Philanthropy

I know that this might seem a heavy and 'work-related' topic for a first blog post on a Sunday night.

The difference between giving in the UK and the US intrigues me. Here we do give, but we give less than in the States. Now there are hundreds of arguments about why that is, ranging from wider social security and such like from the Government, to the fact that UKians are just stingier, or that our tax burden is kinda chunky and costs of living are higher which kinda puts us off giving money away.

Whatever, what I find interesting is that conspicuous philanthropy, such as Warren Buffet is much less popular in the UK. Less popular in both ways. Doing and seeing. As well as not giving as much, Brits seem to have something against seeing people very obviously give away lots of money. (Don't believe me, look at this article in the Guardian)

Let's take JK Rowling, one of the richest people here in Scotland. Well, I know that she's given a large sum of money to support Multiple Sclerosis research all over the country, including perhaps a 5 or 6 figure sum to the University of Aberdeen. Interestingly, I don't know how much, and it won't be all that easy for me to find out. Her name isn't on anything, although she did get a doctorate from the University last week.

But we don't like to talk about that. Brits don't seem to want to see people being obvious about giving away money. I think that JK's popularity (but not that of her books) would fall if the amount she had given was more public.

And of course this perpetuates itself. Sir Alan Sugar has always been famously private about the fact that he supports GOSH (Great Ormond Street Hospital) , and yet, through The Apprentice, and his growing public image, it is becoming known. And he is lambasted for the fact that he boasts of his charitability.

There have been a few articles saying that people should keep their charity donations quiet, but think about it, most people in the UK already do. oh sure, you can find it out, if you're looking, but you don't know. What do these grumblers expect? For all of the UK's major donors to stand up and say "I don't make a big deal of the donations I make!" because that would mean they were making a big deal of it. The very fact that you don't see it means that you don't see it.

As ever in life, a balance is needed here. Some people like their donations to be visible to deflect irrational hatred of them and their capitalist ways (this doesn't seem to work, by the way), many make visible donations to encourage others to do the same.

Think of it like this, most capital appeals, where several millions are needed to build something, how do you think they work? Do you think charities approach thousands of people for a hundred pounds? Do you think they approach hundreds of thousands of people for a fiver?

Fact: About half of a capital appeal - building a new hospice, rebuilding a church, whatever, half, comes from the top 5 or 10 donors. The thousands of people count too, but charities need that first kick, the first 5 to 10 major donors to put in the big money, and encourage others to do the same.

We should be encouraging this. According to some figures, over 80percent of Brits give to charity, but this includes charity shops and lottery tickets. Count actual hand in the pocket, money from the bank donations, and the figure is closer to 25percent

Let's applaud donors, not criticise them, lets encourage them, and with them, perhaps others.