Working to Give: Philanthropies & Philanthropic Work

It’s always lovely to see when people learn something in school and then actually put it to use. At the University of Notre Dame they have a class called Philanthropy: Society and the Common Good which has partnered with the Philanthropy Lab to evaluate local nonprofits.

The students worked in teams of five researching various nonprofits, conducting online research and going to site visits. They then awarded $83,000 to six local organizations. The organizations included: the food rescue organization Cultivate; Neighbor to Neighbor which fosters relationships among immigrant and non-immigrant populations; The Elkhart Education Foundation which offers free school supplies for teachers and others; Dismas House which houses ex-offenders with students; A Rosie Place for Children which is a respite care program for children with medical issues; and Imani Unidad which has risk counseling and HIV/STD prevention and education services.

It was a program and an outcome that should certainly be emulated in other locations.

We all know that the American Red Cross (ARC) collects blood and helps during disasters. But what do they do?

Red Cross Preparedness Courses

The Red Cross teaches courses to prepare people for everyday medical emergencies. There are CPR, First Aid, water safety and caregiving courses. There is a course to become a nurse’s assistant and there are courses for treating adults and for treating children. Participants in these courses receive a certificate upon completion. Many of these courses can be taken online but may need practice sessions to be conducted with an instructor.

Red Cross Blood Collection

Did you know that 4.5 million Americans would die each year without lifesaving blood transfusions? In fact, every 3 seconds someone in the United States needs a blood transfusion: 32,000 pints of blood per day are given to patients. The ARC collects approximately 40% of the blood donated in America while the rest is donated at hospitals and other blood banks. The American Red Cross, with over 300,000 volunteers, can undertake the massive project of collecting and distributing this amount of blood. The ARC also collects blood platelets and plasma in order to save lives. It’s important to mention that 82% of the ARC members are volunteers. This cuts the costs of all ARC activities and enables the major programs to function within financial constraints.

American Red Cross Disaster Relief

Another of the Red Cross’s major functions is disaster relief. When disaster strikes, victims are happy to receive whatever help they can get.  Each year the American Red Cross (AMC) helps people in more than 60,000 disasters, such as apartment and home fires, floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, hazardous material spills, and others.

Hurricane Katrina was one of the worst hurricanes to hit America during the last 50 years. It claimed over 1,800 lives, and over 81 billion dollars of damage, including 350,000 damaged or destroyed residences.

During the disaster, The Red Cross:

Enabled over 3.8 million overnight stays in shelters.

Served over 68 million meals and snacks.

Served a million meals in one day.

Provided emergency financial aid to 1.4 million families.

Opened a website for people to register and find their missing relatives.

The Red Cross is an organization that has done and will do a lot of good through its preparation for emergency courses, its blood collecting, and its disaster relief assistance.

Sustainable architecture has a lot to offer in so many realms.   First, it can actually impact the way individuals and societies see the environment since architecture has, historically, been responsible for shifting the cultural norm.  For example, an architect can choose to make the building green or not but just be certain to make it as attractive as possible.  That way, people will be excited by it.

Tokyo-based architecture professor and well-respected architect Kengo Kuma is all about sustainability in his design of low-rise buildings.  Through his firm Kengo Kuma & Associates, he builds structures with locally-sourced and sustainable materials including bamboo and wood.  He also believes that architecture can “touch [our] hearts,” and that architects have the power to “inspire people.”

Retired architect Moshe Victor Keinig agrees:

“Throughout my career I sought to be more than just a cog in the wheel,” the retired architect explained.  “In every position I had I wanted to make sure I was working within the rules but with as much of a leaning toward sustainability as possible.  I’ve always admired the work that Kuma has and continues to do in this field, in particular with his focus on the use of local materials to provide a sense of ‘healing and ease,’ to those who ultimately use them.  it doesn’t hurt that his eye for design is incredibly aesthetically pleasing!”

A fascinating recent report called the Charitable Giving in the USA 2019 report sheds some light on Americans and their giving patterns. According to the report, 62% of American surveyed gave money in the last 12 months. This is up from 55% the year before. They also found that people are giving more of their time and energy (not just their money) as more than 35% of people volunteered last year (while 31% did in 2017).

The mean amount that was donated last year was $461, which was a rise from the previous amount of $382. Learn more about the findings and how people are giving today.