charitable donors than are single men
- Because women live longer than men, they will end up in charge of much of the US$41 trillion expected to pass from generation to generation over the next fifty years
- Gen X women (born 1961-81) are the future of philanthropy. While Prime Time (born 1928-44) and Boomer women (born 1945-60) are actively giving, those institutions that engage the Gen X community will benefit the most.
Overwhelmingly, what defines women’s philanthropy in the US is the passion for a cause. Connecting women to institutions, and to one another, for a collective mission ignites the power that each holds individually. Women’s philanthropy will continue to provide an opportunity for women to create lasting change in their communities locally and those that they partner with throughout the globe.
Sondra Shaw-Hardy is a philanthropy advisor and co-founder of the Women's Philanthropy Institute (WPI) at the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University. Carmen J. Stevens is Director of Philanthropic Services for Falconer Philanthropic Advisors. The authors of this contribution recently released Women’s Giving: A Generational Perspective, their landmark research of women’s giving across three generations of American women.
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