Ask HN: How do you decide where to direct your charitable giving? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: How do you decide where to direct your charitable giving?

4 pointsshaddi3 comments

Or, what makes a charitable project or organization attractive to you? As the holiday season approaches in the US, many individuals and companies step up their giving. For both individuals and companies, what determines how much you'll give and where it will go? How did you discover the organizations to which you currently give? Are you satisfied with how your donations have been used?

For background, I run a tech-focused community organization, and I'm trying to figure out ways to improve our donation revenue this season as we work towards financial self-sustainability. The name's not important here, but you can email me for more info.

I believe there are sites that reiew overhead. That's a first big one...

I donate to things are non-denomniational, but of my religious background. That's a personal choice. They tend to be a top on my list.

Assoicated with children is anohter big one. However it really had to make an impact.

Also I tend to want to give where there is impact where I live. And I can go check in. It is nice to not only make a monetary impact, and also a physical impact.

Also, I was brought up that charity should long term get the person off charity. Teach a man to fish. The charity might end up self-destructing, but that's ok. People get up and fall down, and the point of charity is the helping of the getting up.

Personal views, of course.

I am actually working on a startup to help people decide where to direct their charitable givings to. In the US alone there are over 1 million registered charities. It is very tough for someone to figure out which charity is in line with their beliefs/hopes/aspirations. And on the other side, charities want to get more exposure to the kinds of people that would be interested in donating to them. We want to be in the middle to act as a matchmaker.

Just an opinion, but my wife and I both like Heifer Project, and I also like afsc.org/

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